I read a lot about how possession soccer is what teams should strive for and Barcelona is held up as the shining example. After watching them play Arsenal in the UEFA Champions league a few weeks ago, I am starting to have a change of heart on style of play. Althought Barca controlled the ball and eventually won, it was a terribly boring game. The rendundant and lack of crosses into the box made for a slow and unentertaining game. I realized this is all personal opinio and some may like that methodic style of play, but for the first time, I started to think, maybe that is not the way to go.

I think I prefer the English style of playing the ball wide, having a speedy winger put crosses into the box and have a tall, strong center forward that can finish in the air or control on the ground. The English teams also play possession but not to the level of Barca and I find the english style more exciting to watch. What say you?

you should watch Manchester united. They do a good job of mixing the two. Possesion with a mix of wing play. One of the things with Barca is teams sinking in to defend them so they have to play the ball and invite the defense out so there is space to attack. Arsenal was fairly defensive. Probably the best display of Barca's "total soccer" is the last Barca v Real Madrid games. Madrid came out and attacked and it was and impressive game that Barca dominated because of that.

I agree, I think Man U, and Tottenham are fun to watch. I find that style of play more entertaining. I watched the Barca/Real Game and it was a little better, but not as enjoyable as the premiere league.

Overall, with regard to my kids playing on Academy teams and select teams, I may not be so much against a coach that tells the kids to use their size, speed and strength as opposed to the tick, tack style of Barca. Ronaldo is a gifted player but plays mainly a one on one game and used his ability in the air. I do not think he would fit in at Barca. Barca rarely puts a long cross into the box because David Villa and Messi are not the best headers of the ball.

At the end of the day, I think it comes down to what is most entertaining, particularly as in the USA we are trying to build the fan base. I think we should focus on our pure athletic ability rather than the short passing tactical play that takes a more educated fan to appreciate.

When was the last time England won a World Cup? It it wasn't a "home" field advantage in 1966 and an obvious non-goal…

There's so much England-centric brouhaha, but at the end of the day, the technical soccer played by Brazil, Spain, and Germany carry home the hardware.

The top English teams are not truly "English" anylonger. Check out the home countries of the EPL coaches and players of the top five teams.

I agree, apprecitation of play styles can be attributed to familiarity of the game. I was talking with a neighbor last weekend who enjoys the "boot it" game because the speed of transition is greater than the possession style. Barcelona's style is highly technical and requires an incredibly skilled first touch. I love the shapes they play around the ball. Pure poetry.


The MLS, for the most part, plays more of a pure athletic style where fast breaks and physical domination are valued (Conor Casey). I like the way FCD mixes up different play styles. Heath Pearce was fun to watch as an attacking defender last year. We'll see what Schellas has for the fans this year.


Should be a fun opener vs Chicago Fire on Saturday. See you there...

I think go99 touched on this but one of the reasons it looks so boring is so often the teams they play against bunker down and don't play soccer. I think 90% of the time it is the opposition that destroys the beauty of the game when they play Barca making it not as entertaining as it should be. If they would come out of their bunker and play soccer I think it would be a lot of fun to watch.

That being said, I enjoy the EPL a lot more than La Liga even though I prefer the style of play in La Liga just because a 7th place team could beat a first place team in the EPL. In the EPL you have 6 or 7 good teams. In La Liga you know before the season start that Barca and Real Madrid are going to win the league. The fact that they don't share revenue makes La Liga uncompetitive. While typically United, Chelsea, and Arsenal will be winning the EPL you have also got Tottenham, Liverpool, and Man City with quality. In addition there are other teams like Fulham, Aston Villa, and Everton that can sneak up and bite you. Even Bolton is having a very nice year this year. The only teams in La Liga that are usually half way decent besides the big 2 are Valencia and Villareal. La Liga is like a broken record player and doesn't look to change anytime soon.

My favorite style to watch for just pure enjoyment though is Brazil. The moves and tricks and skill are amazing. Guys like Neymar are incredible.

The English and American style to an extent tends to be built around speed and power. The thing is no one will ever be faster than the ball and that is why the Spanish style tends to be winning now.

WRG wrote:I agree, I think Man U, and Tottenham are fun to watch. I find that style of play more entertaining. I watched the Barca/Real Game and it was a little better, but not as enjoyable as the premiere league.

Overall, with regard to my kids playing on Academy teams and select teams, I may not be so much against a coach that tells the kids to use their size, speed and strength as opposed to the tick, tack style of Barca. Ronaldo is a gifted player but plays mainly a one on one game and used his ability in the air. I do not think he would fit in at Barca. Barca rarely puts a long cross into the box because David Villa and Messi are not the best headers of the ball.

At the end of the day, I think it comes down to what is most entertaining, particularly as in the USA we are trying to build the fan base. I think we should focus on our pure athletic ability rather than the short passing tactical play that takes a more educated fan to appreciate.

