Tempo considerations

Hi all,

Other than the often touted 'direct/long passing should be fast, shorter passing should be slow' mantra has anybody got to the bottom of what is optimal, when?

Anyone having success for example, with a quick, short passing style??

Cheers

I may be wrong here but I've always thought about it in terms of this: The benefits of a slow build up means your opportunities in front of goal are stronger and you are more likely to score because you've found the perfect time to slip your team mate through. However, the chances don't come as often...

If you play direct then you'll likely have more chances but they would probably be in situations where it is harder to score because your players have to get on the ball as quick as possible.

Ultimately though it all depends on your players. In lower league, usually a more direct method of play works better (because players lack good technique), but if you have 11 Messi's on the pitch then short passing is probably better.

I played a short passing game with tempo on the slowest possible in a 41221 or 4231 formation with my newcastle team and had quite a lot of success. My thinking was a slow, short passing game was patient like Spain and would lead to more possession. Not sure it was 100% accurate, but I have won the FA Cup and Europa League.