From Complete Soccer to catenaccio to tiki-taka, techniques are always evolving, writes Harry McMullen.
Every philosophy usually spreads worldwide, trickles down the soccer pyramid and establishes itself because the norm. Then the subsequent one emerges to brush it away.
Whereas Jurgen Klopp didn’t invent gegenpressing, it was his Borussia Dortmund facet that established it as the brand new norm in world soccer. By the point his refined model ended Liverpool’s Premier League trophy drought in 2020, groups had been racing to assemble their very own heavy metallic lineups.
However with the gegenpress now over 10 years previous, does it nonetheless work?
Going Inter element
When Man Metropolis met Inter within the 2023 Champions League remaining, it appeared a easy conflict of kinds. Pep Guardiola’s facet are one of many world’s finest groups with the ball, whereas the Nerazzurri 5-3-2 makes up a world-class deep defence.
Then it kicked off and Metropolis had been instantly pinned again by Inter’s aggressive press.
This sudden method upset Metropolis’s sport plan and stored issues aggressive till half-time, when Metropolis might regulate. However the sport demonstrated that, in 2023, each crew in world soccer should be able to taking part in with a excessive press – even when solely towards particular opponents.
If each crew can play a excessive press, it’s not sufficient to base your complete identification round being a ‘urgent crew.’
In reality, it’s now not sufficient to base your identification round dominating anyone section of play. That’s why Louis van Gaal failed at Man United, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte struggled at Tottenham, and Newcastle’s ceiling this season was fourth.
Liverpool need to be greater than a urgent crew to compete on the elite degree.
The following evolution
The place do tactical revolutions come from?
Usually, they’re an answer to the issues attributable to the present tactical pattern. Tiki-taka was used to prise aside cussed catenaccio defences. Gegenpressing was a response to the way in which tiki-taka dominated the ball – creating panic to affect the passer, and forcing usually smaller and extra technical gamers into uncomfortable bodily duels.
It’s no shock then that the present tactical tendencies are all in response to gegenpressing. Groups now anticipate to be pressed, so the emotional facet of chasing the ball relentlessly has been diluted. Gamers are additionally now empowered with clearer directions on what to do when pressed to make sure they keep the ball.
Actual Madrid play effectively towards urgent groups thanks to 2 components.
The primary is psychological; the excessive confidence that gamers draw from the mystique of the white shirt makes it simpler for a lot of Madrid gamers to deal with intense stress. However there’s additionally a tactical resolution – they merely go the ball away from stress.
This sounds easy, however there’s a wise tactic that makes it attainable: dropping all 4 defenders deep throughout buildup.
Having 4 gamers alongside the goalkeeper means opponents should both commit half their crew forwards, leaving area in behind, or enable Madrid a sideways or backwards go out of hassle.
We noticed this for Madrid’s winner towards Liverpool within the 2022 Champions League remaining, analysed in additional element right here.
Briefly, a easy backwards go away from Andy Robertson urgent 60 yards up the pitch created area for Madrid to work the ball behind him, pull the defence throughout, after which swap to the again put up for a tap-in.
A extra intricate resolution, which once more depends on gamers anticipating to be pressed, has been dubbed baiting the press. Popularised by Roberto de Zerbi’s Brighton this season, gamers are drilled extensively on exact patterns to navigate numerous types of stress.
An enchanting perception from Lewis Dunk on how Brighton play out from the again ? pic.twitter.com/AnDeR573Uo
— Sky Sports activities Premier League (@SkySportsPL) Might 4, 2023
Successfully, it’s a case of ‘we all know the place the stress’s coming from, so we all know what our choices are.’
Brighton are actively utilizing the opposition press to create pockets of area, then exploiting that area with pre-determined passing sequences.
This usually leads to 3v3s or overloads within the attacking third, that are often the results of counter assaults.
But Brighton‘s baiting of the press creates these profitable probabilities to attain with out risking the chaos of an precise counterattack. We name these synthetic transitions and so they’ve already been adopted by the likes of Chelsea and Man Metropolis this season.
Groups now have quite a lot of methods to play towards the press with out feeling the stress.
What does this imply for Liverpool?
“Counter urgent is and all the time would be the ticket into this crew,” stated Klopp after the 6-1 demolition of Leeds.
It’s clear that Liverpool will all the time attempt to regulate video games with their depth off the ball, which is why a lot switch focus this summer season has been on reviving their misfiring midfield.
However the important thing phrase is management. Gegenpressing in its purest kind is about creating chaotic, emotional, end-to-end video games with many probabilities to attain.
Liverpool did that final 12 months, which resulted in wins just like the 7-0 vs Man United and the 4-3 towards Tottenham. However the identical method led to the 5-2 defeat vs. Madrid, the 4-1 defeat to Man Metropolis and, considerably, the 4-4 draw with Southampton.
Elite groups now management video games by combining intense urgent off the ball with suffocating possession play.
It’s truly simpler to successfully counter-press when you’ve the ball for many of the sport, and solely have to press arduous in brief bursts to win it again. That’s why the 2021/22 classic got here so near the quadruple: the steadiness of management on the ball and depth off it was virtually good.
The very subsequent season, that steadiness was off, and most of the gamers who seemed so good immediately seemed a lot worse. Gamers don’t dramatically decline in a single day.
However components comparable to Liverpool’s new form that began the marketing campaign, plus the combination of extra direct gamers like Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez, upset the steadiness of Liverpool’s sport and massively decreased the effectiveness of their urgent.
Fortunately, the signing of Alexis Mac Allister, plus the emergence of Stefan Bajcetic and Curtis Jones have outfitted Liverpool with extra gamers who can preserve the ball and play smart passes.
With additional signings and extra work in pre-season, Liverpool might effectively restore their steadiness of persistence and directness on the ball – which can in flip restore the effectiveness of their urgent.
Conclusion
“Counter urgent just isn’t a proposal, it’s a regulation,” reads one other Klopp mantra.
Clearly, it should stay a part of Liverpool’s identification – recent legs and renewed depth shall be cultivated to enhance it.
However with extra opponents adept at urgent themselves, and a extra full tactical toolbox now required on the highest degree, the Reds can now not depend on gegenpressing alone. It should now kind a part of a extra complete plan to “conquer the ball” and win soccer matches.
