Why teams need to constantly evolve in modern football

Disappointed Spain players after the match against Chile

A quick analysis of teams that have stayed on top reveals that the process of change is probably more critical for teams that are at their peak as compared to teams that are trying to get there. This is easier to understand when you look at some of the teams that have dominated European leagues for long periods of time. Without a seamless integration of new players, new strategies and new ideas, a successful generation of players will not yield to another successful generation of players.

Take Alex Fergusson’s Manchester United for example, for years the team to beat in the EPL, at least in the first 20 years. Their initial success was based on a terrific set of players and with a mixture of youth and experience. Young players such as Giggs, Beckham, Neville and Keane were being groomed by the likes of Steve Bruce, Paul Ince and Mark Hughes. This was repeated and culminated in the treble winning year of 1999 where the youth of the 1992-94 teams was providing the experience and the newer players were being groomed for larger successes later. Players such as Solkskaer and Wes Brown were making a name for themselves while Keane, Giggs and Scholes were providing the know-how. This process followed all the way till 2012, with minor blimps when the integration wasn’t completed in one season. That this was all achieved without changing the man at the helm speaks a lot of his ability to change himself when required.

On the other side, Real Madrid has achieved similar, if not greater, success during the same period, but their change came from changes at the top. Multiple managers inculcated different styles, different tactics, making them a team that was not one-dimensional at any stage. Big managerial names were part of this period and include Vicente Del Bosque, Fabio Capello, Jupp Heynckes, Guus Hiddink, Bernd Schuster, Juande Ramos, Manuel Pellegrini and lately José Mourinho and now Carlo Ancelotti. From buying big players to encouraging youth setups, the process was ever changing at Real, and their blend of home grown talent and outrageous talent buys gave them some classic moments in football history. Adding world class players such as Zidane, Figo, Roberto Carlos and many others to an existing squad of Hierro, Raul and Morientes provided varying styles within the outfit.

The need to evolve and have backup plans, especially when the chips are down, is critical to long term success and that is where Spain appear to have faltered on the big stage. By sticking to their old guard, by being rigid in their style of play, they missed an opportunity to stay on top for an extended period. Yes, the last six years will go down as the Spain era, but isn’t six years too short a period to describe as an era?

Their fall from the epic high of winning a world cup, sandwiched between two consecutive euro championships was staggering, but it was not due to the lack of availability of the next generation. The players were there, they just weren’t used right. Vicente Del Bosque is a great manager, no doubt, but in trying to make the newer generation play like the older one, perhaps he missed a trick. Players like Juan Mata and Santi Carzola could have provided a much needed alternative to the style of play that Spain had developed, especially with their experiences in the English League, but it was not to be. Instead an over reliance on the old guard caused the Spanish bull to be tamed.

We have seen in the last few years that teams that play quick, counter attacking football have begun to do well again, overtaking those who tend to play possession football. Speed has slowly (pun intended) replaced control as a key aspect of the game. While passing remains the most important way of penetrating strong defenses, the style of passing seen today is much more quick and agile. And while the Spanish players retained their passing ability, their speed off the ball seemed to be lacking, which teams they were playing against were happy to exploit.

Both Netherlands and Chile played a pressing game, high up too, disrupting the smooth passing of the Spanish players. It was here that the management failed. Not having a plan B, was as much a reason for such categorical losses as was the age of key players. One could argue that in including Diego Costa, Del Bosque changed the way of play, but in truth Costa was not used as he was so successfully at Atletico Madrid. While giving Spain a front man to aim at, without the players who could do the same from the midfield, a gap was created between mid-field and forward line. There’s a huge lesson to be learnt for other teams here, and the team that imbibes this understanding will go on to greater heights.

For years now Germany have played a brand of football that is quick and counter attacking, and they have stayed there or thereabouts at the top four for a while. A final push to take them to the Promised Land will see them regain some of their lost glory, but in Joachim Loew they do seem to have the right attitude to stay at the top if they get there.

In a world where change is the only constant, glory will be found by those who embrace it, not fear it.