re: Spurs did go in the history books tonight

No, the league always had teams that were defensive minded. But with the possession game being revolutionized since 2005, you also see teams adapting. The English managers haven't really adapted. It's been mostly foreign managers who've brought in the new ideas. Teams defend thinking about the overloads everywhere on the pitch, not just at the back. In the old days, if your opponent played a 4-4-2, you would play a 3-5-2 to keep a spare man at the back, and have a spare man at midfield. Jose came in and played a 4-3-3 which he deployed in a low block. Suddenly you had three players high up the pitch if the ball was won instead of two. So the 3 man back lines disappeared even if teams deployed two strikers. The mismatch came in the center of the field, where you wanted 3 midfielders to match 3 midfielders. Once that happened you wanted fullbacks that were basically like central midfielders except with crossing ability and the ability to link with their winger to create overloads.

As hendersonhands noted, English teams are trying to develop a possession game, which leads to a lot of shitty possession teams who can't really hold the ball. LC took advantage of this, as well as the fact that Man U didn't progress despite it looking like they would, and Chelsea regressing.

So it is not good or bad for the league, it is just the way things go. The level of attacking play isn't very high though. Teams aren't as direct now but they don't know what to do with the ball when they get it.

quote:

---

eague always had teams that were defensive minded. But with the possession game being revolutionized since 2005, y

---

How has the possession game been revolutionalized since 2005?

The change in the offside law which meant a player previously in an offside position was onside as long as the ball wasn't intended for him. It meant teams dropped deeper in order to prevent balls over the top, which opened space in front of goal, which allowed the possession game to flourish.

The False 9, a nightmare for every British commentator.

"Barceloner are a great team but what they need to do is get a true number 9 in there and hit more crosses."

quote:

---

Message
Spurs did go in the history books tonight by hendersonshands
Barcelona and Spain basically ran a train on the world for a 5 or so year stretch by keeping possession at an 80% rate.

---

Which had me confused when I read LC was first team to ever win epl with less than 50% possession. Not sure what to make of it.

It is slightly hard to explain. A player who is behind the defensive line but not offside because he is not part of the play can easily become part of the play if a ball is hit over the top to another player who squares the ball to him. In effect he is only offside with respect to where the ball is played.

It is a minute difference but teams reacted by playing deep so as to ensure no ball played over the top would result in an easy goal-scoring chance. Since they played deep (before teams like Arsenal played very high up the field, nearly all the attacking teams did, as it limited the space afforded the opposition), they created space in front of them rather than behind them.

LINK

The link above explains it better than I can.

Not sure what Arsene sees in the high block honestly. We could be a great counter attacking team that possesses when appropriate. Low block seems much more suited to Per's slow arse.