CREATIVITY AND MISTAKES

For the past few years, there is much talk about creativity in football. It is said that there are no creative players as before. That so many tactics at younger ages is not good. That we have the players to do by their own on the pitch and to "experience" with mistakes. I very much like this. But, we have to distinguish, because I think there are too much mixed concepts.

On one hand, it seems that creativity is only to do 1v1 anywhere. And, it is much more than this, adding that this action can be wrong many times. Creativity can be a 40-meter pass that no one expects to switch the orientation of the game. Creativity can be to make a bicycle shot from the edge of the box. Creativity can be delaying the game to wait for your teammates to arrive. Creativity can be many different things. The problem, as always, is when to be creative. Going out from the back dribbling when you have teammates better placed to receive a pass and get out of the pressure, is it to be creative? Make a 40-meter pass, from side to side of field, when a 10-meter vertical pass makes a partner to be alone in front of the goalkeeper, is it to be creative? Making a clearance, using a bicycle, when you are alone inside the box and you can control the ball, is it to be creative? Making a heel’s pass, not knowing if there is any partner to receive, is it to be creative?

And, with a misunderstood creativity, mistakes are coming. And, when I talk about mistakes, I mean unforced errors, which could be avoided: incorrect passes, unnecessary dribbles, all these types. Let me give an example. Imagine a 12 year old who wants to pass, the pass is intercepted by an opponent and finishes in a goal. It is a mistake, many will say, we must let them to make mistakes. But, which is the mistake? Could he make another pass easier? Did he choose the wrong pass to make? Did he kick the ball with proper surface? Did he check that there were no opponents who could intercept the ball? The child has made a mistake, yes. But which of these that we have said? Are you sure the child knows what is wrong? Because, if you do not have in mind all the variables, are you sure that he will know how to correct the mistake?

A few years ago I watched on television an international competition for youngster (U20). The left Full-back of one team always wanted to go out dribbling. Finally, he lost the ball, was forced to foul and, also, he was booked. As he had one card, he was sent off. His team was down to 10 players and lost the match. Is this creativity? Are you sure? For me it's something else.

And the one million dollars question comes. Who has to make the player to see what is wrong? The coach, right? And here comes most of the problems. There are many coaches who defend this "creativity" and these "mistakes" because they do not know what the mistakes are. It looks good to say "I give the kids freedom" when in reality, you do not know what to “fix”. The guided discovery and the trial/error process, so fashionable actually, are often confused with a lack of knowledge. And, this is often linked with that about "our time (coaches’) is in practice, the match is the time for the players." I strongly disagree with this statement. Always is "our time" (for players and coaches). Football is a team game, not only, 11 individuals on the pitch. It is one team. And, we are coaches of a team from Monday to Sunday and players are team players from Monday to Sunday. And do not confuse this with training individuals. It has nothing to do one thing with the other.

One of the classic mistakes, as coaches, is to think that the systems (formations), are what makes the way of playing of a team. It’s just the opposite. It is from the way you play (the style or model of playing), that you will choose one system or another. And the way you play is worked, as everything has to be worked. If we think that putting the players on the pitch in a certain way, we’ll play in a certain way, we are completely wrong. If we do not have clear this, how can we be clear about the mistakes of our players?

What the players must know are the different options they have and, from there, choose the one that can be better. How is this achieved? Working in practices. Not doing so is a big mistake.

Jordi Pascual

You can follow me on Twitter: @JordiPascualP