The Speed of Play Paradox 

100%

Good point, but I must concur that the speed of play paradox is a real thing. Just look at the difference between the Top/premier leagues in most countries and compare it to the 1st and 2nd divisions of those same countries. I have noticed that the divisions and lower leagues seem to be more 'pacey' with much more running as compared to the top league. It's to the point where it appears much 'easier' to play in the top/premier league. One can also add that it is the same thing in sports such as boxing, martial arts etc. where the amateurs seem to be more rapid but reckless whereas the pros are more patient and calculated.

The better the team im on, the better striker ​i am because the passes and movement are better @@kaushitwakafidi

As far as boxing you are correct. Amateurs pace is faster than professional boxing because of two things mainly. The rounds in amateur boxing are only 3 compared to 10-12 in the pro ranks. As a result, amateurs train to fight a higher tempo, higher pace with more output. Even when you put amateurs with pros and in 3/4 rounds the amateurs do better. As far as soccer, I think it's the quickness of mind that pro soccer players have that slows down the game. Go back to boxing and watch a highly skilled and experiences fighter how he can slow down the pace ​@@kaushitwakafidi

True

Yup! Even lower leagues games I've watched live often 'felt' faster than a top game I watched on television. Even though I already knew this wasn' t the case, I was still blown away by the difference in speed in terms of thinking and handling when I saw Barca at their high point at Nou Camp. Especially the first touch and the first decision after that is where you see the difference in skill so much better than on TV, not the fancy highlight reel plays

I went to the Chelsea vs Wrexham in Chapel Hill last year. A Wrexham played across the lines over the top an Chalobah just turned an kicked it away sliding. It was impressive seeing it in person. I agree the TV don't show the speed compared on seeing it live.

Even a fan recorded video of an average regular moment will look super impressive, I think maybe it’s time to experiment with the camera techniques used for broadcasting, and see if there’s a way to make the game look more dynamic

Many UK tops teams play a 'pressing' game. i.e. always making a physical effort to regain a ball you've lost. Now, if both teams aren't 'pressers' you'll find they have the time to simply play 'football chess' i.e. seeing which play the other team will make and try to disrupt their attacking momentum 'at that point'. And that approach is actually when some games ARE in fact as slow [intermittently] as they seem.

I remember seeing a Messi pass live. It was a friendly and it was basically his first touch. The whole stadium gasped in awe cuz the ball went so high and Jordi Alba took it down like it was nothing.

And also what they can't see. The viewer on TV has better vision than any player, so it's hard to remember that there are things the players don't or even can't see.

That's not true. Watch lower level soccer, and you'll see the mindless pressing.

Great comment. Have young players referee at a reasonably high level. Particularly running a line (being an AR) opens the mind to the spacing and tactics involved.

@@1237barca reffing is a great way to see the game, but it's tough mentally. I had the advantage of being a greybeard before I started reffing, so there's a default/subconscious level of respect that is given (at least at the grassroots level). And even I get tired of the drama. But it is definitely the best seat in the house

​@@1237barca Being a ref at a fairly competitive match isnt great for young people. Once you wear that Yellow shirt (ref.), you are no longer seen as a person with feelings. A slight error will land you insults and name calling, not only from players but from the stands. People will forget you are a person.

Really depends on the level of adult league though. I’ve played in so many adult leagues and just straight up dominated as a d3 bench warmer to the point I stoped cause it was making me worse.

I was very good at football in my youth, I developed a bit of an ego about it. My P.E. teacher could see the arrogance developing, so he got a lad from 2 years higher (I was 13, Billy was 15; 2 and a bit years of pubescent development makes a huge difference in football, any sport really) and he wiped the floor with me. It put me in my place. I was a central midfielder, Billy was a defender, my ball skill was better but Billy had a mass and strength advantage as well as a faster sprint speed, combined with his greater understanding of space due to playing competitive football, it was a huge difference in how he interacted with those on his team. Learning from more experienced players is a huge asset.

Good referees do the same thing, the Messi thing: you are either walking or sprinting.

This is true. Professionals have more time on the ball because other pros know lunging in is a losing strategy. The opposite is true in amateur. You have zero seconds before some idiot rushes you, and you have no passing lanes because your team mates are garbage at positioning. If you watch less skilled leagues (like MLS), you’ll notice a lot more tackling and pressuring and forward movement due to less technical ability and creativity-making the game appear faster.

