On Sunday in the first part of a two-part article, we looked at when the process of adapting to a change in playing style starts, and why top-level footballers are able to manage the transition quickly.
In part two, we ask how the work that is done away from the pitch when new eras begin helps what transpires on it, and if there is a tendency for players to automatically revert to what they know when in pressured situations…
Eddie Newton was part of one of the most radical changes of systems seen at Chelsea, when Glenn Hoddle replaced Ian Porterfield as player-manager in 1993. Hoddle switched from a direct 4-4-2, a long-time pillar of English football tactics, to a relatively untested 3-5-2 system that relied on a sweeper and wing-backs. In came a more cultured passing style as well as significant backroom changes.
There was no obvious improvement in league performance. In the three seasons prior to Hoddle’s arrival, Chelsea had finished 11th, 14th and 11th. After it we finished 14th, 11th and 11th. But on the positive side, our record in the cups showed that on our day we were capable of mixing it with the best, and with the quality of player at our disposal improving all the time, the feeling was that the foundations had been laid for the club to kick on. That we did, winning four major trophies by the end of the decade.
GLENN HODDLE ISSUES INSTRUCTIONS DURING THE 1994 FA CUP SEMI-FINAL
‘No-one had played the “number six” position before in England but Glenn Hoddle told me I had a bit of everything, and wanted me to play like that,’ Newton recalls of his new midfield role at that time.
‘He told me I could not get in front of the ball anymore and I thought okay, I’ll try that.
‘People forget we were getting booed every game for a while in the first half of the season after Hoddle took over. They were shouting for us to get the ball forward, which is what they were used to. Then I remember one particular game, we put together a really strong passing move, and they were clapping, and I thought what has happened to them?!’
An 11-game winless streak saw Hoddle’s Blues marooned in the relegation zone at Christmas in 1993. It appeared many of his players struggled with the focus on technique rather than tenacity.
Newton was one of those who flourished with the new passing style, but he still believes there is a natural tendency for players to slip back into old habits when things are not going well.
EDDIE NEWTON WAS A MEMBER OF THE COACHING STAFF WHEN WE WON THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE IN 2012
Herein lies one of the true tests posed by a new system: how to react when it doesn’t work, when the crowd are agitated, the media critical, the results unfavourable.
Fast-forward 15 years, and the standard of play at Chelsea has considerably improved. Gary Cahill, an integral member of recent trophy-laden times, agrees with Newton to an extent.
‘In my position, I think the manager will always want you to trust his ideas and stick to the principles of the way he wants you to play,’ the defender explains.
‘If I’m being honest you do that 80 per cent of the time, but you always have a little default setting where if things aren’t going particularly well, either personally or collectively, you can relate back to experiences you have had and you can just, for example, play the ball simple, keep your shape, the basics.
‘Sometimes I watch a game and see a player going through a tough time, and think “just go back to basics, play yourself back into the game”. So I think there is an element of that as well, but generally you are trying to adapt to the tactics the manager wants you to use.
‘The tactics and the formations are only as good as the players that are playing it,’ adds Cahill.
‘If you have got six or seven playing it, and the rest doing their own thing, it is always going to break down. Everyone must be able to pull in the right direction.’
GARY CAHILL ON HIS FIRST DAY OF PRE-SEASON THIS SUMMER
Hoddle’s change in philosophy might not have yielded instant success on the pitch - although we did reach the FA Cup final for the first time in a generation - but the groundwork he laid off it revolutionised things behind the scenes. Newton strongly believes his former manager Hoddle deserves a huge amount of credit for the part his work played in all the success that has followed.
These days we take much of it for granted: dieticians, masseurs, strength and conditioning coaches. They all play important roles in smoothening the transition from one manager to the next, but Cahill acknowledges the players must be the ones to take responsibility in the first instance when it comes to dealing with newly-introduced fitness and nutritional work.
‘There has to be trust,’ he stresses. ‘It’s down to you as a player. If you’re not fit enough or you’re out of condition it will catch up with you and you’ll not play. It’s as simple as that.
‘Football in general is a lot easier when it’s played in conditions when you feel comfortable in your body, you feel fit. That’s the basics: to put yourself in a condition where you feel fit and healthy and ready to adapt to any situation.
Gary Cahill
It’s interesting for me as a player to see how different managers think and to learn new ideas, but also go back to a bit of a default. I know what physical condition I need to be in to feel at my best.
‘To have longevity in your career and to be at the top level for such a long time is not just about natural ability. It’s about the full package, and that is why you see the top players stay at the top for the majority of their career.’
In ‘a game of opinions’, as Cahill calls it, or a world without definite proofs, as sports psychologists refer to it as, it is apparent the capacity to adapt, and to deal with what is thrown at you, is as significant as any other quality demanded by elite football.
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