Quotes About Strategy

always accumulate more players than your rival right from the start of a move to gain the initiative. So, having three players near the ball if the other team have two, or four players if they have three.

Abidal explains that before he arrived at Barcelona, every time he was called into action on the pitch, as a defender he'd been taught to focus on winning the ball. As soon as he arrived at Barcelona, he was taught to think one step ahead about what he could do with it once he'd got hold of it.

the ball goes to the other central defender and this one makes a vertical pass – not to the midfielders, who have their back turned to the ball, but to those moving between lines, Andrés Iniesta or Lionel Messi, or even directly to the striker. Then they play the second ball with short lay-offs, either to the wingers who have cut inside or the midfielders, who now have the game in front of them.

More than ever we must move, move, move and constantly create superiority. We'll open up the pitch and we'll look for the wings and then there will be space down the centre.

That August evening at Los Pajaritos, el mister, as coaches are known in Spain, told his players something that he has repeated several times since. 'We shouldn't lose sight of the target.' And the target wasn't to win titles, but to achieve a certain way of playing. If they stuck to their principles, titles would be the most logical consequence. Never losing sight of their goal would be one of the keys to success.

In future they must place themselves more cleverly to receive the pass, and to start pressuring their opponents more quickly.

Thirdly – and crucial for Pep's position as the midfielder in front of the back four – he had to dispatch the ball to the wingers to make the pitch bigger, wider, to create spaces all over the pitch.

Regarding positional play, he insisted on making sure the player stayed in his corresponding area, especially when the ball was lost.

You get the player, based on what we need, and I will make it work,' has always been his take on signings.

Pos los de Zaragoza estamos con los de acá.» Táctica de supervivencia: la ambigüedad.

a man who wishes to profess goodness at all times will come to ruin among so many who are not so good. Hence it is necessary for a prince who wishes to maintain his position to learn how not to be good, and to use this knowledge . . . according to necessity.'25

Se le dico, mastro Pernath, che tutto il mondo non è che una partita a scacchi!

The candidates' written programme should not be too categorical, since later on adversaries might bring it up against them; in their verbal programme, however, there cannot be too much exaggeration. The most important reforms may be fearlessly promised. At the moment they are made, these exaggerations produce a great effect, and they are not binding for the future.

Unless the perfidious wolves have the temerity to disobey the High King's plans, we should meet Shalhassan's forces by the Latham in mid-wood with the wolves between us. If they aren't,' Diarmuid concluded, 'we blame anyone and everything except the plan.

You're too clever to be a soldier." Then she shook her head. "Don't say it. I know. We need our soldiers to be clever. I do know." "Thank you," he murmured. "You can do all of the conversation. Make it easier for me.

It had taken skill, tact, an ability to choose friends well, and a great deal of luck

Battles are won en route, Shalhassan of Cathal though. A worthy thought: he raised his hand in a certain way, and a moment later Razeil galloped up, uneasy on a horse at speed, and the Supreme Lord of Cathal made him write it down.

The truer measure of power, Brandin had once said to her, wouldn't be found in having twenty heralds deafen a room by proclaiming one's arrival. Any fool in funds for a day could rivet attention that way. The more testing course, the truer measure, was to enter unobtrusively and observe what happened.

It had taken skill, tact, an ability to choose friends well, and a great deal of luck... Luck was always part of it, one way or another

We aren't heroes if we lead men into battles we will lose.

Organizations are successful because of good implementation,not good business plans.

If the other guy's happy, then there's still money left on the table.' " A

As a general rule, like counters like. So you can try counterattacking with roverso fendente against roverso fendente, and so forth.

Four aspects of any action: time, measure, structure, flow p.