Lessons for Brazil (1 Viewer)

[Zé Tahir]

All those coaches looking for a way to take on Brazil next year will do well to pay attention to Barcelona's stunning 3-0 victory away to Real Madrid last Saturday.

Real coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo has introduced one of the basic patterns of contemporary Brazilian football to his team.

Luis Figo was allowed to move on because specialist wide midfielders were now surplus to requirements.

During the course of the game there are times when Beckham or Zidane will move out to the touchline, and Robinho can attack wide on both sides.

But the space down the flanks is mainly left free for the constant bursts of the full-backs.

The great Argentine coach Cesar Luis Menotti once made the comment that if the full-backs push forward twice in the course of a game they will surprise the opposition twice.

If they push forward six times they will surprise once, and if they push forward twenty times they won't surprise at all.

The Brazilian full-backs don't work on surprise. You know that they are coming.

Cafu and Roberto Carlos get by on sheer athleticism and talent, and their presence in the opposing half stretches the defence and creates more space for their fantastic forwards.

They are the team's main 'out' ball at the start of the move. But what if the 'out' ball never comes?

In the first half on Saturday Barcelona did a wonderful job of blocking the pass to the full-backs.

They put pressure on the ball and time after time forced Real into a dangerous pass square across a condensed midfield.

And when Barcelona attacked they launched their moves in the space behind Real's full-backs, Messi cutting in from the right and Ronaldinho from the left.

Not picked up early, allowed to run at the centre backs, once they had picked up momentum they were very hard to stop - especially Ronaldinho in that inspired spell when he scored the second goal going inside Helguera and the third going outside Sergio Ramos.

Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira was in the stands at the Bernabeu on Saturday.

He must have been reflecting on whether any of next year's World Cup opponents will be as bold as Barcelona, bold enough to turn one of Brazil's strengths - the full-backs - into a weakness.

But his overwhelming feeling must have been one of relief - that Ronaldinho Gaucho will be on his side, ripping holes in the opponent's defence and not his own.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_football/4455834.stm

 

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[Lawnchair Bes]

great article

i have always wondered how do the brazilians manage with no full backs

 

[swag]

Very nice article. Interesting to hear about some of the detailed tactics that Barca pulled. Every strategy has its counter-strategy. It will be interesting to see how Real, and perhaps even Brazil NT if someone takes advantage of them similarly, will react with their weaknesses so publicly exposed.

 

[Zé Tahir]

Very nice article. Interesting to hear about some of the detailed tactics that Barca pulled. Every strategy has its counter-strategy. It will be interesting to see how Real, and perhaps even Brazil NT if someone takes advantage of them similarly, will react with their weaknesses so publicly exposed.

You think this was a "secret"? You would think some of the big coaches out there would have picked up on this, no?

 

[swag]

You think this was a "secret"? You would think some of the big coaches out there would have picked up on this, no?

Hardly a secret! -- more like witnessing a team actually capitalizing on it. A theory is only as good as the piece of paper it's written on until someone can prove it in practice.

Now proving it yourself takes talent at least as much as tactics. It was significant enough for Real to set player strategies for how they dealt with Figo by it. It will be interesting to see if counter-strategies form for competition in the likes of Valencia, Betis, etc.

 

[Bjerknes]

I really do not think this is much of a secret...anybody who watches these sides regulary know both Real and Barcelona take huge risks by letting both fullbacks push up essentially as wingers. If you shut them down on the flanks and cover the passing lanes in the middle of the park, they will eventually give the ball away and that just leaves two center backs and a defensive midfielder to cope with the onrushing attackers.

Jose Mourinho figured this out last year at Stamford Bridge when Rijkaard kept sending Belletti and Van Bronkhorst recklessly forward, and Chelsea was able to strike hard and quick on the counterattack after ridiculous giveaways in midfield. I guess Rijkaard learned from his past mistakes and for this reason I think Barcelona has a much greater chance of winning the Champions League this year compared to last.

So yeah, this was certainly no secret...doesn't take a Mourinho to figure it out either.

 

[JCK]

Ancelotti is trying to use the same thing actually.

 

[swag]

Ancelotti is trying to use the same thing actually.

Milan, to a significant extent, is a wannabe Brazil squad anyway.

 

[Zé Tahir]

Milan, to a significant extent, is a wannabe Brazil squad anyway.

yea totally agree with that. I guess the only thing they try to keep italian is their defense, not even that uke:

 

[Eddy]

Great article

 

[Hambon]

Milan, to a significant extent, is a wannabe Brazil squad anyway.

i just wanna Emphasize Wannabe again...