While many will see Adil Rami as lucky to walk off the pitch at full time instead of through a red card, he had good words to say about Inter to Sky after the match: “It was very difficult for me because it was the first time I had played fullback. But this is me; courage and heart. I wanted to give everything because we had no alternative.”
“Were we content (to sit back)? No, no. They had good possession, they were good. They drew on our error, but we also could had the opportunity to win. There is time for third place.”
Source: Sky
Good to see Milan admit the fact that they weren’t happy to concede possession to Inter, means they weren’t in control at all.
This is news to us, controlling a game 😀
If we have to be honest, this is Mazzarri’s bequest. One of very few good things was that he always required to control the ball.
I’m all for credit where it’s due mate, been advocating that it’s not healthy to hate Mazzarri as much as many Interisti have been doing lately. He failed, yes, but it’s just not healthy to blame everything on the man, he’s not such a bad coach in general.
I also noticed Mancini noted one thing that Mazzarri has frequently said was a problem with Kovacic in the past – he’s got too many touches on the ball, he needs to release it faster, move it around to make it more difficult for defenses to track it.
Mazzarri isn’t stupid, it just didn’t work out for various reasons we will come to understand as time goes by.
But there was a difference in what Inter did today compared to most of Mazzarri’s games. You see, in football, controlling a game isn’t always about having possession. Yes, Inter often had the ball, but more often than not they didn’t know what to do with it.
To have control of the game is to have things go according to some sort of a plan that will ultimately have you turn up on top.
Take Mourinho for example, he often concedes the ball to his opponents and chooses to resort to a deep defense without possession, but does so on purpose against teams that press high up the pitch and leave space behind them. Especially in cases where you have a team that can organize swift counter attacks, you don’t need the ball, you control the game via controlling space (ball control and space control are sort of the fundamentals of tactics).
Shown through an overly simplified example; if Mazzarri’s Inter played last year’s Chelsea, they’d probably have a lot of possession, but Chelsea wouldn’t be on the back foot. They’d be comfortable to take Dodo’s and Nagatomo’s crosses from the wings, because Terry and Cahill would be like “fish in water” (Mou’s words). Instead, Inter would be on the back foot, because during the 20% of time that they don’t have the ball, Chelsea will devastate their defense and create openings for chances that Inter couldn’t create for the 80% of the time that they had the ball.
Controlling possession is one thing, controlling the game is another. It’s about feeling comfortable, feeling that things are going as you’ve planned them. Inter had that for a big part of today’s match. Wasn’t perfect, far from it, but it was there.
I’m agree with most of that. What i mean it was that controlling the ball is Mazzarri’s bequest and that is basis, is a must if you wanna play good football. Controlling the space it’s very important, no doubt about, same as controlling the pace. I’m grateful to Mourinho for the treble, but excuse me i don’t like his way of understanding about football. I hundred times prefer to control the ball trying to take all advantages of that, being aggressive, exploring spaces, trying to play offensive football. Instead of parking the bus, plain or whatever you want waiting for counters.
Ah, well, not liking it doesn’t always make it no good 🙂 Don’t get me wrong, it’s perfectly okay to prefer ball control and a preference to play in your opponent’s half, but it doesn’t automatically make it good football; the same goes for “Mourinho’s style” (it’s not his own, but he’s a popular example, and a very good one too), not everyone who plays with absorbing pressure and defending deep plays good football.
A great example of beautiful football while spending a lot of the game in your own half was Inter’s win over Barcelona of 3-1 in the semi-final of the CL in the treble season.
Most people would say that a bad example of it would be Chelsea’s 0-0 draw away at Atletico in last year’s semi final. I still liked it, though, because there’s a lot of positives to be seen in what most people today perceive as “negative” football.
I just don’t like the fact that we’ve been forced to look at football as a game where you have to attack, otherwise you’re thrown out as being “negative”. On the contrary, the point is to outwit your opponent and to come out victorious (win the game if you have to; but most importantly, win the trophy – that’s the point of organizing all sorts of competitions anyway). Barcelona do what they do not because it’s beautiful, but because they’ve built a team that can do it perfectly and lead them to victories.
There’s beauty in a team that decides to play to its advantage and stay deep to defend a result, especially if they’re up against a team that would be better in an all-out attacking duel focused on controlling the ball. I’ve learned to appreciate the incredible discipline, sacrifice, coordination and organization, as well as mental strength in having to hold on when a colossus like Barcelona comes knocking. You don’t do ball control against teams that are better built to do it. Mourinho once said “If your opponents are very fast on the counter and want space behind your defensive line, if you give them that space you are stupid. If I have Cech in the goal line with Terry in front of him and I have Drogba ahead with Robben behind him, then I know my opponents can cross all they want and the ball won’t get through, and that when Cech gets the ball and sends it up field, it will end up with Drogba, because he is dominant. And if I don’t play to this advantage, then I am stupid.”
This is a pretty long debate, and both sides have their own beauty.
https://chalkontheboots.wordpress.com/2013/03/21/style-over-substance/
Here’s a decent piece you can read on this, if you care to reconsider your general stance 🙂 It tries to get the best of both worlds, so don’t take it that I’m trying to change your mind 🙂 I respect your opinion anyway.
Cheers 🙂
I don’t talk about negative or positive styles. I don’t talk about either which is beautiful and which is ugly style and there’s nothing with Barcelona and Chelsea style. Everybody have his own taste and understanding about football. What I mean is a very simple thing, that one the first place according to me football suppose to be entertainment and that winning games and trophies it doesn’t be at any cost. Anyway every time discuss with you it’s a pleasure, doesn’t matter all differences we have.
Likewise mate 🙂
Sorry about the wall of text, this is completely off the article’s topic by now xD
Mate, you should apply for this site’s author. Such an analysis you got!
you and that shitty mexes should had been sent off for fucking sake. but that damn referee let you both go. what a fuck
I felt so bad for Dodo, Rami pushed him right? What a fucking piece of shit…
Yes! That was intentionally!
How did the linesmen not see that?
Ref saw it. It was in front of him
yes that fucking cunt did it on purpose yet the ref didn’t even give him a yellow. what a bastard.
not to mention his fucking captain that pulled icardi right on the edge of the box without the ref even bother to call it a foul. even the commentator said it could have been a red one and the least he should get yellow
wasn’t it Muntari ??
Muntari gave Dodo the swollen face… but after near the end of the match I think it was when Rami Pushed Dodo and he wasn’t even on the ball. Dodo passed the ball and Rami pushed him forcefully onto the ground.