Why hold shape and not counter when you gegenpress?

[FulchesterFred]

I took a holiday in the game and came back to see some level of success.

top 4 in Pl when I usually end 6th

the tactics my asst manageR had gone with were highest level of pressing, v high LoE and DL. but hold shape when possession won. So rather than winning the ball high and immediately countering I assume we won the ball high and immediately passed the ball backwards.

counter intuitive???

[HUNT3R]

What could be happening is that you're pressing an already defensive opponent, so trying to counter with fewer attackers than there are defenders. By being more patient in possession (like Pep's Barcelona) you're creating better chances. Very difficult to tell though with the limited info.

[FulchesterFred]

1 hour ago, HUNT3R said:

What could be happening is that you're pressing an already defensive opponent, so trying to counter with fewer attackers than there are defenders. By being more patient in possession (like Pep's Barcelona) you're creating better chances. Very difficult to tell though with the limited info.

Cheers!

[Zemahh]

I agree with HUNT3R, if you're going to press the opposition high, there's not going to be any space for you to actually counter into. You don't want to win the ball, then immediately lose it with some impatient long shot or a cross where your lone striker may be up against multiple defenders, for example. Doesn't mean it can never work, but generally speaking, if you're going to max out your pressing lines, you're probably better off creating chances patiently than rushing things against set defences.

Countering would make more sense when you're allowing the opposition to come and actually attack you first, so that they leave themselves open at the back. That's when you want to be extra aggressive on the break.

[bibird.]

I've used an almost identical strategy to good success in the past. Essentially, I was relying on good work rate and defensive acceleration to disguise a deficiency in decision making within my team. We keep the ball away from our goal with a high line, avoid as many one-on-one defensive scenarios in our half with a high press and when we get the ball we keep it. I don't want risk taking in possession, as we'll end up giving the ball away and putting ourselves under pressure. We concede very few goals through high possession. There's more than one way to skin a cat when it comes to defensive football.