Possession football is a way of understanding football, a style of play where we seek to have possession of the ball for as much time as possible. We understand that through this we can increase our chances of winning as we control the tempo of the match. It is important to understand that Possession Football is not simply maintaining possession of the ball, as statistics show that simply having possession of the ball does not make a real impact on our chances of winning. Other statistics such as winning duels, miles runs and number of shots increase our chances of winning more than simply having the ball.
One statistic stands out much more than the others: when we manage to pass the ball in-between the lines and bypass more opponents, especially behind the defensive line, our chances of winning greatly increase. And the opposite is true, if we can prevent the opposition from playing in between our lines and stop passes to players in behind our defensive line, we are much more likely to win. Algorithms show that if we combine both, our chances of winning the match can rise to up to 88 percent.
Possession football teaches us to play between the lines and avoid the opposition playing through our defensive structure, making them play sideways and backwards.We base our Possession Football on three important aspects:
- Possession:
Controlling possession of the ball, moving the ball quickly with few touches to destabilise the opponent’s defensive structures. - Positioning:
Positioning our players well on the pitch, allowing us to be economical with our effort and well-organised to react quickly when we lose the ball to prevent counter-attacks and try to win the ball back in the opponent’s half. - Pressing:
Pressing aggressively to win the ball back as quickly as possible when we lose it. The best time to win the ball back is immediately after we lose it.
There are many more aspects associated with Possession Football involving the why, when, how, where and who of the style of play, and on this online platform we will share our knowledge of how to train and play based on this philosophy.
We will share drills and tips in an easy-to-understand way to learn how to keep the ball, position players on the pitch and press to win the ball back. We will continually update the platform with new drills and content to provide a constantly growing archive of resources. All of the content has been created by Albert Capellas and comes from his studying of the game and experience with the coaches, players and clubs he has worked with. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to making this project a reality.