Touches On The Ball Have Tactical Implications
A look at the intentional touches taken by Barcelona Men's midfield in a 2011 Copa del Rey game
Often the discussion around the Barcelona era in the 2010’s revolves around the tiki taka style of play. Minimal and quick touches paired with rapid ball movement to unlock opponents and mesmerize the fans.
However, after recently watching a Copa del Rey game from 2011 against Almeria, I couldn’t help but notice how many touches the midfield trio of Javier Mascherano, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta took at times after receiving the ball.
They didn’t take touches for the sake of it; each touch had a purpose and allowed them to execute greater tactical ideas. We’ll take a look at what kind of intentions these touches had in this post.
Touches taken at a distance and with a weight that allow a player to step into a pass
The distance and weight of the midfield’s touches were noticeable in that it allowed them to step right into a pass when a passing lane opened.
In the first instance below, Xavi received on his back right foot in his defensive half.
In between the first and second frame, Xavi took 4 touches (very un tiki taka of him) before finding David Villa in a wide position with a line breaking pass.
The touches that Xavi took between receiving and passing were tight and close to his body. We can see that in the last frame before passing to Villa, the ball was directly underneath him which allowed him to hit the pass with the required weight and accuracy.
Later in the game, Mascherano received across his body on his back left foot. In the frame below, we can see that the touch was close which allowed him to step right into a pass and find Lionel Messi with a line breaking pass.
While Mascherano took less touches than Xavi in this situation, the idea was still the same.
Putting body between ball and defender
This is a very basic concept, but when players are aware of how the picture changes, it can allow them to exploit the opposition.
Below, Mascherano received on his right foot and was being pressured by the defender circled in yellow.
As seen below, he took a touch that put his body between the ball and the defender. This also changed his body orientation which prompted Xavi’s defender to step (denoted with the yellow arrow).
As a result, he was able to find Messi in between lines.
Later in the game, Xavi received a pass from Iniesta (circled in black) across his body on his back right foot.
Xavi’s initial touch but his body between the ball and the defender. The fact that he took a couple of touches allowed Iniesta to continue his movement forward to be a dangerous option along Almeria’s backline.
Sometimes taking touches allows a sequence to develop and gives teammates time to position themselves in dangerous or supporting areas.
Taking touches across the opposition’s momentum
Using the opposition’s momentum against them can help the player on the ball find space and open up passing lanes for teammates in between lines.
In this first instance, Iniesta received a ball across his body on his back left foot. As that was happening, Almeria were moving to pressure and cover (shown with the yellow arrows) based on the direction of the pass to Iniesta.
Messi’s positioning (circled in black) put the two Almeria players in a place where they had to make a decision: to cover the near sided midfielder or stay with Messi? To retreat and connect with the backline or stay with Messi?
Iniesta took a touch across his body back towards his right which allowed him to find space against his defender.
Due to the decisions made by the two Almeria passes, Iniesta was able to find Messi with a line breaking pass.
Later in the game, Xavi received a pass in his attacking half and was being pressured by an Almeria defender. Note Messi’s positioning circled in black.
After facing forward, Xavi took a touch across his body against the defender’s momentum which left him on his heels.
Xavi’s touches on the ball allowed the sequence to develop and Messi was able to position himself higher on the field in a more dangerous area.
Conclusion
As with anything in football, balance is key. Knowing when to take more touches or less is context dependent.
When players can pair intentional touches with the ability to read the game, it allows them to execute tactical concepts of advancing possession, breaking lines, and giving teammates time to position themselves.
Photo taken from FC Barcelona Noticias