http://www.zonalmarking.net/

jesus_thats_gre

Has anyone seen this site? Just tumbled across the site today and it makes for a heck of a read.

Just read this article and it's really enjoyable:

http://www.zonalmarking.net/2010/03/12/off-the-ball-movement-in-football-soccer/

Movement is not a new thing in football – as outlined by Jonathan Wilson in Inverting The Pyramid, the hallmark of the legendary Hungary side which famously beat England 6-3 in 1953 was their players’ tendency to drift out of their natural position and switch with teammates, thereby confusing the opposition about who they were supposed to be marking.

But there seems to have been a resurgence in the popularity and importance of ‘good movement’ in recent years. The main effect of good off-the-ball movement in modern football is that it draws the opposition out of position, hopefully creating space in a key area. If you’re a striker, being marked by a centre-back, then coming deep towards the play in midfield will either (a) leave you unmarked and free for a pass or (b) tempt the centre-back to follow you, therefore opening up space in the heart of the defence.

But (b) is only really effective if you have another player who can exploit the space. In the 4-4-2, a classic example of how movement worked was for one striker to drop deep, bring a centre-back with him, and then his strike partner would make a lateral run across the defence to move into the space created. But this is fairly basic; because attack and midfield were a considerable distance from each other in a 4-4-2, it was reasonably difficult for the two to interchange fluidly through movement.

The shift towards four-band formations has the natural effect of narrowing the gap between the forward(s) and any onrushing midfield players, meaning it is a lot easier to exploit the space created by the movement from a forward. Whereas in a 4-4-2 it was often simply a case of one forward assisting another, in a 4-2-3-1 formation, for example, a run from the lone striker can create space for one of three supporting players, with the widemen considerably closer than they would be in a 4-4-2.

And of course the reverse can apply (a winger creating space for a forward), there can be a knock-on effect (an attacking midfielder creating space for a more defensive midfielder) and with the advent of attacking full-backs, wide players often create space for full-backs on the overlap. In short, the fact that four band formations are naturally more fluid than three-band formations has increased the importance of movement.

The resurgence of focus on movement probably started with Arrigo Sacchi’s Milan side. As Paolo Maldini has said (also taken from ITP):

‘Before Sacchi came to Milan, the clash between two opposing players was always the key, but with him it was all about movement off the ball, and that’s where we won our matches’.

It should be understood in relation to other aspects of modern football – an increased focus on ball retention in midfield makes movement in attacking positions more valuable, whilst the increased pace of modern footballers and the tendency to play on the counter-attack (primarily because there is more space to exploit) have also contributed.

Good movement is important in all attacking positions, and the popularity of the lone striker has made it particularly vital for certain types of players who play in that role. A particular master of it was Pedro Pauleta (above), the Portuguese striker. Whereas ten years ago the primary aim of lone strikers was to hold the ball up, today they are increasingly concerned with making intelligent runs off the ball – hence why players such as Wayne Rooney and Liedson can be fielded on their own upfront, and this also partly explains the rise of the false nine.

D'Agger

Good read cheers!

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Thanks for that link, I love football theory.

jesus_thats_gre

Des wrote: »

Thanks for that link, I love football theory.

You should have a read of the book that he refers too - if you haven't already that is.

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"Inverting The Pyramid" is it?

I have some Amazon vouchers that I need to use, might pick it up.

Cheers.

JPA

Inverting the Pyramid is about the evolution of football tactics. It's very good, really interesting. Not so much about modern tactics if you are hoping to get some good ideas or whatever but will give you a greater appreciation for all things tactical.

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JPA wrote: »

Inverting the Pyramid is about the evolution of football tactics. It's very good, really interesting. Not so much about modern tactics if you are hoping to get good some ideas or whatever but will give you a greater appreciation for all things tactical.

Thanks for that quick and to-the-point review.

From looking at the reviews on Amazon, this seems to be a "must have".

Ordered, thanks a lot lads.

jesus_thats_gre

The one about Dutch football is very good too. Think it is called "Brilliant Orange". It as much about Dutch society as it is about football, which was a little unexpected, but it was still worth the read..

Am currently in the middle of "Why England Lose".

Vokes

Awesome website. Their recent Dunga / Brazil article is well worth a read too: http://www.zonalmarking.net/2010/03/03/analysing-brazils-fluid-system-at-close-quarters/

jesus_thats_gre wrote:

The one about Dutch football is very good too. Think it is called "Brilliant Orange". It as much about Dutch society as it is about football, which was a little unexpected, but it was still worth the read..

I second this. Great book.

leninbenjamin

I've been looking for a site like that for years. It's such a pain in the arse trawling through the newspapers for a decent analysis piece, so it's great to have a site dedicated to it! Nice find!

starbelgrade

jesus_thats_gre wrote: »

Am currently in the middle of "Why England Lose".

A whole book about why England lose? Sure, you could write that in one word... arrogance.

Jazzy

great site. love it

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I actually stopped watching the Barca match I got so engrossed in that site.

Top find.

me-skywalker

leninbenjamin wrote: »

I've been looking for a site like that for years. It's such a pain in the arse trawling through the newspapers for a decent analysis piece, so it's great to have a site dedicated to it! Nice find!

The times on a monday is a good read.

Pro. F

Great site this, thanks.

I like the way they seem to be quite even handed and when they're analysing tactics still keep in mind that there are also other things that are effecting the game (like individual skill and team motivation). Their piece on the Inter Chelsea game is really good and balanced.