Any Dutch Readers Out There? Is This for Real?

By: Laurie | December 12th, 2007

I’m always hesitant to write about BigSoccer posts, because anybody can post anything in BigSoccer. It’s anonymous, so there’s no way to verify things. Are we clear on that?

That said, DuNord linked to a very interesting BigSoccer post yesterday that described a TV interview with dutchmen Ruud Gullit (the new LA Galaxy coach) and Ronald Waterreus (last season’s RBNY goalkeeper) on the Dutch TV program “Studio Voetbal.”

(The photo is an old one of Waterreus. Is he 80s hair-band material or what?)

The post says that one of the main points of the interview was that US coaches are crap, particularly when it comes to teaching tactics. That’s not so surprising. We hear that all the time.

Here’s the part I’m not sure I believe, though. (The “Coby” referred to is former LA Galaxy and US international player and current Galaxy assistant coach Cobi Jones.)

Ruud added to that an experience he had with Coby(?). During a training session Coby did something and Ruud asked what he was doing. The practice was about defending. Coby kept the field coverage wide, and Ruud told him that that’s not the way to defend, in fact you cannot defend unless you compress the field. Coby reacted to that: G.dammit, I knew it I knew it but every coach told me otherwise.

These are observations by two men who have been playing at the highest levels and with superior coaches and the main deficiency they see in American soccer is the lack of tactical knowledge, at least at the levels we are accustomed to in the Netherlands.

That’s not really possible, is it?

Anybody from Netherlands out there? Did he really say that? And if so, can anybody imagine that it actually happened this way?

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Category: Dutch Eredivisie, MLS, World Football

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justjack

I guess my kiddles are in good hands. Compressing the field on def. is the only they've ever heard. Maybe it's their generation that'll shift it to the global standard as their AYSO and club coaches move into HS and University positions?

joe's right about the through-balls vs. crossing. In EPL you see crosses from the outside as an instant exploitive movement which occurs much less frequently. Some of the reason I think we see the over-use of the cross from the outside in MLS is ball handling skills. I see much better individual beats from U16 AYSO & Club kids and skillful use of triangle-offensive drives (up the middle) on goal and I almost never see that on MLS. OTOH, I've seen Demarcus Beasley embarrass many a defender in the SPL.... so mebbe there're more 'Merkin footballers with skillz on the way up.
George

Now I feel proud that my American soccer coach told me that. Looks like he knows his stuff!
Rakibuzzaman

It must be said that Gullit isn't really known for his tactical ability either, in fact, that's one of the reasons he's no longer viewed as a credible candidate to take over a top level team.

Also interesting I think: his acknowledgment and approval of special treatments for star players. Which is obviously why he was brought to LA. Wonder how the other players will react to that though.
Laurie

Thank you, Rakibuzzaman. I assumed they were, just because the guy who wrote the post wasn't sure how to spell Cobi. That tells me he heard it somewhere and wasn't just making fun of MLS.

I find this kind of appalling.
Rakibuzzaman

Yup, I saw that and those were his exact words.
QJA

Couldn't have said it any better, Joe.
Eluvsdynamo

joe, that makes a lot of sense. as a matter of fact in the premier league you see a lot of thru balls and, the dynamo for intense spends a lot of time giving the ball to mullan so he can cross the ball. what i coach my boys is to bring the ball to the middle, attract a couple of players. once the outside guy gets open, give him the ball either shoot or cross based on the distance and angle from the goal.
joe

Yup. Basic soccer 101 (unless your coaches are American) is that you spread the field as wide as you can on offense and you compress the field as much as possible on defense... However, since another favorite tactic of U.S. coaching is to PUT THE BALL INTO THE CORNER AT ALL COSTS TO ATTEMPT A CROSS (on offense), it comes as no surprise that defending wide would be their counter-action to that... Watch any MLS game--90% of attacking play comes from crosses; watch European football and you'll see much more combination play and through balls.
jz

I wish I had a better idea exactly what tactic they were trying to teach. I was always told to push the channel the attacker outside--but that is at a lower skill level where there is almost zero chance that an accurate cross will be driven in and even less chance for an accurate header.

I'm sure that the outside areas become more important as the skill of the players increases, but it is certainly a less dangerous area than straight in front of goal.
Corey

Thats is the truth, I have been told that my whole football career. The idea of covering every inch of the pitch when defending is retarded. When I played ODP and on my highschool team, my coaches wanted me to cover the oppossing teams outside mid, and I was an outside mid! It meant the outside back behind me had no one to cover, but he stayed wide when we were defending anyways! How retarded is that, either I mark the opposing play and he moves inside a bit to support the middle or I dont mark him and move in a defensive posture inside the midfield and he takes the oppossing winger. Its so simple, I hated it that I knew more then my coaches.