The Russian Revolution
VAR encourages dissent, volleys are back and set pieces rule. What we have learned in the World Cup 2018 so far
More than any other World Cup, set-plays have become vital. This is partly due to teams defending in a low defensive block which even makes counterattacks more difficult to score from
● The joy of the World Cup group stage is over, for another four years at least. With 48 games in the books we asked our reporters to reveal the main lessons they have so far learned at Russia 2018.
Defending is a dying art
France and Denmark ended the 37-game run without a goalless draw in the World Cup, but the group stages have shown us that defending is slowly being eradicated. Whether it is because of video assistant referees (VAR) or a crackdown on grappling and holding, there have already been more penalty kicks awarded in this World Cup than any other.
Physical contact inside the penalty area has virtually been outlawed, while defenders will now be penalised if the ball so much as brushes an arm. This has made for a more entertaining tournament, but good defending has been made harder than ever. It’s a good job the Italians did not qualify.
Blocking at corners paying off
Even Brazil are doing it now, with that sweetly worked second goal against Serbia on Wednesday. Miranda got in the way of Aleksandr Mitrovic at the near post, removing the most obvious clearing header. Thiago Silva glided in front of Nikola Milenkovic, and Neymar dropped the ball on the centreback’s head.
Everyone is at it: England players making decoy runs to clear out defenders against Panama and allow John Stones in. Pepe smashing into Morocco defenders at the near post to clear the space for Cristiano Ronaldo behind him.
Gareth Southgate is said to have been taking lessons from the blocking plays that are such a fundamental part of elite basketball. But why now, after all these years of mediocre corner taking?
Asked about it, Roberto Martinez thought it was about VAR’s punishment of grapplers in the penalty area but also simply that technology allows managers to make very precise plans that the players can watch again on apps in their downtime.
Godin is a class apart
All those years of Atletico Madrid yielding possession strategically has given Diego Godin so much practice at thwarting attackers, nipping in front of them to whip the ball away, knocking them off balance by turning his shoulders and hips into offensive weapons, beating them in the air and turning every battle into a jarring and bruising encounter, that Uruguay are reaping the rewards.
They are yet to concede a goal and his organisation, leadership, positioning and bite are instrumental in that.
The quality of volleys
There is nothing purer, or quite so likely to induce that fuzzy feeling in football, as a sweetly struck volley and this World Cup has been a bumper edition for one of the game’s most difficult disciplines.
The quality, volume and variation of volleys has been a sight more satisfying than watching the Germans catching the first plane home.
An almost eerie number of volleys have been successfully executed, from Dries Mertens' gorgeous dipping version for Belgium against Panama to Andre Carillo’s sublime strike in Peru’s victory over Australia to Marcos Rojo’s low thunderbolt with his wrong foot — his right — to spare Argentina an early exit against Nigeria and finally an exquisitely controlled offering from Ante Rebic, of Croatia, after Willy Caballero’s howler, to name just four.
Dead balls provided defining moments
More than any other World Cup, set-plays have become vital. This is partly due to teams defending in a low defensive block which even makes counterattacks more difficult to score from. England have been at the forefront of this, capitalising on an obvious trend in modern football where delivery from corners and free-kicks are now the best goalscoring opportunities.
In the first week of action, 21 of the 38 goals in 16 matches came from set-pieces, including 10 penalties, and that has continued.
That is more than twice as many as in Brazil four years ago.
VAR has helped give an advantage to attacking teams in these situations but teams have also worked hard on their set-piece routines — not just England.
They are now like plays in American football or basketball and have that level of choreography.
The game is more physical than ever
All of us have been waiting for the day when the physical commitment of top players to tournaments falls off a cliff, pushed by the Champions League and the club calendar. But even the elite have thrown themselves into this World Cup with extraordinary intensity, running, chasing and fighting to score late goals.
It’s a reminder that in many nations playing for your country is still the highest form of the game.
VAR has encouraged more dissent
Having introduced VAR, one big consequence that Fifa must urgently address is the worsening of what was already one of football’s least appealing traits: the crowding of referees and the acceptance of angry dissent towards them.
A controversial decision now not only begins with lots of protesting about the initial incident but then arm-waving appeals from every direction over whether it should go to video assessment and then more fury from whoever the final decision goes against. A clear protocol must be introduced for how players and managers can react to VAR situations and disciplinary sanctions should follow for those in breach.
Play-acting is getting worse
One of the joys of the World Cup is watching football with people who never normally bother with it, and thus seeing afresh through their eyes. The reaction of one such neophyte to Neymar was instructive: “Why is he rolling on the floor? Does he need a rest? What a***’ And you can no doubt guess the remainder.
Neymar is the poster child for such pathetic, unmanly behaviour, but he is far from alone: this World Cup has showcased some wretched cheating and attempts to con the referee, which VAR shows no sign of eradicating. For reasons that are unclear, the proud nation of Iran has been perhaps the worst offender.
Two up top is here to stay
The playmaker in behind a forward is a position that has already lost much of its significance at club level, and no team have used a No 10 in the traditional sense with much success in Russia. England gave Harry Kane a helping hand up front by partnering him with Raheem Sterling, Portugal flanked Cristiano Ronaldo with Goncalo Guedes, France have played with Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann in tandem, and Argentina gave Lionel Messi a partner up front in Gonzalo Higuain or Sergio Aguero. We have not quite gone back to the days of little-and-large attacking combinations in an old school 4-4-2, but two-man attacks could be here to stay.
Teams are fighting to the end
I have really been struck by how so many of the already-eliminated teams have gone out with a bang rather than a whimper, transforming what could have been processions in the final group matches into nail-biting psychodramas.
It would have been easy for these vanquished nations to wallow in their misery or to be already mentally on the beach after losing their first two games.
Instead, they dusted themselves off and salvaged some pride. South Korea’s win over Germany was the zenith of this phenomenon which saw all 32 teams score at least once on their visit to Russia.
Not a tournament for goalkeepers
This is not a World Cup that will be recalled for the excellence of its goalkeeping. Errors have abounded, incompetence ruled. Some are to be expected. There is a reason Willie Caballero has been confined to the substitutes’ bench for most of his Premier League career.
But in Russia even the best seem to have been afflicted by World Cup wobbles — remember David de Gea sending palpitations through the whole of Spain with his knockkneed display against Portugal.
They can’t even blame the ball; this edition has flown truer than in any previous tournament. Not that some of the keepers would know that — they have got nowhere near it. — © The Daily Telegraph, London