FIFA 2010 World Cup: Holding midfielders key to success
For the past four editions the World Cup was dominated by teams with attacking full backs. But in times like these when the world is so obsessed with security it is no wonder that the world’s greatest football extravaganza is tactically dominated by teams that employ barbed wires in their midfield, to protect their back four.
The central defensive midfielder or the holding midfielder is the football equivalent of CCTV or the watch dogs of the outside world.
It is not lethal finishing of Klose, or David Villa, or the ineptitude of Wayne Rooney, or Fernando Torres, that is the key factor in determining their respective team’s success at this year’s World Cup. The answer lies in the area occupied by some highly disciplined individuals known in modern football as the holding midfielders. During this day and age one holding midfielder is not enough.
The semi-finals at this World Cup were contested by 4 teams that operate with a double pivot in their midfield, Van Vommel and Nigel De Jong/ Dany De Zeeuw for Netherlands, Sergio Busquets an Xabi Alonso for Spain, Sami Khedira and Bastian Schweinsteiger for Germany, and Egidio Arevalo and Walter Gargano for Uruguay. Teams that didn’t have a double lynch pin in the centre of the field progressed beyond the quarter finals this year.
But even this system can be operated in more than one way to get two men to play like one, Claude Makelele, the greatest holding midfielder of all time.
This year’s finalists have two contrasting pairs of holding midfielders. On one hand, there are the uncompromising, ruthless and tough De Jong and Van Bommel who are not afraid to be involved in an ugly tussle for the ball.
On the other hand there is the refined pair of Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso that relies on its natural instinct of screening the defence and winning the ball by clever positioning or waiting for an opponent’s mistake.
The stark contrast between Alonso and Van Bommel’s style of play truly illustrates the depth of this role’s definition.
At the start of the first semi final between Holland and Uruguay the Dutch couldn’t stop giving the ball away but Van Bommel’s willingness to scuffle eventually earned him the right to influence the course of the match.
Alonso on the other hand takes pride in his passing, vision, and shooting especially over long distances.
Busquets and De Jong provide a different aspect to this role and prove a different point altogether and that is you don’t have to be a sublimely gifted player with resplendent qualities to perform this job. All you need is decent technique, a keen nose for danger and understanding of the game’s geometry.
Both these players share some measure of the qualities possessed by the great Makelele. Such as after winning the ball they use it quickly and astutely, using the angle and tempo of short passes to set the most devastating attacks in motion.
But the two players differ in one of the most significant aspects. While De Jong’s physical bulky physique gives him a dominating physical presence on the pitch, Busquets performs his tasks virtually incognito. In fact the secret of his efficiency is his invisibility.
In the modern game the influence of holding midfielders is ever increasing. Inter Milan won the Champions League employing Esteban Cambiasso, and, Thiago Motta in the holding roles to asphyxiate Barcelona. Chelsea won the Premier League with Ballack and Jon Obi Mikel anchoring their midfields and Bayern won the title in Germany on the back of glittering performances by Schweinstiger and Van Bommel in the midfield.
The points is further proved by the failure of European power houses like England, France, and, Germany at this World Cup. France lost Lassana, and Diarra. Toulalan, and, Abu Diaby were highly ineffective in their positions. Italy had Pirlo injured and could not control the pace of the game. England in absence of Owen Hargreaves could not use Milner to the same effect.
The formula for success at this year’s World Cup has been really simple. Holding midfielders are the most important players on the pitch and Germany, Spain, Holland and Uruguay have reaped the rewards of having quality players in those positions.
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