From Grass Roots to International: Does English Football Lack Philosophy?

On November 15, 2011

The England team had a game plan on Saturday night – the players knew what the manager wanted them to do and they done just that. But beneath the tactics was there a footballing philosophy? A way our players feel the game should be played?

The Spanish Way

The Spanish have their ‘Tiki-taka‘ mentality characterised by short passes, movement, retaining possession and working the ball through channels. No matter who they play and whether they’re 2-0 up or 1-0 down, they will play the same way.

Until recently, Spain, like England, were perennial underachievers on the international stage. La Furia Roja have been blessed with a ‘golden generation’ of players; Xavi, Iniesta, Villa, Casillas and Silva to name a  few. Of course this has been a big factor in their success, but the philosophies the players are brought up with has also played its part.

Speaking after the 2010 World Cup, Fernando Hierro, the former sporting director at Spain’s football federation explained: ”Our philosophy is based on developing qualities in the youth teams while remaining faithful to a certain playing style based on wanting to dominate possession and a desire to carry the game to the opposition.”

“The idea is to make the pathway to the top as smooth as possible I know that traditionally a lot of national associations try to have the age-limit teams mirroring the style of the senior team. But our point of view is that it should be the other way round. The senior team’s play is based on what we do in the youth teams.”

Spain have won the UEFA European Under-19 Championship four times and the Under-17 Championship twice and Hierro believes that the regional structure implemented by the Royal Spanish Football Federation and its excellent relationships with the clubs are key factors in youth development.

Gines Melendez, the Spanish Under-19′s coach said: ”We want the players to be very level-headed, psychologically and emotionally stable. Euphoria or sadness [after a match] can lead to a drop in performance.”

“Group cohesion is very important. We work on values which are fundamental in life but also in the development of a player. They will be better players if they are good people. We have two fundamental goals: training and educating young players.”

To sum it up the Spanish way of playing, this ‘Tiki-taka’ mentality, is instilled into players from youth football right through to the international level.

What is ‘The English Way’?

I said in the opening of this article ‘England. Well, we just play football.’ Though it may sound strange, that’s what we do. We’re never quite sure how we’re going to beat opponents, if we’re losing we tend to go long, we mix our shape and formations around and to be honest from my memories of England games the team has always been somewhat of an experiment. An experiment that’s never quite worked.

You can’t knock Fabio Capello’s CV, he’s a top coach and certainly not the only top coach we’ve had at the helm, but it’s never worked out. Cappello brings Italian philosophies to our team, as did Sven. But that doesn’t suit us. If worldclass coaches can’t bring the best out of our top players, then it’s not a problem with the individual coach or their backroom staff, it’s a fundamental problem with the English game from the grass roots level all the way up to the international level.

England have had the individual players and talent to win competitions, in my mind there’s no doubting that. What we’ve lacked is a style, a philosophy – ‘the English way’.

Are Times Changing?

St George’s Park, the new home to English football, is set to open it’s doors next summer and whilst it will act as a central hub that England teams of all ages can call home, it will also play a key role in football development.

“We have a long-term vision that every footballer who wants to be coached by a qualified coach can have access to one,” explained St George’s Park Chairman, David Sheepshanks.

“At the moment we have 103,000 qualified coaches and by 2018 we would like to have 250,000 qualified coaches. While the main interest for many might be around the elite, it’s incredibly important that what St George’s Park stands for permeates right the way down the football pyramid and is a catalyst and an inspiration to the grass roots game.”

There’s also been a lot of research done by the FA. None more important than the work Nick Levett, Gareth Southgate and the team put into the Your Kids Your Say roadshows, which will provide invaluable learnings and help the FA to create a blueprint for football development in this country.

Carlo Ancelotti once said English players enjoy playing more than the Italians and I think that’s true, English players just want to play football; whether it’s at Wembley in front of 90,000 fans or down the local playing field on a Sunday morning.

Our players are known for their passion, heart and fight. Combine these traits with the right coaching from a young age and a footballing philosophy that’s instilled within players from the grass roots level and I have no doubt in my mind that England will one day be world champions again.

There’s a lot of hard work to be done and it won’t be easy, but the signs are promising.

Does English football lack philosophy? What changes do you think need to be made to the game in England? Let me know what you think in the comments below.