Not so much about wasting movement but more about retaining strategic shape and not making mistakes that lead to giving the ball away in a compromising position.

@@DjDolHaus86 wasting movement=what you said will happen

@@Ygaming21. It's a weird way of describing it. Wasting movement would imply an unnecessary expenditure of energy, this is more about compromising positional structure

Play slower, but smarter.. every old player :)

@@allessandro989haha I’m not there yet but I am getting slower so hopefully I can adapt

Messi doesn't run that much off the ball, yet he's still Messi.

Declan Rice was already a superlative player when he moved from West Ham to the Arsenal. In an interview he did with Rio Ferdinand early this season, he was asked about his experience with the Gunners up to that point, and he talked about learning a lot of things. When pressed to give a specific example, he talked about _standing still_ . Having the discipline to hold his ground and let the play come to him, as well as trusting his teammates to do their job properly. I thought that was interesting, because he's never been a player who instinctively flies into tackles anyway, and here he was talking about needing to be more _serene_ in his play. Ironically, Arsenal Rice has a lot more responsibility in greater areas of the pitch than West Ham Rice ever did, but yes, he seems even more silky smooth than I remember him being when at West Ham.

@@Azabaxe80that's the thing about the British fans and the British game in general. They overvalue the ability to keep run up and down the pitch, just like the final year Rice was at West Ham when he was turning into an all-action box to box midfielder. I remember many British pundits were wetting their panties at the "improvement" he was displaying that season, including Souness, just as they do with any midfielder who runs all day all night. Holding your position and owning it without running around like a Gerrard is something they can't seem to appreciate, even after regretting for wasting talents like Carrick and Scholes.

Great point! Also, over the shoulder looks make it appear that a player has move time. In fact, I’m quite sure there is no better simple obscure metric for the quality of a player than over their shoulder checks per minute

Good point about Brighton. The delay their passing for a few seconds. Sometimes they faint to be passing to bait opponents into moving thus opening spaces😂

Good comment! Didn't know it was called arrow/vector

Even a good semi pro does this so much better than useful amateurs. And the first touches, in addition to body shapes and peripheral vision, make it look like they have qn extra 1.5 seconds every time they have the ball... it makes them look casual

usually because they aren't actually as good as they need to be. scouts know what to look for, and good technical ability and good vision in a slower game can quickly disappear when you add speed of movement. In football, like all big sports, the margins are fine between levels but they are very real. I can look good in a slow league, and I'll be dispossessed and flustered if I'm playing out of my depth. Hence why a-tier players get paid the big bucks.

@@garthpenglase1613 you misunderstood my comment. There is regular proof that people slip through the cracks. Players come out of nowhere to prove themselves in a cup game, or like Mason Mount did with Derby. There’s no way he’d be playing in the PL if Lampard didn’t take a liking to him and bring him with him to Chelsea. There are plenty of suitable players who just aren’t lucky

Yes, Brighton's a better example of using speed of play to your advantage, than Spurs or Liverpool. Klopp plays "heavy-metal" football which is all about a relentless pressure and pace. Mourinho's Chelsea which won the league and a Champions League did so specifically by playing the opposite: sit back and capitalise on errors and space with blistering counter-attack moves, and park the bus in front of the goal. Barca lost to a much lesser Chelsea with Messi hitting the woodwork 3 or 4 times and putting more than 20 dangerous shots on goal (amazing goal-keeping of Petr Cech is what won them the day). In fact that's how Real Madrid won the previous Champions League. They were beaten in normal play but they created errors and then scored from them and then pushed the advantage in attacking play only once that had occurred. They weren't actually the best team - in fact in 4 critical games they were down and out as long as the other team played smart and defended their lead, but they used over-confidence of the other teams against them and turned the tables.

I don't get this video at all. The only time the game looks slower is when they pass it around the back not under much pressure. In general play and the quick passing and movement makes it look much quicker at the top level than amateur level. And the players closing down do so at a much quicker pace. Yes the game isn't as direct but the speed of play definitely is

Yep, check out that Youri Tielemans bodycam footage. Insane pressing

This made my day, man. Really appreciate all the kind words. I’m so happy that my videos can have a positive impact on your life, man!

The pitch size can be a factor here but definitely not a significant one.

