Over the years I've got to forensically examine a lot of football games. First as an opposition analyst, then as a head coach and nowadays in the day job with Fifa and on the panel for RTÉ, so I'm always on the lookout for patterns that define how teams operate.
What system did each manager play, how did they play it and, more importantly, why? Was it to suit the players they had, or did they recruit players that could carry out, in precise detail, what the coach commanded?
In short, is it effective coaching or coaching dominated by strict instruction?
Such questions always bring me back to Jim Gavin. I was fortunate enough to spend 2018 with the Dublin panel. Jim spoke recently about never having a plan A or B, never mind C, going into a game.
The all-conquering Dubs – I swear this is a soccer column – were built upon the principles of a platoon at war. Each player/soldier is empowered to make decisions in the heat of battle, simply because the manager cannot do it for them. What the coach can do is create a philosophy that allows all types of personalities to put the team before anyone’s God-given talent.
It doesn't matter a jot if your Midas touch has delivered 20 years of trophies if every opponent knows your blind spots
The League Managers Association (LMA) – which is so much more than a trade union for English managers – made me examine what sort of coach I wanted to be. Am I Sam Allardyce, who arrives with an instant potion to scrap and survive, or am I from the Sean Dyche school of rigid, near-impossible-to-break-down teams, which foster sustainability in the football club? Perhaps I would be willing to take the tactical risks needed to win trophies – which requires an instinctive understanding of what drives the biggest personalities.
Distinct style
The LMA encourages us to recognise our own distinct style because eventually every coach needs to figure out what they are about.
My main life lesson that applies to football is that the manager must be constantly evolving. It doesn’t matter a jot if your Midas touch has delivered 20 years of trophies if every opponent knows your blind spots.
Such knowledge is easier to impart at a club. Day by day you build a team of distinct characters with particular skills.
In international football, you play the cards you are dealt. You have a certain pool of players and you must find a way of getting Séamus Coleman and Matt Doherty on the pitch at the same time, and in the most effective positions to win games. Your ideals become less relevant because you cannot put square pegs in round holes.
Katie's trademark is her ability to create opportunities for others when taking on defenders high up the pitch
During my six years working in Michael O'Neill's Northern Ireland set-up we had three quality centre-backs in Jonny Evans, Gareth McAuley and Craig Cathcart whilst the options at fullback positions were sparse. Michael saw the wood through the trees and went with 3-5-2, a system he had not previously favoured, but one which ultimately delivered tangible success. Opposition teams were not expecting it.
That’s what makes international football more of a challenge because you don’t always have the pieces you need to create the picture you want. Coaches must be tactically flexible, all the time.
Conundrum
It's a conundrum that Vera Pauw faces in every international window. The Katie McCabe debate lives on because Katie's trademark is her ability to create opportunities for others when taking on defenders high up the pitch.
With Ireland she has been playing the wing-back role, which can require more defending responsibilities than attacking, as seen in the recent games against Sweden, Finland and Slovakia.
When the opposition figures this out – and you can bet the Swedes will do so next April – it comes down to the coach to educate and empower players so they understand and react to what is thrown at them.
Playing left-back for Arsenal last season, McCabe added a defensive dimension to her phenomenal attacking game. Under new manager Jonas Eidevall, she has been redeployed to the left wing, which has allowed her to shine even brighter.
Arsenal are reaping the rewards: top of the WSL and in the FA Cup final this weekend.
Against Slovakia last week, Ireland struggled to deal with a small adjustment in how the visitors set up. By pushing on their wide players, the Slovaks pinned down both wing-backs, McCabe and Áine O’Gorman, forcing Pauw’s charges to become a back five.
In doing so, they went a long way to negating Ireland’s capacity to attack, but they also forced them to defend for longer spells than would have been anticipated.
Against Georgia, albeit against much lower-ranked opposition, McCabe dominated and inspired a record-breaking Ireland performance that further highlights her importance to the team from an attacking perspective.
Adjustments
Jim’s philosophy was different. You don’t need a plan A or B, but during a game, when the opposition susses you out, the players need to know what adjustments can be made.
The elite sides play chess, always hiding their true schemes, until the battle is won.
It’s all very well for the coach to know what they want their players to do, but, more importantly, you need the players to understand the principles and how and when to apply them. The coach then allocates the roles to the players who have the skills and mindset to enhance the absolute strengths of the team.
This is the direct challenge facing the Republic of Ireland, under Kenny and Pauw, in the years ahead: to initially look predictable, only to shape-shift, and then control the chaos.
When the system is inevitably fractured, everyone must know what needs to happen next. Jim Gavin is a master of letting players operate under well-established principles without ever being obvious.
I know, I know, the Dubs have nothing to do with the beautiful game, but it was beautiful to behold from the inside looking out. The Pro-Am golf circuit is lucky to have him – another example by Gavin that predictability is a curse to be avoided at all costs.
