order, calculation and posture – Corriere.it

Maurizio Sarri is the man of order, of that logical order which is the basis of his football philosophy. Judged, at the beginning, in an even too approximate way, like the coach-goal machine for the spectacular nature of his game principles, for the triangles he draws on the pitch for his players – the so-called passing lines – Sarri is quite manic of defense and order. His Lazio are second in the standings, they have the best defense of the tournament: 20 goals in 30 games. The perfect result of the ups and downs of the line, which starts from an assumption: you stay tall at the height of the midfield and you all get down together. The four of the defensive line, in this case Marusic, Casale, Romagnoli and Hysaj, go back and forth synchronously. It starts from the assumption, Sarri, that the collective order can enhance individual qualities. It is no coincidence that the Tuscan coach has contributed to increasing the value of individuals during his career. Romagnoli and Hysaj are the most recent example.

The defensive line

The line, therefore, is order and calculation: if the opposing ball carrier looks towards the goal and has no one in front of him, the line must run backwards. The precision must be absolute and the understanding between the players of the department very high: Sarri’s calculation provides for six seconds to recover the ball. The interpretation of the defensive line presupposes a punctual application of each movement which, precisely, in an orderly manner must be aligned with that of the teammates. The individual’s mistake puts the department in jeopardy. This is one of the reasons why Sarri doesn’t like rotations or alternative tactical solutions too much. The line is also posture: torso perpendicular to the midfield line to be ready to run backwards.

Pass lines

The passing lines: Lazio always builds from below with a constant phrasing and safety in the dribble: attracts opposing pressure and discovers forward spaces. Constantly determining new horizontal or vertical routes to move up the field. Here too the precision must be almost millimeter. But every player knows what he has to do, to always have the best solution. Sarri’s work made Napoli spectacular during the three years of his management, Spalletti has repeatedly admitted that, with regards to the passing lines, he still found them drawn on the third training ground of Castel Volturno. And to be inspired, too. The Napoli coach has studied Sarri while distancing himself from him, especially this season. The example of line “broken” by Kim which instead tends to detach testifies to the difference. Sarri is the established order, Spalletti breaks.