The Rise of Catenaccio
This post follows
the timeline of the Catenaccio's rise to being the most used system in
Italy. It is the second post in the three part series.
Helenio Herrera at Inter Milan
It was in Italy that Catenaccio reached its pinnacle with the most success and also the notoriety it gained in the process. In the previous part of this post, Catenaccio – The Beginning, we discussed how this system was invented by Karl Rappan in Switzerland. Here, we glance into the path of success the Catenaccio system took. Initially, Catenaccio was used, as it was in Switzerland, by weaker teams to frustrate their stronger adversaries. Although, many claimed to be pioneers in implementing the Catenaccio into practice in Italy, the claim of Gipo Viani seems the strongest with his fishing net story being repeated endlessly.
Although, Herrera is man synonymous with Catenaccio, the system enjoyed its first success in the red half of Milan as Nereo Rocco took the European Cup with AC Milan implementing the Catenaccio. Following a modest playing career in which he earned an Italy cap which at that time was a requirement to be a manager, he went on to become a manager at his home-town club Triestina. In his very first season, he guided them to second place in the league. Following a disagreement with the board in the subsequent two seasons, he moved on to AC Milan to achieve what he has achieved with his stint there. His team boasted of the first well-known libero, Blason
Blason was uncompromising defender, known for his long-clearances & uncompromising defending. Legend has it that he would scratch a line on the pitch before kick-off, beyond which the opposition forward was not allowed. He would hack down whoever crosses the line. He was his tendency to hit the ball to touch at the first instance that the libero was initially known as the battitore libero meaning ‘free-hitter’.
Nereo Rocco’s philosophy of football can be gauged by this single sentence. Before an Intercontinental match against Estudiantes de la Plata which was known for their hard tackling he is supposed to have instructed his players thus –
As Jonathan Wilson described in his book, Inverting the Pyramid,
Spain Midfield Maestro Luis Suarez
After being vacated from the post of Barcelona manager, he was the most sought coach in Europe. He moved to Inter Milan taking along with himself the Spain Midfield maestro, Luis Suarez.Herrera, who was strict disciplinarian, focused on player diet & fitness, hard-work, psychology among other things. He was also the one who implemented the ritiro, confining players to a camp three days before a match. Although, these things are common practice in today’s age, in those years, he was the pioneer. He was obsessed with discipline and controlled everything from players’ diet, training to their sleeping patterns. Anyone going against his authority was mercilessly thwarted.
Within three years of his appointment, Herrera’s team was top of the league. They then went on to win the European Cup for two years in succession. Gracing the trophy cabinet is also the inter-continental cup. It makes people speculate about the reason for this enormous success using a system which many others weren’t able to achieve success with. There were rumours about players being dosed with performance enhancing substance or for that matter, referees being bought by Inter. However, the main reason for their success was how Herrera implemented the system, which gave them an edge over their opponents.
The System used by Herrera at Inter Milan
Although the Catenaccio was a defensive system, Herrera imbibed into it several attacking principles which were unique to any teams across Europe. From the back, in front of the goal-keeper was the sweeper or as it was known as the libero. Armando Picchi was the man who occupied this position for most of Herrera’s time at Inter. He was tough defender who could do everything from defending in a one-on-one situation to double marking the opponents, picking up loose balls and also throbbing accurate longs balls using his great vision to initiate counter-attacks. There were two Central Defenders in front of the sweeper who would man mark the opposing forwards. To the left would be Giacinto Facchetti, who was given a license to bomb forward with his lightning pace. The one advantage the Facchetti enjoyed besides his pace was that in those days the Right Winger would be sitting a little deeper, enabling Facchetti to move up in the field. On the Right wing, Jair would be playing deep in his own half as he enjoyed having space to run at the defenders and then delivering a cross to the forwards. Perhaps the most important component of Herrera’s success formula was Luis Suarez who played as deep-lying midfielder also known as the Regista. He would spray accurate passes all across the pitch. It was his passing that won many matches for Inter. Mazzola played as the Fantasist. It was his job to convert those half chances into goals, which made the difference at the end of the match.
