The Debate, Manero

Is football becoming boring? That’s the sirens sounding in some quarters, players slaved to tactics and role play, stripped on independent thought process, is that the case? Imaginary pitch lines laid out in the players minds pre-match to operate within, zonal markings for sure, the RAFA Benitez concept, link to article June 2^nd 2021 ‘Defence Duties’, terminology entered into football’s methodology chapel, low block, high press, the dated zonal marking, the hybrid, that’s afforded to Trent Alexander-Arnold, managers addicted to generational technology, sidelined in the dugouts heads lost in laptops, if not the managers, the backroom staff engrossed in their silver screens, the former Wolves manager Gary O’Neil, a big student of one’s head lost in the space.

Punched out on the screens, which players are not covering the required klm on the blades of grass. Time to hook them off, fishing rods, throw in a few lemons and all that. Most definitely on the block is Robocop (VAR) the video assistant referees to serve the footballing public, to protect the laws of the game, to uphold the laws. To follow suit the first AI footballer, WD40 at hand, crushed, it’s all possible, any signing on fee required, that one’s for the future. The game used to be woven with maverick footballers inserted characters the great George Best, Rooney, Rodney Marsh, Tony Currie, Stan Bowles who would slip down the betting shop pre-match and the Southampton Saint Matt le Tissier who has since claimed on the conspiracy theory soundings, Le Tiss who can sound board on the sensibles but likes to throw in a few chicken heads, but is being versed in notoriety, bad seedlings, stick to the Simon Templers Matt, the halo above ones head to remain a saint.

It’s a mixed bag of fruit cocktail on this watch and into the managers domain, do they coach as they should do to be surrounded by a high numbered out backup staff (coaches) for the manager to make an appearance on a Wednesday for a spot of training, let’s not kid on the Milky Bars, this does occur. Cups of tea for the manager, press meetings, scouting inserted, contractual duties, a spot of work in the community, it’s all out there, layers to be careful of ones food intake, stats muddling the players’ minds, plays intaking on banned substances but ignored to be administered for medical reasons, the football association shisters linked with the Premier League ignore the failed drug tests ignored, it’s a big stink bomb, but it’s allowed to egg fume, no Conner Benn on this watch that’s for the boxing, just slapdash on the proverbials, the egg yolk that is, let it continue to stench.

Switch the fruit around, it’s all become crazed. The long gone breed of football mavericks to coincide with the deathly sounds of the outlawed wing play, the stats of players dribbling skills on the pitch are falling with players reluctant to take on their opponent with wing play wizardry. Thomas Tuchel remarked “I don’t understand”, it’s all out there Tommy but of course he knows this, just playing mind games with the press. The obsession with possession football came with the rise of Pep Guardiola’s stardom, Pep the pupil to total football rose at Barcelona, the mentor Johann Cruyff, the Cruyff mentor Rinus Michels, link to articles Feb 2^nd 2024 and Feb 29^th 2024 ‘Johann Cruyff Part 1 and 2. The Manchester City creation has dominated English football since Guardiola’s arrival, breathtaking football to watch, to become slow paced and boring now are the accusations with City looking to explore on entry to the opposition’s defensive zone, overstated criticism perhaps. The City bubble has been pierced this season, the hunger to continue on the same dial has abated to a degree, can City recover? Next season will tell the tale on that wagging moonshine, but there is another series of top billboarded teams ready to dismantle and take the challenge of Manchester City on with teams high pressing, restricting City’s movement from their backlines. Teams of the middle order in the Premiership, but within a rope’s pull of Champion League football, clubs are cavalry charging to change the Premiership dynamic. The so -called lesser lights of Brighton, Bournemouth and Fulham to name three, are teams who press with relentless fortitude, the eye of the tiger into City’s aspirations, to puncture, City’s recent decline is all part of this narrative.

Newcastle United and Aston Villa can switch tactics mid-match at the managers’ discretion to stretch beyond plan A. Arsenal can be added to the pressing stat with Manchester United and Crystal Palace of note employing the three centre backs. Counter attacking football is fast on the rise with Liverpool of past tense under Jurgen Klopp the kings of the counter attacks, under Arne Slot the attacks are more controlled, but still of a counter attack phase come transitional play. At Nottingham Forest, the Garibaldis resurgence has smacked everyone’s arses down blind alley with the counter attacks at breathtaking pace. To harp back to Manchester City with their build up play from the defence being diluted from seventy percent possession to sixty percent, the game is evolving at a fast rate. Of further not, teams are going more direct with the return of a proper number nine in team’s line ups, players of note, Alexander Isak at Newcastle, Chris Woods at Nottingham Forest, Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap, Brentford’s Yoane Wissa and Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta.

At Everton the traditional centre-forward Beto was starved of minutes under the previous manager Sean Dyche, but since David Moye’s arrival as the new incumbent, the Portuguese has been given playing time, all be it Dyche has a panache for the out and out centre-forward employing as mentioned Nottingham Forest’s Chris Wood who thrived in the position under Dyche’s management at Burnley. Dyche a pragmatic coach preferred Dominic Calvert Lewin who can drift to a false number nine and into the traditional forward role, but not to be termed under the same umbrella as the strikers mentioned. So why the difference under the Moyes management? Moyes has fashioned Everton to play in a calm more purposeful tactic linked, to shackle free from pressure, to play with freedom, to have the team play with more quality, to free up the forward pass movements, under Dyche the ball would be ping ponged either side of the lone forward, the difference with Beto is that he prefers the ball passed forward over the shoulder with the Portuguese’s running pattern, Moyes identified this, Dyche did not, it allows Beto to electrify on his pace, which came as a shock to many, Dyche strangled Beto’s qualities hence being strapped to the bench, the re-birth of a genuine number nine, the re-introduction of wide players come wingers to be hoped is sunsetting on the horizon and teams being coached to tone down Manchester City’s dominance, to splash City’s groundhog days, the debate could continue in football’s evolving sign of the times , no prince on this watch or little red Corvettes, just football’s evolving times.