Alkmaar AZ coach Louis van Gal, who worked at Ajax and Bars, is a fan of total football. He describes his understanding of the term coined by Rinus Michels as follows: “When playing total football, your team determines the course of the match and dominates the field, creating more dangerous moments than the opponent, and definitely prefers to attack than to defend. Playing on defense, the team can hold back the opponent’s offensive potential and limit the space for attack, but it will not be able to control the course of the match. The essence of total football is to attack and, thus, determine the course of events on the field. ”
Clubs playing in the Dutch championship usually prefer a 4-3-3 set up. However, even three goal-oriented attackers are no guarantee that the team is playing total football. “Take, for example, PSV. - continues Van Gal. - Eindhovens play very discreet football. Usually they control the ball for a long time, but not the game, because they do not press on the other side, rolling back to their goal immediately after losing the ball. I understand total football differently. In my opinion, this is a constant, ongoing pressure on the players of an alien team, excluding the possibility of them making decisions that determine the game. We must attack all the time! It’s not for nothing that the fans love bright, offensive football - because this means that their team is succeeding. ”
When Marco van Basten became the head coach of the Dutch national team, he said that the decisive factor in determining tactics for a match would be not the strength of the opponent, but the state of his team. It does not matter in what form the conditional Pogrebnyak is - the main thing is whether Bularuz is ready for the match. With this setting, the most important point is the emergence of trust between the coach and the player. If Van Basten lets someone out in the first team, then he must fully trust the player’s ability to complete the task. And no matter what class a football player will confront him with. “At the national team level, playing total football is not so easy,” van Gal believes. - Van Basten is guided by the right preparation strategy, but, unfortunately, has already taken a number of incorrect decisions. For example, Rud van Nistelrooy could help the team. But if van Basten does not trust this player, then he should not put him in the squad. ”
Scheme 4-3-3, so beloved by Dutch coaches, is, according to van Gal, optimal. “This is the most flexible and effective arrangement,” says the trainer. - Inside such a scheme, there are a huge number of variations with which you can achieve the desired result. Let's start with the main thing - the location of the central midfielder. Most teams prefer to “push” it deeper, closer to their goal (Figure 1), while I advocate pushing it forward (Figure 2). ”
Figure 1 Figure 2
“If you need to connect a player from defense to attack, the forward midfielder advanced will not stop him. If the centerhav plays from behind, then he will have to move out of the way of the defender. In addition, from the “retracted” midfielder to the attackers too far. With this arrangement, the forwards are isolated from the rest of the team. Only a very skilled midfielder will be able to connect the attack with the defense, controlling such an impressive zone. Therefore, I prefer to push it forward. ”
Van Gal does not deny the existence of a much more common 4-4-2 set up, but does not hesitate to criticize it. “Playing according to this scheme, team players line up in only three, maximum four lines (Figure 3). My tactics implies the presence of six lines (Figure 4). From a mathematical point of view, the 4-3-3 formation has much more opportunities for a pass - both in attack and defense. In addition, the players are located closer to each other, and giving an exact pass is much easier. A game with a lot of lines allows you to better restrain your opponent. ”
Figure 3 Figure 4
According to van Gal, the Dutch coaching school is one of the best in the world. Guus Hiddink leads outsiders to the finals of the world championship. And Frank Rikard coaches the best European team last season. “Ricard competently adapted the Dutch scheme to Spanish realities. Barca actually plays according to the 4-3-3 scheme, and most importantly, it follows the rule of total football: if you want to win, keep the thread of the game in your hands. But want to know how to beat Barcelona? You need to use the same arrangement against her, but with one nuance. The Catalans play with the “retracted” defensive midfielder, leaving a lot of free space in the center of the field. They also constantly pressure the opponent who owns the ball, freeing up even more space for the opponent (Figure 5). ”
Figure 5
“If you free yourself from the pressure of Barca by giving a competent pass into the free zone, you can cut off half a team. Adhering to this tactic, the Catalans can beat even AZ, despite the disparate class of players. Tactics are the main thing. ”