Gian Piero Gasperini explains his tactical ideas, with football in “continuous evolution”.
The Atalanta Coach is seen as one of the finest tacticians in Italy, and arguably the man behind the resurgence of the back-three.
“I really learned the three-man defence from Ajax and Barcelona, even if everyone in Italy kept saying it didn’t work in Europe,” Gasperini explained to Gazzetta dello Sport.
“When I came to Inter few people played it, now the situation has changed.
Gian Piero Gasperini explains his tactical ideas, with football in “continuous evolution”.
The Atalanta Coach is seen as one of the finest tacticians in Italy, and arguably the man behind the resurgence of the back-three.
“I really learned the three-man defence from Ajax and Barcelona, even if everyone in Italy kept saying it didn’t work in Europe,” Gasperini explained to Gazzetta dello Sport.
“When I came to Inter few people played it, now the situation has changed.
“Man marking? I get angry if one of my players leaves his position on the pitch to go and chase an opponent.”
Gasperini has been praised by none other than Milan legend Arrigo Sacchi.
“Arrigo has often been complimentary about me in the last few years. He sends me texts and phone calls, but publicly it has another effect… to hear that from a great innovator like him…
“Many people have won, few have left their mark on football. HIs Milan left one. Pressing is at the base of my principles, and at the time only his Milan and the Pescara team I played for did it.
“That said, today Sacchi’s football would be impossible, too many things have changed. Passbacks, the offside rule change, harsher punishments for last man fouls and tactical fouls.
“Football doesn’t stop, it’s in continuous evolution, and that goes for mine too. The lightbulb moment for a three-man defence came from Nicolas Burdisso, who was a very good goalscorer.
“Until then I was dogmatic about having numerical superiority in defence. In a Genoa–Juventus game I left Burdisso and [Sebastien] De Maio against [Carlos] Tevez and [Fernando] Llorente.
“It was worth the risk, because I earned an extra man for our own moves. The Atalanta defenders who attack came from that intuition.
“Football changes, and talking about numbers, about a three man defence, makes no sense. Against a front-three I could defend as a four but have set-up as a three. Principles count, not formations.
“It’s the same for the wings, at one point I’d always have had two wide players. Then Suso came to Genoa and he wasn’t [Giuseppe] Sculli, so I asked him to drift inside as he does at Milan now, and as [Papu] Gomez does for Atalanta, when he swaps with [Josip] Ilicic in the middle.”
Gasperini was then asked what he believes the next innovation in football will be.
“A goalkeeper who pushes up between the two centre-backs, because that way you earn an extra man for the build-up.
“You’ll see, in the future goalkeepers will be chosen more for their feet than their hands.
“Etrit Berisha? No, for now it’s better he focus on saves…”