Soccer Opposites

Was Sir Isaac Newton a football enthusiast?

Newton's Third Law for Motion is that, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
This law states that in every interaction, there exists a pair of forces. These forces always come in equal and opposite action-reaction pairs.

Kind of sounds like two teams playing soccer, eh?

Counter Attack                      Defending the Counter Attack

Safe pass                                Pressing Defense

Establishing Rhythm             Disrupting Rhythm

Transitioning to Attack          6 seconds to regain shape behind ball

Building from the Back         Defending at Line of Confrontation

Building in Attacking Half    Bunkering in

Attacking Restarts                 Defending Restarts

Only in soccer, while there are draws, more often than not there is a winner and a loser.  The outcome of the match does lie in the battle of opposites. Above we have identified 7 basic opposites in the game of soccer. Perhaps you can identify others?  It seems fair to say the team who wins the majority of the battles of opposites has the best chance at winning the match, yes?

Opposing Principles of Play

I have published these and similar thoughts before. They are extremely important for both coaches and players to understand.  Consider this a short guide to transition from playing AT soccer to actually playing soccer.

Attacking Principles of Play                                  Defending Principles of Play

1) Penetration to score                                            1) Delay the Attack

2) Depth to stretch the defense vertically                2) Support behind 1st Defender

3) Width to stretch the defense laterally                  3) Compactness

4) Movement of Players & Ball                                4) Maintain Balance

5) Creativity & Unpredictability                                5) Discipline & Patience