Messi is marked by four Swiss defenders in the FIFA World Cup 2014

Speaking about his experience of watching the FIFA World Cup 2014, former captain of the Indian football team, Satyajit Chatterjee, paints a picture on how he has seen the game change over four decades. “I remember watching the recorded telecast of the final match of the 1978 World Cup between Brazil and Holland. In 1982, four matches were telecast live in India, the two semi-finals and final and the match for the third position. Since 1986, we have been watching every World Cup match live and have had the fortune of watching some of the best players,” said Satyajit. Personally, being a Diego Maradona admirer, Satyajit has always followed Argentina’s game, since 1986. However, his other favourites are Brazil, Germany and Italy.

“I had signed Mohun Bagan in 1986 and I would follow Maradona’s game closely,” he said. Satyajit admires the beauty of Brazil’s game. And, they are a successful team. “Every continent has its own style of playing football. Latin Americans, specially Brazilians, are spontaneous players. They enjoy their game and they believe in playing entertaining football and winning. On the other hand, in the European continent, Germany believes in winning, irrespective of style or pattern,” said Satyajit.

Satyajit likes to analyse every second of the game and laments that football has gradually lost that zing. It has become too stereotyped. He feels that this year’s tournament has emphasized a number of factors. “Coaching has been given a lot of priority in the World Cup this year. Speed and contact has increased manifold in the game. However, there are not many outstanding players in this tournament,” said Satyajit. According to Chatterjee, talented players like Messi, Neymar, Zidane or Ronaldo are not produced in masses and they all stand out because of their personal skill and performance.

“During World Cup we usually spot new talent. For instance, this year, James Rodriguez of Columbia has performed well and is a promising player. Alexis Sánchez of Chile and Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa are players that the coaches will watch,” said Chatterjee. However, the number is small. “In earlier tournaments, we would find a large number of outstanding players and we would have a tough time comparing who is better than the other,” said Satyajit.

Chilean striker Alexis Sánchez (left) against Egypt’s Mohamed Abdel-Shafy

A lot of the stereotypes that have creeped into the game is to be blamed on the new concept of football academies that have mushroomed all over the world. “They have put young players in a straightjacket and have suppressed the natural talent of many players. Even players like Messi cannot always play their natural game. How many dribbles and heads do we get to see in football matches these days. Much of the spontaneous spirit of football is lost in the process and this is true not only of foreign countries but also of football academies in India,” said Chatterjee.

Rules and regulations of the game at an international level have changed and so have strategies of coaches. “Previously, the rule in football was ‘attack is the best form of defense’ but now that has changed to ‘defense is the best form of attack’. The original break-up of a team of 10 players was 4-2-4, where there were four defenders, two mid-fielders and four attackers. In the 1960s and 70s, the break-up changed to 4-3-3, with four defenders, three mid-fielders and three attackers. Now that has changed further to 4-4-2 or even 4-5-1, where the number of attackers are reducing and defenders are increasing,” said Chatterjee.

However, Satyajit does point out another upcoming trend. “A few teams are trying to play open and balancing football these days. This means when you have the ball, attack and when you lose the ball, defend. For example, when a team has the ball in its control, about six players will attack, but when it loses the ball, eight players will defend, thus keeping the defense high,” he explains.

Talking about Brazil's loss, he said, “It was unexpected and a misfortune. There were a number of mistakes in their game. I feel their choice of players was totally wrong. Secondly, they had severe tactical mistakes in their game. They had a very illogical attacking strategy that completely failed. They kept their defense and mid-field open. Finally, I think they were overconfident. They did not do enough homework before playing against a tough opponent like Germany, who has played consistently throughout the tournament.

With technological development, football matches are now all recorded and posted on the Internet or can be watched on television. Teams and coaches from around the world can easily watch Messi or Neymar’s or any other good player’s best performance. This helps the weaker teams to prepare themselves as they learn from these strategies or styles of playing. “With so much change coming in football over the years and expecting more change in future, I would not be surprised to see smaller and lesser known teams winning the World Cup in future,” concluded Chatterjee.