Techniques and Tactics in Football

Technique- The way in which an athlete performs a skill.
Techniques in Football include; Passing, Finishing, Dribbling, Heading, Tackling and Control.

• Passing-  There are many types of passes in football, each of which is situational and relies on correct technique and power in order to be completed, the range of passes allow a player to pass the ball at any distance. For example if a opposing player is in between you and a teammate that is in good space you would not use a ground pass in order to find your teammate, instead a lobbed pass using the lace of your boots with adequate power would be the right pass to choose. Passing in football is a Gross skill because it uses large muscles groups and body movements, its a Discrete skill because there is a clear beginning and end to the movement, an open skill because it is effected by the environment e.g. opponents, movement of team mates etc. and finally it is externally paced because although the player has control over when to do the skill in a game of football they must do it before an opponent reaches them or closes off the passing option.
• Finishing- Finishing is an important part of the game and comes in generally three different ways, the first is a chip shot where the player uses there toe to cut under the ball and loft it over the keeper, the second is a finessed shot where the attacker uses the inside or outside of there foot to put the ball around the keeper and into the goal leaving spin on the ball and lastly a drilled shot where the attacker uses power to beat the keeper. Finishing is an integral part of football as it is goals that decide who wins the game and if you have a striker that is able to apply the techniques correctly under pressure it increases or chances of winning each game. Finishing in football is a Gross skill, discrete, open and externally paced.
• Dribbling- This is how a player moves with the ball in either free space or approaching opponents. when approaching opponents dribbling allows affords a player different options, either to beat the opponent with a skill, a quick turn, a feint or a change of direction. This is one of the most important aspects in football, a player can still play at a good level without one of the other skills but if they cant dribble they will struggle. Dribbling is a Gross skill, its continuous, an open skill and is externally paced.
• Heading- Heading is used in three ways in football: attacking, defensive and as a form of passing. A defensive header is aimed to be high and powerful in order to get the ball as far as possible away from the defenders goal, whereas an attacking headed is aimed down towards the goal line as it makes it harder for the goalkeeper to get down an save it, it also creates an awkward bounce of the surface for the keeper to save. A headed pass is normally aimed at taking speed off the ball and using the speed of the travelling ball and correct technique to find a teammate. Heading is a gross skill as you use large body movements to generate power in the header, it is discrete with a clear beginning and end, open as it is effected by the outside environment and externally paced as the flight of the ball determines when the skill should be performed.
• Tackling- There are two types of tacking, standing and slide tackling. The first of which is generally used when a player is attempting to run past you, a standing tackle can be used to poke the ball away from the attacker or to intercept the ball if the players touch is poor. A sliding tackle is used by most as a last resort when the the ball is too far away for a standing tackle and is able to be won if you go to ground. Tackling is a Gross skill, its discrete, open and externally paced.
• Control- Control is the ability to bring the ball down and gather it whilst stationary or moving. Good control can make a huge difference in a game, in an attacking position if the player can take the ball down in there stride it can allow them to keep the momentum of the attack alive and beat a defender, in a more neutral or defensive position good control can give the player with the ball an extra second or two to pick out a pass. Control can be either Gross or fine depending on the situation, it is discrete, open and can be both externally and self-paced.

Tactics- The skills and strategies a player uses in any type of sport to be able win. Players and teams will apply specific strategies to try and beat or outwit their opponent.

• Attacking and defending- In football whether a team is attacking or defending effects their shape and formation for example a formation for when a team is attacking would be 3-5-2, whereas when that team is defending the two wing backs would slot in beside the three centre-backs and one of the striker would drop off into a number 10 role to create a 5-4-1. The reason teams set out like this is because they want to commit more players forward to attacks in order to increase the options in the final third and increase the likelihood of scoring. In the same token in defence they need more players behind the ball defending to decrease the likelihood of the other team scoring.
• Situation of the game- The situation that a team is in can change how they play during the game for example if a team is losing they will try to play attacking football at a high tempo in order to create chances to get themselves back into the game. whereas a team that is winning may choose to either play at a high tempo to extend there lead if they feel that is the best option or choose to slow play down and keep possession to make it harder for the opposition to get back in the game.
• Strengths and weaknesses- This works in two ways, knowing your own and your opponents strengths and weaknesses. If you know your opponents weaknesses you can set up your team in order to exploit those weaknesses, for example if the opposing team has a centre-back that is weak and doesn't like a physical battle i would put a physical striker against them that could beat them in a physical battle and either hold the ball up or spin them. In the same token you need to know you opponents strengths so that you can combat them for example if the opposing team has a play maker number 10 that controls their play, you would put your number 4 on them and take them out of the game. It is also important to know that the opposition will know your strengths and weaknesses and they will set up to exploit your weaknesses and combat your strengths so you may need to set-up differently from how you would be expected to in order to tactically outwit the opposing team.