Total Football (totaalvoetbal) And The Spirit Of The 70's
How exciting would it be if Holland won their first ever world cup in 2014 by utilizing the "total football" approach that got them to the 1974 World Cup final? "Total Football" was a tactical theory in which any outfield player can take over the role of any other player in a team. "Defender", "Midfielder" and "Striker" weren't definitive player roles, with defenders playing up front whilst forwards played in defence to fill the gap. In this fluid system, a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team's intended organisational structure. It worked phenomenally well for Ajax, who played some of their finest football ever whilst utilizing the tactic. They suffered just one defeat in the whole of the 1971-72 season, and celebrated five titles in 1972 (the Netherlands national league, KNVB Cup, European Cup, European Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup). If the Netherlands can rediscover Total Football and unleash it at the 2014 World Cup, then their failures in Euro 2012 will be a distant memory.