Back in the twenties
and thirties, football was a game full of goals, a game all about
attacking, a game when 2-3-5 was the normal formation. As coaching
has moved on, the game has become more defensive - of course, there
are still great attacking teams and great games, but the modern
game is certainly a lot more defensive in its outlook. The coaching
manuals point to good teams being built on a solid defence. The
game has gone from a desire to score more than the opposition to
a desire to concede less.
There are notable exceptions such as teams managed by Kevin Keegan,
and Albion fans will remember Ossie Ardiles' side that won promotion
in the 92-93 season, but in the whole, defending comes first. You
only have to look at Chelsea this season. Early on, they failed
to set the world alight but they simply didn't lose - from that
solid base, they built an extremely attractive side, at least while
Arjen Robben was fit. That successful transition is very much the
exception, especially when you consider football on the world stage.
In England, we have one of the most exciting leagues, but if you
look to Europe, and Italy in particular, football is very defensive
with teams happy to score once and defend. And defensive tactics
are becoming so successful that games can become truly boring. I
believe the possible long-term impact of such tactics was aptly
demonstrated by last year's European Championships. Greece were
one of the least attractive footballing sides but, through the successful
application of defensive tactics, they were ultimately successful.
Fantastic for Greece, but it made for a very poor spectacle.
At the end of the day, football is about entertainment, and I would
like to propose a couple of changes to the rules of the game that
should help to make the game more entertaining. The changes are
aimed at giving more advantage to the attacking side, and should
help to provide a more open game.
The first part is hardly a new idea - indeed, I understand that
it was Jimmy Hill that first suggested it sometime in the seventies.
I would be in favour of the introduction of a line 35 yards from
each goal line. Attacking players could only be offside if they
were further forward than this new line, rather than the halfway
line as at present. This would help to stretch the game out in midfield,
thereby creating more space in the middle of the park and hopefully
a more open game.
The second part is taken in principle from a rule in ice hockey,
the aim of this change would be, like the 35 yard line, to create
a more open game with more goalscoring opportunities. It is a little
more radical, and would require the 35-yard line to be implemented
for it to work. The idea is to force each side to leave two players
in the opposing half at all times. Each team would, therefore, only
be able to defend with eight outfield players and the attacking
team would be able to gain a two-man attacking advantage should
they wish to leave the two men unmarked. Not only would the attacking
side have a distinct advantage, but with the 35-yard offside rule
in place, the two men left in the other half would be available
for the quick breakaway.
This rule would really come into its own late on in a game when
one team is one goal in front. Defending a lead would become more
difficult as the "ten men behind the ball" option would no longer
be available - that should lead for teams in front to continue to
push for goals, rather than sit on a lead, making for a more exciting
game.
An important element would be a punishment for infringing this rule
- I would be in favour of a short period in the sin bin, maybe three
minutes, for the offending player. A free kick would not be appropriate
as it would not sufficiently punish the offending team.
Traditionalists may find the second part a step too far, but I believe
we need to do something to give the advantage back to the attacking
side. As spectators, we all want to see goals, and such rule changes
would definitely help in that area, in my opinion.
I would be interested to hear any of your views on this idea, so
please send me an e-mail and
let me know what you think.
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