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The Circle of Tactics

Football is entering a new tactical epoch – but how did we get here? And have we seen it all before? Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Sir Isaac Newton’s famous Third Law of...

Michael Carrick, Manchester United, and the Gospel of Relationism

There is a way of playing football that does not begin with space. It begins with people. Before the chalk lines. Before the tactical boards. Before the idea of width or compactness or overloads. There...

How Paulo Fonseca got his groove back at AC Milan

Paulo Fonseca arrived in Lyon after a negative experience at AC Milan, one that was not entirely his fault, but rather the fault of a nonexistent club, one of the worst in AC Milan's history,...

The Dribbling Centre-Back: When Movement Becomes Superiority

You have been lied to. Every coach, every pundit, every tactical analyst has sold you the same illusion—that control is built through numbers, that superiority is found in structure, that the game is a battle of...

Genoa CFC Flourishing Under Daniele De Rossi

As the final whistle blew on Sunday 25th January there was relief, passion and a very happy fanbase. Genoa came back from 2-0 down at home to Bologna in a crazy game, Bologna had goalkeeper...