You have to think on your feet and make decisions as a “partial libero” but that will be the same in every game you play. As a result, by pressing aggressively in a man-marking approach, you should be aiding the defensive structure rather than detracting from it. Just a footnote for readers regarding leeway-oriented counter pressing. In zonal marking, the defensive midfielder now marshalls the whole space in front of own centre backs and that is the reason the work rate is a bit more important than what it was for the usual tackle-specialist defensive midfielders of before. As it says in the video, Juventus’ zonal man-marking means when Hysaj ends up in the midfield zone Hernanes goes to mark him instead of the previous midfielder and the same happens when Hysaj makes a run into Chiellini’s zone. He has his point of view and he tells me that he has to train his teams to win.’. When he was interviewed by El Grafico in 1998, Bielsa’s father, Raphael, made the claim ‘I never saw Marcelo play nor have I seen him manage. That said, there is a level of almost arbitrariness to Bielsa’s idealism too. A few months ago, I had written about “the how” of Leeds’ defensive system in a piece entitled “The Principles of Leeds United’s Defensive System under Marcelo Bielsa: A Primer”. Mainly discussing the zonal marking principle of chain defending. The structure is decided by the opponent and the only real tweaks will occur in the forward areas where the -1 inferiority can lead to some issues. Within this general man-marking system, Bielsa implements what he calls a “partial libero” principle. It simply indicates any on-ball system that looks to use player movement to generate an attacking edge. In man-oriented zonal marking, you play with a basic formation in which the reference point is the “opponent.” From their respective base positions, the players orient themselves flexibly in the space they cover in order to maintain a certain distance to the opponent closest to them. You’ll be marking your player. It was a simplistic and perfect concept on paper. Obviously, defensive transition isn’t simply about getting back into defensive structure as quickly as possible. That system continued for a good amount of time. The basic approach is this: try to get the ball possessed in a wide area where you can fashion an overload on the ball-near side and get your players attacking the five spaces between the players in a back four (or six spaces in a back three/five). You could call this spatial manipulation but it’s not just about space. But despite reading, listening or watching everything I could get my hands on about Marcelo Bielsa’s approach to football, I had never come across anything which explains “the why,” as Kees calls it. He is supposed to cover any opponent who is left over after any defensive reshuffles. positional oriented zonal marking The goal of position oriented marking sees teams aim to keep horizontal and vertical compactness as they sit in 3 clearly defined banks of midfield defense and attack moving as a collective unit, from one side of the pitch to the other in an attempt to close down space, especially on the wings. I had heard of zonal marking lots of time - for me it was a bit like someone talking about an aspect of physics - I had heard of it, nodded my head in agreement, but didnt quite understand the ins and outs of it. Man-to-man marking is the strategy where defenders are assigned one specific person to tail throughout the game. Every movement had to happen concerning these reference points. But there is the possibility that rather than the interplay between positional play and man-marking it is the interplay between pressing and man-marking that draws Marcelo Bielsa to it. As I was careful to stress, I have not attempted to give a definitive answer to the question because, unfortunately, it is almost impossible to apply any sort of empirical evidence to the inquiry. Bielsa junior, however, justifies the decision to play in this way because of a desire to win. It’s about making sure the players and the ball arrive at the right place at the right time. An explanation of the tactical concept of zonal marking and the principles behind it. There is a truth to this — there are few managers who are so logical that you can pre-empt them with the sort of success that you can with Bielsa. Countering the Man Marking Midfield. Let’s begin by clarifying the two aspects: For something that sounds so ominous, positional play is fairly straightforward as a concept (although it gets complicated in practice). That was so effective that the attacking teams themselves had to mark the no. Read more: Central Defensive Midfielders: The Heroes who don’t wear Capes, Football being the dynamic game it is, soon brought up problems for the man-marking reliant defences. Simply put, both zonal and man marking have their pros and cons and both are still used whenever needed. Their spatial relation to their opponent is constantly changing and so is constantly at the forefront of their mind. I consider the aggressive press as straddling both of these aspects. Luckily, perfection is a Utopian term and unless we reach there (never), the Tom and Jerry battle will give rise to more mischiefs from both aspects of the game and keep entertaining us. But the final few lines are interesting: ‘“Keep track of your own player and you’ll be in a good way.” I keep that thought in my head.’