soccer tactics The Evolution of Systems episode 1

The offside law was amended in 1925. From then on, attackers needed only two opponents between themselves and the goal line at the moment the ball was played. If justification for the rule change was needed, it emerged from the matches themselves.  The number of goals in the English First Division shot up 40 percent, from 1,192 in 1925 to 1,703 in 1926.

Defenses had to be strengthened, and Arsenal coach Herbert Chapman, who had taken over the London club in 1925, drew up a new tactical plan.

The center forward was doing the most attacking damage in the game, so Chapman dropped the center half to the position of fullback to mark him. This position became known as the”stopper“and represented the birth of the modern man-to-man marker style. Defensive responsibilities were now reassigned, with the original fullbacks moving wide to mark the wingers and the wing halves assigned to look after the inside forwards.

For the next 25 years, the new center back or “stopper” and the pivot of the other backs to provide cover and balance dominated the game. Basically, if the ball was with a winger, the outside back marked that player; the center back provided cover and the weak side back was concerned with balancing things.

Any system of play stands or falls with the men who put it into practice.soccer formations  Arsenal‘s W-M prevailed because of the genius of Chapman in finding the right players to fill the roles he had established. The key to the attacking success of Arsenal was in the playmaking abilities of one of the withdrawn inside forwards, Scotsman Alex James.

Chapman died in 1934, but between 1927 and 1938 the team that he built won the league championship five times and the FA Cup twice. By the late 1930‘s the W-M was the standard formation of every English club.

Outside of the English game, the attacking center half continued to flourish, particularly in Hungary,soccer strategy Austria and South America. In the first World Cup in 1930, both finalists, Argentina and Uruguay, utilized the 2-3-5 pyramid formation.

Artistry was the essence of the South American game, which often emphasized individual talent to decide games while collective tactics were minimized.  Asked  about  the  role  of coaching in  those  days,soccer drills  Uruguayan left  back  Ernesto Mascheroni replied, ”What are the coaches for? Only the player can solve the problems on the field.  What does a player do when he meets another who makes a fool of him? Ask the coach? “

The Uruguayans won the first Cup by the score of 4-2, and opinions were expressed that they were a better-organized team. With the score 3-2 and with Argentina doing all the attacking and soccer tactics,soccer positions Uruguay laid back and then used a quick counter to score on a breakaway.  This type of play now would become a tactic for some teams.

soccer tactics The Evolution of Systems episode 1