The Godfather of Football

Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti personally traveled to South America and came to Argentina to watch Brazil's first match against Venezuela, but it was obvious that Sandro did not bring good luck. Even though the Brazilian midfielder has recently received much media attention for returning to Tottenham Hotspur, Menezes did not give him even a minute of playing time.

In the end, Brazil tied 0:0 with Venezuela, and the latter showed a Europeanized defensive tactical system that was not common in South American teams in the past. This is indeed the characteristic of some South American teams in recent years.

As Ye Qiu said, the Premier League is integrating the tactical system and style of the European continent, and the teams in South America are also integrating the tactical style of the European continent. In some places in Europe, such as Spain and Portugal, it seems to be integrating more Latin American football. This is a kind of integration.

On the basis of the original advantages, further integrating the advantages and specialties of the other party, and then evolving into a new style and type, improving one's own strength, this is a kind of progress, and it is also the pursuit of countless head coaches.

Looking back at the history of football over the past century, in 1912, Englishman Jimmy Hogan crossed the English Channel to the Netherlands and brought modern football concepts to the European continent. Later, with his footprints in Hungary, Germany, Austria and other countries, he brought modern football concepts to Central Europe, and his disciples included Hungarian international Kushner.

At that time, Jimmy Hogan's philosophy was to control the ball. Whether it was a long pass or a short pass, these were not the focus. He believed that the most important thing about controlling the ball was to handle the ball at the right time and the moment of receiving the ball. This was his core concept, and these are actually still affecting football tactics on the European continent even now.

For example, the effective ball possession rate mentioned by Ye Qiu was actually derived from this.

Kushner inherited Jimmy Hogan's ideas. This football coach from Hungary who couldn't even speak Portuguese brought the European WM formation to Brazil and innovated the WM tactics. He began to emphasize diagonal attacks, which was regarded as an important innovation for the continuous emergence of Brazilian wing talent.

At that time, there was another very outstanding coach in the UK, Peter McWilliam, who created the so-called passing tactics in Newcastle. He inspired English players on how to cooperate. Later, he went to Tottenham Hotspur and trained three successors. Among them, Arthur Rowe, one of the greatest coaches in the history of Tottenham Hotspur, and later Bill Nicholson inherited his set of ideas and thoughts and carried them forward.

Another successor of McWilliam was the very famous football master Bobby Robson, who brought the passing and running ideas to the Netherlands and Spain in continental Europe. In addition, Nicholson also coached in Barcelona.

But whether it was Jimmy Hogan or McWilliam, or those successors who promoted their football ideas to the world, the football tactics at that time were still very primitive, and offensive players often easily obtained a lot of space and a lot of ball holding time, so that was the golden age that all offensive players dreamed of.

Until the end of the 1960s, Maslov, a meritorious coach from Dynamo Kyiv, pioneered the oppressive style of play, which made football more exciting. The all-out attack and defense concept inherited from Jack Reynolds, Beckenbauer, Michels and Cruyff also matured in the Netherlands and Germany and achieved amazing results.

If we look at it from the perspective of modern football tactics, it is not difficult to find that the modern European mainstream tactics are a fusion of Maslov's oppressive style and the all-out attack and defense style. The difference is that different people have different understandings of football. Some tend to be more oppressive, while others tend to be more offensive.

Sacchi is another great head coach who combines these two tactical concepts. He adopts a high oppressive style of play, but his team's play is never ugly, because he also advocates the concept of all-out attack and defense to launch an attack, and he is one of the best head coaches in the fusion of the two.

Now, whether it is Guardiola of Barcelona, ​​Ye Qiu, Wenger, or even Ferguson, Van Gaal, Mourinho, etc., almost all the head coaches' tactics are derived from the achievements of their predecessors. They are just innovating and improving under the ideas of their predecessors.

From the history of football in the past 100 years, tactical theories have always been passed down from generation to generation. Now, the most basic theory of football, for Ye Qiu, Ferguson, Van Gaal, Guardiola or Mourinho, almost everyone knows the same basic football theory, which is inherited from the predecessors in the past 100 years.

So why are there so many differences?

In other words, different people will have different views on the same thing, and even the same person will have different views on the same thing at different times, places and environments. When this view is magnified, it may even be understood by outsiders as two different extremes.

But its most essential thing is actually the same thing.

Among the current head coaches, there is one person who must be mentioned, and that is Marcelo Bielsa, the former head coach of the Chilean national team. Although his coaching results are not ideal, he has been trying hard all his life to integrate crazy oppression and pressing with gorgeous and smooth offensive football, and he is also trying hard for this.

Bielsa once said, "The Menotti era advocated creativity in the overall situation, while Bilardo carefully paid attention to every detail, and my philosophy is to take the third path and pursue the overall situation. While being creative, he pays careful attention to every detail.”