. This style is best explained as a mixed variant of zonal covering and man-marking. Man Oriented Zonal Marking This zonal marking is oriented to the opponent and the pressing players seek to cover their respective zones while moving closer to a player which may be within the zone. For Leeds, the most basic attacking shape they look to get into is this: Given the flexibility of the positional system, the positions given aren’t hard and fast: the winger can underlap, for example, or the central midfielder. The other day, I was sent a question from a Twitter DM that includes some of the brightest young minds in football analysis. Zonally, it’s an entirely different ball game. And no doubt more statistically-inclined individuals might be able to take these ideas and fashion them into hypotheses that can then be furnished with data and made to look more or less plausible. Giving the striker the responsibility for pressing two strikers means that he can have a “spare man” — what he calls a “libero” — in defence to help out wherever there is trouble. In putting this question to my good friend Nico Morales, he suggested there could be a simplicity factor at play here. Attackers started to drift across spaces, drop deep, overlap – thus disrupting the shape of the opposition defence. It’s almost as if there is nothing to suggest the certainty of the idea beyond his holding of it. Been meaning to find something about Leeds/Atalanta that talks about the actual why of them doing it, not just the how.”. The point is that the reality of playing against the man-marking system is much more difficult than the theory behind it. Yes, it may be the case that the basic system is arbitrary — not intrinsically better than another system in terms of its effectiveness — but there is an internal coherence. A good example is when a centre-back man-marks a forward moving behind to receive the ball. Strategies against a man-oriented setup. A zonal defense can be implemented with any attacking formation. There will be tactics and counter-tactics from attacking and defending teams and that’s what improves the game and makes it enjoyable, pushing the players and the managers to their limits of physical and mental excellence. Maurizio Sarri was able to call upon N’Golo Kante, who was declared fit to start. Pace down the wings, a good striker partnership, and a squad well-versed in zonal marking. “When you talk about man-to-man (marking), it’s very easy for the manager to say it’s your responsibility, and that’s it,” explains Benitez. Bielsa wants to win playing this kind of football and so any decision that stems from an original arbitrary decision to play “this football not that football” must be made in such a way as to improve the chances of winning. For the fullbacks this helps prevent crosses and works great but my 2CBs are easily split by one pass, and Im wondering if I should change it. The most frequent strategy is to form a line, and defend using zonal-marking principles. Thanks should go to Tiago Estêvão and Nathan Clark who helped me to clarify a lot of these ideas in my mind as I was writing this piece. Leeway-oriented counter pressing: ... Hi great article I.ve really enjoyed your articles on both pressing and zonal and man marking. With the right execution and chemistry between the players, such a system becomes very hard to break down (the first leg between Atletico and Liverpool in the Champions League can be used as an example). Whether or not this lends itself to any attacking benefit for the man-marking team, I don’t know. If you enjoy this content and want to help us create more and better pieces, why not consider signing up to our Patreon page to get bonus material? This allowed De Jong and Pedri to have a massive influence on the game. If you have any interest in contributing to this blog, get in touch with us @AllStatsArentWe. Stindl joined Plea in the first line of press and protected the passing lanes to Kroos and Casemiro. It is very similar to the previous concept of position-oriented zonal marking. TRY FOR FREE. If so, what is that benefit? I began this article with a question about the interplay between aggressive pressing structures, a man-marking system and positional play. Football is a game of infinite possibilities and that is what makes it so beautiful. On face value, I would want to argue that the opposite is true: that a man-marking system will mean that any counter-attack will begin from a position in which the team in attacking transition are already close to opposition players. What would also be interesting would be how offenses try and break down differetn types of defense. You have entered an incorrect email address! As this graphic from SkillCorner shows, Leeds United are comfortably the most dynamic team in the Premier League at the moment (not to mention Europe): Although Manchester City come a close second behind them when it comes to team sprint distances, it seems unlikely that Leeds man-marking system reduces the ground they have to cover in order to get back into a defensive shape. What is Zonal/Man Marking? As I’ve already set out in “The Principles of