Re: 'No one stops the ball: it's all shoot, shoot, shoot'

I thought I'd post this reply to an article from the Guardian Unlimited website.

My first (over) reaction to Carlos Bilardo's views was "b*ll*cks, this guy's a moron", especially when he said "I honestly think these teams would struggle to fight for third or fourth position in Argentina".

But after thinking about it, I think I can understand the point he's trying to make (although I still disagree The Big Four would struggle in Argentina, especially if the climate wasn't a factor).

The points he seems to be making (judging from the couple of quotes the writer has used, who knows what else he said?) is that English teams lack technique, and that because of this the football is either not as effective as Argentinian football (hence the "these teams would struggle to fight for third or fourth position in Argentina" remark) or that it not as enjoyable to watch.

I would concede that teams overall in the Premiership aren't as technical as their counterparts in other leagues; however you still need certain abilities (or put another way, talents) to make it in the Premiership, such as pace, strength, quick thinking, which not all players have.
Because of this there have been talented players who have struggled in the Premiership because they lack some or all of these abilities.
The best example of this is probably Veron, arguably a great player in Argentina and Italy, he just couldn't cope in the Premiership because he needed more time and space to influence the game, something he couldn't get in the Premiership. Other examples include Forlan (another South American) and more recently Shevchenko; I definitely believe if Shevchenko had stayed in Serie A he would still be banging in the goals today, but in the Premiership he looks less than half the player he once was.

This style of football is usually exemplified best by teams like Blackburn, Bolton (under Allardyce), and to an extent Chelsea (I say to an extent because Chelsea, under Mourinho, were far better tactically and technically than the others).

I've watched these teams regularly beat far more technical Arsenal teams, even in matches Arsenal have dominated through their technique.

Bilardo also says "If you watch English football, what they do well is delivery from the defence to the midfield. But the tendency is always to return to the area. And no stopping, no one stops the ball. It's all shoot, shoot, shoot... From here to there, from the first minute to the 90th, all running, running, running. One touch, gone. A touch, gone. It's like tennis."

While there are some matches in the Premiership that leave a lot to be desired, I personally feel that when football is played one touch at a high pace (which teams like Arsenal and Sevilla do, two of the most admired teams in Europe), football is far more enjoyable than some of the strolling, pass-pass-pass football Channel 5 showed last year from Argentina.
And interestingly, it actually takes technical players to be able to play fast one-touch football, which makes Bilardo's comment a little confusing.

He also made this comment on the weekend after he saw a player that does stop the ball, and does so regularly: Cesc Fabregas.
All last year and this year I've seen Fabregas take a ball from the midfield, move it sideways from an opposition player to buy a little time, look up and then hit a glorious 30 yard ball to a player making a run ahead of him.
I can't remember if he did this against Derby (he did make a couple of very good long passes to Adebayor, but can't remember if he actually stopped the ball as Bilardo demands).

Finally, a little off the original point, but this excerpt from sampras14's post got me thinking:
"probably because of the many foreign manager and EPL have become a much better league to watch even if the EPL still have a lot to learn from the Serie A about tactics and from the Primera about technical skills. These two leagues could, in turn, learn a lot from the EPL about pace and strength..."

This is the great thing about European club competitions like the UEFA Cup and the Champions League (for all it's elitism); they go beyond just a clash of countries but also a clash of footballing styles - Italian tactical nous vs. Spanish technique vs. English physicality.

Football is certainly a sport that encourages stereotypes...