Bielsa also refuted his unsatisfactory coaching performance. He said that if the players could execute according to his tactical arrangements, they would win every game. The reason for the failure was that the players lacked sustained and stable performance. , and sometimes there are huge ups and downs in a game.

Bielsa's philosophy is also a fusion!

Over the past many years, many people have said that Bielsa is stubborn and always sticks to his perseverance, but they have never seen that his coaching philosophy has changed. He has become more particular about change and efficiency, rather than being like a coach. As in the past, they always emphasized aggression and tried to suppress their opponents for a long time.

In fact, Bielsa once said in an interview with the media that he prefers Ye Qiu's Tottenham Hotspur to Guardiola's Barcelona, ​​even though many elements of the former are in line with his taste. He thinks Barcelona The philosophy of keeping the ball for long periods of time to suppress opponents is the same as in his earlier years, lacking in durability because players are not machines.

On the contrary, Ye Qiu's offensive football that emphasizes technique, change, and efficiency makes him very interesting. However, he once criticized it when he was coaching the Chilean national team, thinking that Tottenham Hotspur had achieved a lot of success and success. After the brilliance, they lost a spirit, which showed on the court, Tottenham Hotspur lacked impact.

"The emergence of Gareth Bale really made everyone's eyes brighter, but his skills and ball handling deviated from Tottenham Hotspur's overall pursuit, so he was sent to Real Madrid by Ye Qiu. There is a certain reason, but it is also very regrettable and regrettable, because the impact of the latter left a very deep impression on people.”

Obviously, in Bielsa's view, football tactics are no longer just about offense and defense, nor just high-intensity pressure and smooth ball control, but more of a fusion.

The unpredictable rhythm changes, high-speed and concise passing maintain a stable success rate and exquisite coordination, and at the same time reflect a high level of creativity. Players complete excellent runs and replacements in high-speed offense and defense. To achieve the purpose of oppression and attack, this is what he wants to pursue.

It can be said that this is a fusion of previous tactical concepts.

Almost everyone around the world spoke highly of the Chilean team that Bielsa worked hard to build in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, because that group gathered mid-to-lower teams from the four major European leagues, or the reputation of the second-tier league. The Chilean team, composed of inconspicuous players, played the most gorgeous offensive football in the South African World Cup. As a result, Bielsa once again became the focus of fans around the world.

The reason is very simple. Coaching a wealthy team and leading a group of outstanding top players to play hearty offensive football is not a great skill, but leading a little-known team to play a full game that impresses everyone. Art and glamor of attacking football, that's what it's about.

There is also a misunderstanding that many fans have that must be mentioned here, and that is technology.

As admired by Michels and Cruyff, they believe that technology does not need to be cultivated, and tactical awareness is the key. This does not mean that they despise technology, but that they believe that technology can be acquired through repeated training. Improved, so that's what they say about throwing the ball to him and he'll do it himself.

Gufren's scientific training emphasizes that delicate foot skills can be cultivated through acquired training, mainly by cultivating a sense of the ball to improve players' foot skills.

Of course, at first glance, it seems that the two are completely different and completely opposite, but in fact they are both expounding a point of view, that is, whether a player's skills are exquisite or not has a lot to do with his training.

Just as many people will think, why did Gattuso seem to be in the technical school in the later stages of his career?

Or you might think that there are many players like Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes, Vieira, etc. At a certain period of time, their foot skills suddenly seemed to improve. Why didn't this happen before? How does it feel?

Another example is Cristiano Ronaldo. Everyone will be surprised to say that when he first landed in the Premier League, his skills were very delicate and very good, just like juggling. But now it seems that his skills are very practical, but he gives people a very good feeling. It's rough, it feels like you're playing football with a strong body, what's going on?

These are all related to the players' training and their positioning.

Gattuso, Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes and others were very active when they were young. They could rely on their bodies to play football. However, when they reach a certain age, they will start to find that their bodies cannot adapt to their physical needs. Without realizing it, they need to transform at this time, change their technical style, and change to a way of playing that their body can accept.

Cristiano Ronaldo is another type. When he landed in the Premier League, Ferguson began to try to use him to find out his strengths and weaknesses. Finally, he fell in love with his sprint speed, so he began to shape him and let him He strengthened training in this area in a targeted manner.

Everyone knows that with Cristiano Ronaldo's height, if he improves his leg strength and upper body strength, his body flexibility will decrease, especially the ankle strength, because many technical players will be violated, and ankle protection training is very important.

The decline in flexibility, especially the flexibility of the feet, makes many foot techniques that were used when they were young no longer available, and the lack of training in this area has made Cristiano Ronaldo what he is now.

If you pay more attention to the media, it is not difficult to find that Cristiano Ronaldo trains more in the gym, and even his home has a well-equipped gym for his own training. It can be seen that he positions himself in this way, so the decline in foot techniques is not surprising.