Leeds United’s Defensive System under Marcelo Bielsa: A Primer”, Marcelo Bielsa looks to set his team up man-for-man in out of ball phases. One of the aspects that has been left largely ignored here is the pressing element of Bielsa’s approach. On the face of it, this might appear unconvincing: the man-marking system seems fairly complex when it comes down to it. His thinking is this: it’s known that Marcelo Bielsa focuses on repetition and pre-rehearsed movements in possession which famously require a huge amount of time and effort to bring into fruition. You will probably be using some sort of complex combination of high press, mid-block or low block, you might have different systems for different periods of the game and you might have to change up your pressing triggers depending on the specific scenario in-game. Zonal defending is more practical and efficient than strict man-to-man marking, although individual marking assignments often complement zonal organizations. Could it be the case that because man-marking systems aren’t aiming for an ideal structure — a 4–4–2 or 4–5–1 setup, for instance — that they actually become more efficient in transition? Also, in man-marking, since the defending team is chasing the game, they were not able to set up their attacks according to their plans. But it seems as though there could be a potential benefit to marking an individual rather than a space in terms of the practical utility of such an approach. Here, a player is still guarding his space only but his exact position in that wide area is concerning the opponent’s attacker in that place. It could be the case that he likes the fact that playing against Leeds is relatively unusual within elite football. As a case in point, SC Freiburg has their center forwards close down the passing lanes. This is not acceptable for big teams who look to have the lion’s share of ball possession. While this is a wholesome statement for both attack and defence, it has added significance for zonal marking because it brings the space in the loop. Here, we will talk about the most practised two in short. In this instance, though, as is so often the case, the received wisdom is more “received” rather than “wisdom”. “The Principles of Leeds United’s Defensive System under Marcelo Bielsa: A Primer”, Sid Gillman’s Offensive Philosophies Were Decades Ahead of the Times, Opinion: Sports Networks Should Pay Their Workers Despite COVID-19, Justin Olsen’s Long, Tragic Road to Pyeongchang, MLB Loves LGBTQ Fans (They Just Love Money More), Chipper ‘Larry’ Jones and a Short History of Feuds Between Baseball Players and Rival Fans, A Lesson Worth More Than All The Money In The World, NBA Bubble League Pass Rankings, Part II — The Teams at the Top, The Incredible Black Football Teams Under Thursday Night Lights. This should come as no surprise. There is a tendency within modern football to label “negative” football “pragmatic” and “positive” football “idealistic”. Man-marking is a more defensive approach. © Sports-nova | Live Scores, Current Sports News, Articles and Quiz, Sports-nova | Live Scores, Current Sports News, Articles and Quiz, Zonal Marking : The Renaissance into the Art of Defending, Mikel Arteta addresses one position of his squad which he wants…, Solskjaer talks Man United’s January transfer plans and confirms youngster’s departure, Arsenal star on the ‘long-term’ target list of Serie A heavyweights, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer lays eyes on Lille midfielder, Boubakary Soumare, How to know when a player is reaching stardom – Haaland’s…, Monty Panesar Exclusive: ‘Getting Sachin Tendulkar as my first test wicket…, Cheepauk Super Gillies player gives his verdict on KKR spinner Siddharth…, The Near Transfers: Players who almost signed for a different club,…, Central Defensive Midfielders: The Heroes who don’t wear Capes, Sadio Mane hits back at the ‘mindgames’ of Pep Guardiola ahead of the mammoth clash. However, I hope this article helps to move the conversation along that Kees van Hemmen prompted. You can’t keep your front three advanced because if the opposition full backs are advanced, then your wingers need to drop deeper. There is actually a curious pragmatism to Bielsa’s idealism. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. In both cases, the press is used to buy time for the rest of the team to fall into a defensive structure. With all the basics in place, we can finally turn to address the issue at hand. If there is a correlation between the in- and out-of-possession phases of the game, then we might be able to suggest one or the other changes their defensive system to benefit their positional approach. It forced the Real Madrid build-up towards the flanks. Here, a player is still guarding his space only but his exact position in that wide area is concerning the opponent’s attacker in that place. Munich Disaster: How did Real Madrid and Liverpool help United keeping... Indian Football Team Qualification Scenario for 2022 FIFA World Cup Explained. We’ll go into this more in a bit. Italian teams in the 60s and 70s perfected this tact… Theoretically, there are variants and different orientations of zonal marking depending on the coach's preference and the culture of the country, which differ from one