The American fan doesn't care to be educated. They like to watch winners and no matter what the style the US needs to win if they want to carry a sizeable fanbase.

Winning is clearly the most fun for the fans and right now you cannot argue with Barcelona and the record they are putting up. However, I also think the speed and heading abiity of the larger English teams is fun to watch. I will also admit that I enjoy the Brazilian style which is possession but with a lot of one on moves and flair.

At the end of the day, I am not sure which style we should teach the kids as I think any style can win with the right kind of players. But, I think for it to succeed in the USA, it will have to be entertaining and the fans will have to see a WOW play. Ronaldo has that, Messi has it with his feet, and the high flying guys in the EPL have it as well.

After watching the LA Galaxy and Seattle Game last night I will have to admit it got pretty sloppy and a lot of lost possession and poor first touches. I was waiting for that WOW moment and other than the shot from Juninho, did not see much of it.

This thread is one of the reasons I love the UEFA Champions League matches so much... the "clash" of styles makes for great matches, interesting coaching tactics, and wild conditions.

great stuff

I recommend reading the book, Soccernomics. Fascinating reading for soccer junkies.

PG-Boy wrote:I recommend reading the book, Soccernomics. Fascinating reading for soccer junkies.

That's a great book!

soccerrus2 wrote:

PG-Boy wrote:I recommend reading the book, Soccernomics. Fascinating reading for soccer junkies.

That's a great book!

Good, SR2. See, now that's an opinion, not a biased remark. One day you may find yourself impartial. You are a ref, so there is a burden of responsibility...

this is a funny thread cuz Barcelona absolutely, positively destroyed ManU in the Champions League finals 2 years ago. the possession style they play led to Rooney running back and forth across the pitch before he just totatly gave up and decided to stand, point, and yell at everyone else on the field. it was awesome to watch for me as Barca was stringing 12-15 passes together at a time. it was a total deconstruction of English soccer.

twotone wrote:this is a funny thread cuz Barcelona absolutely, positively destroyed ManU in the Champions League finals 2 years ago. the possession style they play led to Rooney running back and forth across the pitch before he just totatly gave up and decided to stand, point, and yell at everyone else on the field. it was awesome to watch for me as Barca was stringing 12-15 passes together at a time. it was a total deconstruction of English soccer.

Barca's style of play is great. Actually,if you watch them play a team that does not bunker down like Arsenal did, they will make the long crosses into the box, or the long outlet passes to the streaking forward - and finish them too. They take what the defense gives them. Arsenal was all out defense / counter-attack - which is what you play when you play against a team that you know is better than you - you load up the box, keep your forwards ready to go for a counter-attack, and hope/pray for an opening while you just pack your own box with most of your team hopefully making it impossible for the better team to get off a shot. The style Arsenal played is horrible soccer in my opinion (to watch), but the only way an inferior team can compete with a much better team.

Barcelona is definitely the team to beat (again)... will be interesting to see if Mourhino's Real comes up against them after these next rounds. Last season he played his Inter team against Barcelona the only real way you can deal with them.. i.e. match player to player and hold on tight.

So now we have the round of 8 matchups

Real Madrid v Tottenham
Chelsea v Man U.
Barcelona v Shakhtar
Inter Milan v Shalke

I don't know enough about Shalke or Shakhtar to be able to make an educated guess on those outcomes, but history would have to give the nod to Barca and Inter.

I'm liking the Real v Tottenham matchup that will be a great game...
I don't know what to think about my poor Chelsea team v Man U. I really feel like Chelsea is being sparked by Luiz's play these days... and since he's ineligible for these games I fear the worst. Need Torres to wake the hell up and earn his keep. Man U are just consistent, and if Vidic is able to play, then you've got your hands full when playing them.

Slakemoth wrote:Barcelona is definitely the team to beat (again)... will be interesting to see if Mourhino's Real comes up against them after these next rounds. Last season he played his Inter team against Barcelona the only real way you can deal with them.. i.e. match player to player and hold on tight.

So now we have the round of 8 matchups

Real Madrid v Tottenham
Chelsea v Man U.
Barcelona v Shakhtar
Inter Milan v Shalke

I don't know enough about Shalke or Shakhtar to be able to make an educated guess on those outcomes, but history would have to give the nod to Barca and Inter.

I'm liking the Real v Tottenham matchup that will be a great game...
I don't know what to think about my poor Chelsea team v Man U. I really feel like Chelsea is being sparked by Luiz's play these days... and since he's ineligible for these games I fear the worst. Need Torres to wake the hell up and earn his keep. Man U are just consistent, and if Vidic is able to play, then you've got your hands full when playing them.

Chelsea is my team too Slake and I agree, something isn't right. Torres is off. Ramires is a defensive/holding mid and they have him playing wide. Malouda is on the bench. He has Essien wide sometimes and he doesn't belong there either. I don't like what Ancelotti is doing this year. Oh well, when you have that much talent you always have a chance.