The misunderstanding of many fans is that they mistakenly believe that technology is a craft that will never change once it is learned, but they ignore the environment, especially the tactical environment of the team, which will refine and change a player, which may make their skills more refined, but it may also make their skills more rough.

Just like Lucas Leiva, he was an offensive and defensive player in Brazil, and he kept this style when he came to Tottenham Hotspur, but when he went to Liverpool, he began to become a rough, highly aggressive defensive midfielder, and his footwork obviously deteriorated.

There is also Sandro. Remember that Sandro in Ye Qiu's previous life was an offensive and defensive player in Brazil. Later, he went to Tottenham Hotspur and gradually turned into a slightly bulky beast-waisted player, but now, he has been sent to Ajax by Tottenham Hotspur. He basically maintains the style of play in Brazil, while making himself offensive and defensive, but obviously still plays a defensive power style.

Ye Qiu has a complete plan for Sandro. After joining Tottenham Hotspur, he will let Sandro further improve his physical flexibility, because no matter how Tottenham Hotspur's overall tactics change, emphasizing technology and fast-paced passing and receiving, as well as more flexible interspersed running, it is destined that Tottenham Hotspur will not want that kind of bulky defensive player.

Is this difficult?

No, it's not difficult at all. Just let Peter Brandt tailor a set of physical training for him. After a period of time, he will naturally be able to meet Ye Qiu's requirements.

Another typical example is that Ye Qiu made a special trip with Mauro Tassotti to San Juan, Argentina, to watch the first round of the group match of the America's Cup Group C, Arturo Vidal.

When this Chilean player joined Leverkusen in the summer of 2007, he joined as a versatile defender. At that time, he was obviously rough in stopping the ball, especially in handling the ball, although he had the dribbling ability that all South American players generally have.

But as he gradually took shape in Leverkusen, Vidal's physical fitness underwent certain adjustments and changes. He began to no longer focus on physical strength confrontation, but emphasized more on flexibility, and also strengthened the technical level, so that he gradually moved forward from the defensive position in the midfield and became a very comprehensive central midfielder.

From Vidal, it can be clearly seen that the shaping of players is based on the tactical needs of the team.

Of course, this also depends on whether it is valuable, how difficult it is to achieve, etc.

Today, Chile still maintains the tactical system left over from the Bielsa period. They are indeed superior to all other teams in South America in terms of off-ball running ability and awareness.

In the match between Chile and Mexico, the Mexican players' passes often seemed to be passed directly to the feet of the Chilean players. This seems to be a pass error by the Mexican players, but if the number is relatively small, you will believe it, but the question is, so many pass errors?

This is obviously not the case, but the Chilean players consciously move and cut through the overall off-ball running, while pressing the offensive lines of the Mexican players, and their ability to read the game to move and cut, thereby achieving this scene effect that seems to be passed to themselves by the opponent.

This is the same as the goalkeeper. Many fans watch the striker shoot, it seems that the angle is too straight, or it just hits the goalkeeper's arms directly, they will complain, oh, why didn't it hit a little bit?

In fact, it's not that they didn't play well, but that they played well, but the goalkeeper's position was better.

The running ability of this group of Chilean players is indeed excellent. They can maintain a breathtaking, fast-paced state throughout the game, but they also have strong rapid advancement, skillful one-kick and wall-to-wall cooperation.

The extremely strong offensive desire, wild impact, unrestrained creativity, dazzling team cooperation, and rigorous overall high-intensity pressure tactics, and even a genius flash of inspiration from time to time, all of which are reflected in Chile, and Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti, who came to San Juan, are very excited.

Although the leader is no longer Bielsa, Ye Qiu is still very clear that this is still Bielsa's team.

"Bielsa is indeed a great head coach!" Mauro Tassotti said sincerely.

Ye Qiu had seen Bielsa's Chile perform in the South Africa World Cup. Now, when he looks at the Chile in the America's Cup, it is a little different from that time. Or it should be said that the current Chile is more mature, especially some players, such as Vidal, who was a defender at the time and now plays in the midfield, and Alexis Sanchez.

Of course, every team has a ceiling. Although the current Chilean team has a good style of play, it is still limited by the overall strength of the players. If they encounter a team with stronger overall strength or better tactical execution, they may not be sure to win.

As it turned out, Chile drew with Uruguay next. Although it quickly defeated Peru in the third round of the group and qualified from the group, it was defeated by Venezuela in the knockout round. The latter's style of play in this European Cup is a typical European defensive counterattack tactical play. Peru also pursues this style of play. Both teams have become dark horses in this America's Cup and have reached the semi-finals.

But these are all stories for the future. After Chile defeated Mexico 2:1 thanks to Vidal's goal at a crucial moment, Ye Qiu and Mauro Tassotti appeared at the hotel where the Chilean national team was staying.