to another, some teams taking into account the man as well as the ball, as players would adjust slightly to the movement of the direct opponent. Except for Gian Piero Gasperini at Atalanta, there are very few coaches who use a man-orientated system out of possession. It is an easy tactic for coaches to use when defending to adopt a man marking style. The man-marking system, Nico proposes, is probably the more simple system to coach compared to a more zonal approach and will therefore leave more time to focus on the possession phase of the game. The contrast to man-marking is obvious. With zonal marking, each player is responsible for a certain zone in the penalty area, and you can work on this on the training ground by using colored cones to mark out a zone. But the beauty of a man-oriented system is that it is entirely commensurable week on week. The advantage is that the player will stay relatively close to the opposition player but the disadvantage is that you may find them wandering out of position to find someone to mark. In attacking transition, Leeds always seem to be able to find space despite starting off close to their men in the defensive phase. For them, zonal marking is the second one – Man-oriented zonal marking. It created individual battles on the pitch which are fascinating when it’s a clash of equals but for sides having a great disparity in quality, the game became somewhat predictable, leaving no difference between a good team and a team filled with good players. As a result, there are a lot of quotes from players and managers who have played against a Bielsa team and who have been overwhelmed by the uniqueness of it all. In some senses, this is logical because the pressing aspect is not unique to the man-marking system but common to all high possession approaches, as we discussed earlier. But does an aggressive press complement a man-marking rather than a zone-oriented defensive approach? “But when you talk about zonal marking, in reality you as a manager take responsibility. Returning to Kees’ original question, the nub of the matter is whether there is an inherent relationship between these two aspects: does Bielsa apply a man-marking system because he sees it benefitting the positional approach he has adopted in on-the-ball phases? An interesting stat from each of the 20 Premier League teams . Each player has a space to cover and marks the opposition player who gets into his space. This is probably the strongest line of attack in attempting to come to an answer to the question at hand for this reason: an aggressive press works against a transition towards a zonal structure but doesn’t necessarily have to work against a man marking system. It is more like sitting back and absorbing pressure, challenging the opponent attackers to come and penetrate but not pressing them close enough to make them commit errors. The formation used by a team may dictate whether or not to use zonal marking. There is a famous saying – the perfect game of football would end 0-0. It’s as much about getting back into a functional structure as quickly as possible. Mikel Arteta addresses one position of his squad which he wants to strengthen, A tribute To late Paolo Rossi – The Eternal Azzurri International. It’s not that I don’t like football, it’s because I am a Central supporter and also because I prefer another type of football, one which has less marking and pressing. However, there is a caveat. That overlaps with the tenets of a man-oriented system rather than a zone-oriented one. Could there be any benefit the other way around? There are quite a few variants of zonal marking. This is where the spare man comes in. He applies a +1 Rule in defence and a -1 Rule in attack. On the face of it, if there were a benefit from using a man-marking defensive system alongside a positional approach, it would seem likely to come from some sort of structural “fit” that would allow easier transition between attacking and defensive setup. This requires great stamina, top match fitness and picking a player to mark right from the very start of the game. There is probably one final potential benefit from the man-marking system adopted by Bielsa. A few things need to be clarified: Firstly, it seems unlikely that a man-marking system reduces the amount of running that a team have to do. In this context, Bielsa senior is picking up on two aspects of his son’s football style in particular — the pressing and the man marking — as aspects that he doesn’t like. No doubt in a zone-oriented defensive system, the players keep the zone that they are responsible for in their head but there is a difference here: the individual is responsible for keeping track of their opposition player. Perhaps this carries little to no ramification at all. Brought together — the idealism and the arbitrariness — and contextualised by the quote from his father, Bielsa’s ideas about football are united by a holism. Maybe a better way of expressing this concept would be to say that, coming up against a man-marking system means that you are almost forced to play a man-marking system in defensive transition because that is the structure your opponent is using at the moment of turnover. Multiple controversies increasing demand to introduce VAR in Indian Super League.