Book Review: Inverting the Pyramid
Friday, 03 October 08, 09:32 PM · Comments(0)
I really can’t say enough about this book written by Jonathan Wilson. Inverting
the Pyramid is a detailed and illuminating history of football tactics, starting with the inception of the game over 150 years ago until the beginning of the twenty-first century. Wilson
tracks its individual, formational and systematic development from England to Eastern Europe, from the Old World to the New. Within that development emerge the dichotomies of passing vs
dribbling, organization vs creativity, attack vs defense, the individual vs the system, possession football vs direct football. Wilson relates the influence of key football figures such as Meisl,
Chapman, Maslov, Bilardo, Michels, and Lobanovskyi, just to name a few. He also pulls no punches when addressing the deleterious effects on English football from the flawed works of Reeps and
Hughes.
I found this book immensely educational in terms of how the game has evolved, which nations and clubs were seminal along this path, and what concepts have been vital in shaping the evolution of the game. Given Wilson’s deep understanding of football it would stand to reason who the next FA president should be, or at least Capello’s successor for England’s national coach. That may be said with tongue in cheek, but it would also be a refreshing option for such a ‘stodgy’ football nation--the creators of the beautiful game, no less.
Anyone who has more than a rudimentary interest in the game of football would be the better for reading this work. Coaches would benefit significantly from what this book has to offer in terms of how the game is played at the highest level, and where it is most likely headed.
Inverting the Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson
I found this book immensely educational in terms of how the game has evolved, which nations and clubs were seminal along this path, and what concepts have been vital in shaping the evolution of the game. Given Wilson’s deep understanding of football it would stand to reason who the next FA president should be, or at least Capello’s successor for England’s national coach. That may be said with tongue in cheek, but it would also be a refreshing option for such a ‘stodgy’ football nation--the creators of the beautiful game, no less.
Anyone who has more than a rudimentary interest in the game of football would be the better for reading this work. Coaches would benefit significantly from what this book has to offer in terms of how the game is played at the highest level, and where it is most likely headed.
Inverting the Pyramid by Jonathan Wilson
Like this blog? Help spread the word: 
No comments yet. Be the first person to leave one!
-
Pequito
seattle, US
Over 30 years ago, this American came to love the sport by way of Guam. It may have been pivotal that his first coach was a Spaniard with the self-declared moniker of 'Don Pedro'. Since then, the love of tiki-taka and all things La Liga has been foremost. This especially applies to Barça.
On Ronaldo Better Than Messi? Give Me a Break