World Championship --Jules Rimet Cup 1966 Final ... - FIFA.com

opponents from scoring, also gives a hope of snatching a narrow win .
and the knowledge that a defensive style of play, whilst preventing
Defensive practices are damping down the tempo of games . Apart from
some notable exceptions, the matches in the North West Group between
Hungary, Brazil and Portugal, the Semi-Final England versus Portugal
and the Final-there were many dull matches. Formation systems of
1-4-3-3 and 1-1-4-2-3 predominated, leaving only two to three players
in active forward positions, resulting often in a deliberate slowing down
of mid-field play to enable other players to move up to assist in attack.
As more teams are using these tactics of massed defence, the tendency
is towards :
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(i) Longer shooting from outside the penalty area (in some cases like
Uruguay, this power shooting is a strong feature of play) .
(ii) Petty fouling, usually outside the penalty area, or the fringe of the
defensive barrier, which though not injurious to players, arouses
ire and stimulates retaliation, e. g. deliberate handling of the ball,
pushing, tapping of legs to disturb the balance of a player .
(iii) Slow organisation in developing attacks .
(iv) More frequent interchange of position among forwards but
usually with little effect .
(v) Deliberate interpassing among defenders without making attacking
progress, particularly when the team has a goal advantage .
It is also noticeable that a quick breakaway from defence to attack is
less likely when players are falling back on defence than when attempts
are made at interception . In this sense, the sweep (extra defensive player)
enables the four defenders in front of him in the 1-1-4 system to tackle
fast irrespective of the outcome . In using this method, the German
defenders often won the ball quickly to restart an attack .
There are two general methods of massing a defence : by dropping
back wholesale before the approach until the defenders group in or near
the penalty area, and by some players moving back whilst others "shroud"
the opponent in possession of the ball to seal off possible angles of
passing.
Teams which tried to overcome defensive barriers made use of :
(i) Individual players in the advanced positions (2 or 3) with highly
developed personal technique of play .
(ii) Quick change from defence to attack sometimes using rear
defenders in overlapping movements .
(iii) Quick darting interpassing at close quarters with snap shooting.