Accent on attack made Brazil spectacle

The FIFA/UEFA Conference for National Coaches and Technical Directors in St Petersburg is not only a crucial forum for technicians to discuss current and future trends in football. The conference is also providing an appropriate opportunity to celebrate a golden summer, during which the FIFA World Cup thrilled experts and fans alike with some memorable football.

The gathering in Russia, jointly organised by the world and European football governing bodies, began on Tuesday, and brings together the national team coaches and technical directors from the 54 European national associations for an in-depth study of the tournament in Brazil. The two days of deliberations are reviewing technical areas, refereeing, health and medical matters, with the aim of nurturing the further development of the game in Europe and across the world.

Germany won their fourth world title in Brazil in July, and the conference paid fitting tribute to the team and their coach Joachim Löw, who gave a fascinating insight into the many elements that came together, both for him personally as coach and for his team, to win the competition.

The technical reviews at the conference highlighted the exhilaratingly positive play that was on show in Brazil – where the accent was on scoring goals. "We had top-quality, attacking football, excellent players, teams focused on winning – we saw coaches who were playing to win the game … this was wonderful for football," said the head of FIFA’s technical division Jean-Paul Brigger.

"There were 171 goals, an average of 2.67 per game, which equalled the number of goals at the World Cup in France in 1998," he added. "We must thank the coaches for their philosophy of letting their teams play in an offensive way."

Brigger highlighted a number of specific factors that made the Brazil tournament so spectacular. Teams produced fast transition play of the highest calibre, either through individual runs, quick combinations or long passes. Counterattacks were led with speed, tempo and power. The competition was also notable for a host of outstanding attacking players, such as Neymar, Lionel Messi, Thomas Müller, James Rodríguez and Alexis Sánchez. "We had wonderful strikers in Brazil," said Brigger.

Other key facets on the field were teams' ability to make creative progress while in possession, producing clever, incisive build-up play. The importance of set-pieces as an attacking weapon remained evident, and new standards had been set in goalkeeping.

"Making saves is not enough," said Gérard Houllier, who led the FIFA technical study group in Brazil. "Goalkeepers now contribute to build-up play, they are the first passers. Goalkeepers must now have two good feet and well as two good hands. Germany's Manuel Neuer, for example, is like an extra defender."

Gérard Houllier joined study group colleagues Mixu Paatelainen (Finland) and Ginés Meléndez (Spain) in looking at trends in modern football and training. “Teams [in Brazil] were ready to take risks,” he said. “They were capable of losing their shape without losing their balance. Today’s top players have high-level technique combined with speed, a team ethic and quality passing. They have composure and emotional control, a high level of acceleration, and the ability to keep up a high tempo.”

Joachim Löw, interviewed by UEFA chief technical officer Ioan Lupescu, who was also a technical study group member in Brazil, said that Germany's success was not just the success of the coach, but that of the entire team and staff – all of the component parts fitted to make a successful whole. A coach, he reflected, must be surrounded by a good team of experts and specialists in a variety of fields, who can provide sound advice, intelligent opinions and reassuring loyalty.

"A coach also has to choose the right players – ones who can come through a tournament in physical and mental terms," Löw told the audience, "and who can rise above the difficult moments that happen in any tournament. I am convinced that the character aspect of a squad must be right – players with tolerance to frustration, discipline when they aren’t playing, and respect towards team-mates."

Löw felt that his side contained an ideal blend of youth and experience. He explained that Germany's success was also based on important structural changes in technical and coaching terms after the national team had endured a barren spell at the start of the new millennium. This had led to a move away from a focus on physical strength to producing players who were more technically proficient, and the German clubs, allied to sound coach education, had played a key role in the progress made in the intervening years.

A coaches' forum at the conference also saw national coaches Fabio Capello (Russia), Vicente del Bosque (Spain), Didier Deschamps (France), Roy Hodgson (England) and Nico Kovač (Croatia) give their personal views on the Brazil World Cup and offer some illuminating insights into their experiences in leading a national team at the final tournament, as well as living the event as a coach.