Slakemoth wrote:Barcelona is definitely the team to beat (again)... will be interesting to see if Mourhino's Real comes up against them after these next rounds. Last season he played his Inter team against Barcelona the only real way you can deal with them.. i.e. match player to player and hold on tight.

So now we have the round of 8 matchups

Real Madrid v Tottenham
Chelsea v Man U.
Barcelona v Shakhtar
Inter Milan v Shalke

I don't know enough about Shalke or Shakhtar to be able to make an educated guess on those outcomes, but history would have to give the nod to Barca and Inter.

I'm liking the Real v Tottenham matchup that will be a great game...
I don't know what to think about my poor Chelsea team v Man U. I really feel like Chelsea is being sparked by Luiz's play these days... and since he's ineligible for these games I fear the worst. Need Torres to wake the hell up and earn his keep. Man U are just consistent, and if Vidic is able to play, then you've got your hands full when playing them.

The Real Madrid/Tottenham game should be good if Bale can play and Modric can make it back. It would be fun to watch Bale going down the left side against Sergio Ramos.

I like Barcelona to move through, MAN U to beat Chelsea (Sorry) and Real to probably move past Tottenham. Hopefully the Barca games are more entertaining as they move forward and other teams don't simply play all 11 men behind the ball to try and clog things up.

FGFF wrote:
Chelsea is my team too Slake and I agree, something isn't right. Torres is off. Ramires is a defensive/holding mid and they have him playing wide. Malouda is on the bench. He has Essien wide sometimes and he doesn't belong there either. I don't like what Ancelotti is doing this year. Oh well, when you have that much talent you always have a chance.

yeah, I don't know whats going on either. Such a needless hole they dug for themselves in the EPL.. ( still not sure how that happened) For a while there it looked like Torres was going to wake up the front line, simply out of fear for keeping their starting spots... actually worked a bit on Anelka, he seemed to finally move his butt. Now its almost a comedy watching everyone try to feed Torres and get him his first goal... but he seems almost reluctant to shoot. Lampard just hasn't been the same since the injury recovery. I am thrilled with David Luiz. He has definitely got the defense clicking again, and a perfect match opposite Cole (short of Dani Alves I have never seen such roaming, attacking, outside defenders) but unfortunately, for the Champions League Bosingwa is gonna have to fill those shoes. Malouda was for sure carrying the team for a while, need him in more, and as you said.. need Essien in that holding mid spot, let Ramires roam. Heck I like McEachran too.. throw him in.. somebody just score!

Running wrote:It would be fun to watch Bale going down the left side against Sergio Ramos.

Man you are not kidding.. that will be an awesome matchup... just gotta get Bale healthy

Running wrote:I like Barcelona to move through, MAN U to beat Chelsea (Sorry) and Real to probably move past Tottenham.

hahaha.. we'll see. Chelsea can at least always be counted on to get their act together against Man U.... but I fear you might be right. Manchester just seem to be clicking so well right now. If we can make Nani cry again, get Vidic ejected, and smother the little pea, we should be fine ( cough, cough).. of course with stinkin Berbatov waiting on the banch to come back in and reclaim the little pea's spot.. that could be bad for us.
Maybe we could shave Luiz's head, paint a uni-brow on him and convince the officials he's Bosingwa and get him in the match...

I like Chelsea more now that Torres is there, but he has not done much. Malouda is a class player but has been silent lately too.

The "little pea" as you call him (pretty good name) is showing to be pretty good. He is one of those guys who just knows how to score. I still like to watch Berbatov play because he appears so disinterested when the ball is at his feet that it is cool to see him then do a flick or turn of pace to beat people. Rooney is a "punk" and I have lost interest in him since the "elbowing incident" a few weeks ago.

Running wrote:I like Chelsea more now that Torres is there, but he has not done much. Malouda is a class player but has been silent lately too.

The "little pea" as you call him (pretty good name) is showing to be pretty good. He is one of those guys who just knows how to score. I still like to watch Berbatov play because he appears so disinterested when the ball is at his feet that it is cool to see him then do a flick or turn of pace to beat people. Rooney is a "punk" and I have lost interest in him since the "elbowing incident" a few weeks ago.

Its a great nickname... Hernandez is called "little pea" in homage to his father. Thats what the "Chicharito" means on the back of his jersey. His father, a star player for Mexico had the nickname "chicharo" (the pea) because of his green eyes. I really thought Hernandez was gonna get overwhelmed by the size and aggressiveness of the EPL, but I was certainly wrong.

You're right about Berbatov.. that guy has a big bag of tricks, but doesn't look like a threat... and yeah, not sure what to say about Rooney. he seems way too easy to "take off his game" these days by the opponents... which is fine with me.