ES Soccer Thread

[Elessar78]

Explain this for me please.

Pressing is like a full court press. The idea, teams like Barca and Holland, chase the ball immediately after they lose the ball: Disrupt the build up and the opponents won't get a worthwhile attack going at the other end. All tactics, there's that word again, revolve around creating or destroying time and space (see why there's no new "tactics" just the application). With pressing you reduce the time and space in the opponent's half rather than your own, the thinking is that why wait to do it when you're already closer to the opponent's goal?

Rinus Michels, a great Dutch coach, said there's only two general systems in soccer: playmaking and counter-attacking (active or reactive). The pressing belongs in the active system. Counter attacking "lets" the opponent into your half, so your team can have room to counter into.

Further, who are the worst ball handlers on your team? Probably the defenders, so pressuring defenders makes more sense than midfielders becuase there's a greater chance they'll cough it up. Since the 90s there's been the no pass back rule, so after the ball is in play the goalkeeper cannot pick it up again (wasn't always the case). So when the other team is on a "full court press" they need to be able to pass back to the gk as a safety valve. But it's also momentary as soon as they pass back to the keeper the opponents will chase it down hoping the gk will cough it up.

Most youth teams will not pass back to the keeper but that's mainly because they stick guys who can't play with their feet in goal.

One of the most basic rules about passing back to the keeper is to not make a pass that IF THE KEEPER MISSES THE BALL it will not roll into your own net. ALWAYS make the pass wide of the goal.

Hope all this makes sense.

[Corcaigh]

Most youth teams will not pass back to the keeper but that's mainly because they stick guys who can't play with their feet in goal.

But imagine if you do have a keeper who can use their feet. It's like playing with 12.

[Elessar78]

Not saying they shouldn't. Just sayin' that, on this side of the pond, most of the youth soccer is a bit naive.

[Corcaigh]

Not saying they shouldn't. Just sayin' that, on this side of the pond, most of the youth soccer is a bit naive.

It's dependent on the personality of the coach and personnel. When teams reach the point where they are playing a higher level of opposition consistently, they have a choice. Being possession-oriented and having the ability to manage the game tempo in this way is one way to go.

[AsiaticSkinsFan]

you must not just press and ball chase tho

You push your backline higher up to congest the field, and a player presses their zone if the ball is there, while his teammates mark the passing options.

Pressing is usually done in your attacking half.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Hope all this makes sense.

It does, and as a matter of fact I was just reading about the "pass back" rule earlier today, our youth leagues haven't called that once in all the years I've been coaching (five years, eight seasons). I get why they put the rule in place, but it certainly seems like there is no small amount of convtroversy surrounding the law.

[Corcaigh]

It does, and as a matter of fact I was just reading about the "pass back" rule earlier today, our youth leagues haven't called that once in all the years I've been coaching (five years, eight seasons). I get why they put the rule in place, but it certainly seems like there is no small amount of convtroversy surrounding the law.

Before the law was introduced the defense could just kick the ball back to the keeper who could pick it up and hold it - total time wasting. Your youth leagues are allowing the keeper to pick the ball up from a deliberate back pass?

[AsburySkinsFan]

Before the law was introduced the defense could just kick the ball back to the keeper who could pick it up and hold it - total time wasting. Your youth leagues are allowing the keeper to pick the ball up from a deliberate back pass?

Yes....let's put it this way....it has NEVER been called by any ref in any game I've ever been involved in, but then I've never run into time wasting because the keepers always seem to get the ball down field.

[Corcaigh]

Yes....let's put it this way....it has NEVER been called by any ref in any game I've ever been involved in, but then I've never run into time wasting because the keepers always seem to get the ball down field.

It's possible that your league has modified rules. Leagues often like to do this. Maybe your commissioner was a keeper in the old days and didn't like the rule change.

[AsburySkinsFan]

It's possible that your league has modified rules. Leagues often like to do this. Maybe your commissioner was a keeper in the old days and didn't like the rule change.

Different leagues, various counties....nothing. (U6----U12)
I think if there was deliberate time wasting, i.e. pass back + keeper holding the ball for extended time then we'd probably see it.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Watching the 12/29
Sunderland v Tottenham Hotspur match. 2-1 Tot both within 10 minutes after the start of the second half.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 09:06 AM ----------

Wow! What an incredibly lucky save from the Sunderland keeper...staggering across his line got his hand up to block a shot from maybe 10 feet away!

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 09:30 AM ----------

Sunderland's defense is really tight, this match should be 4-1 right now if not for the defenders stepping up.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 09:39 AM ----------

Final. Good match but rather sloppy play with some cheap fouls given up by Tottenham.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 09:42 AM ----------

Next Manchester City v Norwich City.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Holy crap...Man City 1-0 1:22 into the match.

2-0 4 minutes in.....this could get ugly.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 10:17 AM ----------

2-1 The Canaries answer off an IFK just outside the box, foul should have never been called as the defender got his foot clearly on the ball.
Man City playing ticked-off now.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 10:48 AM ----------

Wow.....shoddy refs.
Yellow card on another legal tackle against Norwich....but then a red for a flick of a head-butt from Nasri.
Man City playing 1 man down.

2-1 Man City at the half.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Man City 3-1 with a man down, there is no doubt who the better club is in this match.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:19 AM ----------

BTW it must be noted that the fan singing is awesome, we must look like snarling barbarians in contrast.

[AsiaticSkinsFan]

Aston Villa have so far been outscored 14-0 during this Christmas period.

[AsburySkinsFan]

Nicely done Norwich flick header goal off a header from the cross.
3-2 Man City lead 63 min.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:27 AM ----------

Holy crap! Manchester City scores again!
4-2 but it will be scored as an own goal as it bounced off the keeper after he blocked the shot with his hand.
68 min in now.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:35 AM ----------

Norwich just won't go away, off the corner set piece into a mosh pit then off the keeper's head.
4-3 @76 minutes.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:44 AM ----------

This has turned into a much more physical match.
86 min.

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:49 AM ----------

Ok, I get the whole stalling when you're ahead thing, but the ref is just gonna tack the time on at the end, so why bother?

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:53 AM ----------

These are the sloooooooooooooowest substitutions by Man City I've ever seen, they could belly crawl and be off faster. Last guy off was thanking the refs as if it were the Academy Awards!

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 11:56 AM ----------

Awwww I feel bad for Norwich they really gave Man City a run for it.
4-3 final

---------- Post added December-29th-2012 at 12:19 PM ----------

Aston Villa have so far been outscored 14-0 during this Christmas period.

Yeah....that's not good. Looks like the fans started leaving really early from that match, just really bad.