The quality of the pitch plays into what he's saying about playing under pressure. At super-amateur level the terrible pitches add to the higher chance of a turn-over as the ball bobbles along and the receiver miss-controls and/or panics. Hence why everyone at Sunday League level madly sprints at the player receiving the ball as there's a high chance the player will panic and turn it over, and if they don't, there's a high chance the pitch will do that for you. At pro level not only is everyone far far better at playing under pressure, but the surface is not a factor too.

@@jinkuhu the size of the field is extremely significant. We aren't talking a small difference in size, we are talking like fields that don't meet Fifa standards in size in some places, one league below pro. And/or very bobbly pitches. At pro level trainings they usually train in tight spaces which is what makes it so hard. And then in the game they go to a big ass beautiful field. But if you ever see pros then play on a field that is very bad, you automatically see the change in performance in general.

@@rq7284 The point is that even amateur matches are also played at pitches whose sizes are similar to pro ones, at least in the Netherlands, Germany, etc.

@@jinkuhu In Eastern Europe, South America, Africa it's not like that at all

Fr, it's a kind of mutual respect

You only have to look at these pros' blitz games to see that these top GMs (all GMs, really) are incredible attackers: even positional players like Hikaru and Aman routinely pull off awe-inspiring attacks consisting of one sacrifice after another. And you only have to look at Alireza's performance in the Candidates to see what happens when a player ─ even an incredibly good one ─ tries to force an attack when the position doesn't call for it.

Exactly why I love football. There's tons of 1v1 but most of it are just mind games.

You mean that they don’t display the very outer limits of their technical ability during games. That’s correct. For the most part, while playing matches, they perform basic skills that are well within with limits of their technical ability. It’s exceedingly rare that they find themselves in a situation where performing some extravagant skill is the correct decision in that situation.

@@Monaleenian i must add, to perform the basic skills requires exceptional level of technique.. thats why those players make it to those levels. the level of technique is what makes the game look "simple" because they are executing small things properly (with both feet) - there is no player at the highest level that can't execute the required technical abilities with both feet.. they may have a stronger foot but both feet must have a high level of technical standard

Caliber not caliper…

@@Michael-cb5nmyou are the best. Thank you so much.

They're also playing a role that doesn't demand the while repertoire - striker isn't going to play many cross field balls. Agree the best technique makes the basics look easy

Just physical gidigbo football 😂

😂😂the one that makes you laugh

Very explosive and the the most physically fit team, one that presses and runs most wins the league

​@@zebra7578 better gidigbo. Before u control like this, two players are behind you 😂😂

Real

Absolutely no one cared about passing. I remember doing the rondo and most of my team just sighing & said its boring. Guess what? Their passes are shit.

Well, they're accurate for sure, but they also hit it damn hard most of the time so I'm not convinced it's that much easier to control.

Muller is the least enjoyable player to watch in pro football. There are lucky players and there are unlucky players. Both he and Miroslav Klose were incredibly lucky in terms of the quality of the teams they were fortunate to be a part of and situations they found themselves in, particularly at World Cups. But you can't deny that Muller has the skill to be at this level, and his ability and capacity to organise, his match vision, and his insatiable desire to get the ball in the back of the net in top class. He has a winner's mentality and that's carried him through even though he doesn't have much else that is worth watching.

​@garthpenglase1613 Muller is still extremely technically talented, he is just so smart that he doesn't need to use it most of the time. Of course it's maybe less enjoyable for some to watch him but there is a reason he is one of the top scorers and assisters in europe in the past years

​@@garthpenglase1613And I would definitely not call him lucky. He provided so much for his team.

In soccer/football, the same applies. At the lower level, there might be 1-2 players on each team who can play well but at the pro level, everyone is good on the ball so you have to be aware of the entire opposing team

But more than that, there is a yellow card now. No yellow card back then. That's why Pele is the GOAT and will always be.

If you play Sunday league U prolly should press BC they won't know how to deal with it

As Matt says, they mindlessly press at the college level because it wins them games. I think many youth games are more fun to watch than college games because of that. The coach can win with crap soccer, but good youth coaches focus on development of good decision making instead.

And the quality of the pitches too, quality and consistency of the balls and type of balls allow better conditions therefore enabling pros to play at a speed in which you have to defend better against them.

@@sibamalindigreat points!