Herrera was able to effectively create a winning team out of these men. He believed that the team shall move from defence to attack in just three passes. His team would try to score first and sit back and defend their lead. His strategies were characterised by tight man-marking and players who could make accurate long passes. Also, the pace at which Inter attacked surprised many teams. Although, Catenaccio achieved enormous success, it is rarely used these days. For all the superiority it possessed, there were shortcomings which led to its end. We will look at how Catenaccio came to an end in the last part of this series.
Helenio Herrera at Inter Milan
It was in Italy that Catenaccio reached its pinnacle with the most success and also the notoriety it gained in the process. In the previous part of this post, Catenaccio – The Beginning, we discussed how this system was invented by Karl Rappan in Switzerland. Here, we glance into the path of success the Catenaccio system took. Initially, Catenaccio was used, as it was in Switzerland, by weaker teams to frustrate their stronger adversaries. Although, many claimed to be pioneers in implementing the Catenaccio into practice in Italy, the claim of Gipo Viani seems the strongest with his fishing net story being repeated endlessly.
Viani was down walking by the sea-side, pondering over a way to strengthen his defence, which even for his best endeavours remained extremely fragile and conceding goals in large numbers. As he was pacing around thinking a way out, his vision fell on the fishermen on their fishing jobs. They had in place, two nets, a reserve net behind the original net. Some fish that sneaked across the original net were inevitably caught in the reserve net. That’s when he thought to place an extra defender behind the original line of defence and that’s how the libero was born.Viani’s policy was to stop the opposition from playing rather than playing themselves. He would ask his team to sit deep and defend tight, make the opposition commit bodies into attack and then exploit the space created in the opposition defence. This system worked wonders for his team with limited talent and thus the system spread across the country, where weaker teams began to exploit ‘The Right of the Weak.’
Although, Herrera is man synonymous with Catenaccio, the system enjoyed its first success in the red half of Milan as Nereo Rocco took the European Cup with AC Milan implementing the Catenaccio. Following a modest playing career in which he earned an Italy cap which at that time was a requirement to be a manager, he went on to become a manager at his home-town club Triestina. In his very first season, he guided them to second place in the league. Following a disagreement with the board in the subsequent two seasons, he moved on to AC Milan to achieve what he has achieved with his stint there. His team boasted of the first well-known libero, Blason
Blason was uncompromising defender, known for his long-clearances & uncompromising defending. Legend has it that he would scratch a line on the pitch before kick-off, beyond which the opposition forward was not allowed. He would hack down whoever crosses the line. He was his tendency to hit the ball to touch at the first instance that the libero was initially known as the battitore libero meaning ‘free-hitter’.
Nereo Rocco’s philosophy of football can be gauged by this single sentence. Before an Intercontinental match against Estudiantes de la Plata which was known for their hard tackling he is supposed to have instructed his players thus –
“Kick anything that moves; if it’s the ball, so much the better.”Rocco might have achieved enormous success using the Catenaccio but it was Helenio Herrera who rendered it truly world-renowned. Herrera’s Grande Inter were the most renowned exponents of the Catenaccio system. Herrera reached new levels winning many trophies with a system which others used to stop the opponent from playing. There was no doubt that Catenaccio belonged to Herrera.
As Jonathan Wilson described in his book, Inverting the Pyramid,
Rocco, with his rotund stature and his love of wine, always seemed at odds with the ethos of his system; Herrera, erect, cadaverous and rigorously disciplined, was its personification, even if his hair always ‘seemed a bit too black’
Spain Midfield Maestro Luis Suarez
After being vacated from the post of Barcelona manager, he was the most sought coach in Europe. He moved to Inter Milan taking along with himself the Spain Midfield maestro, Luis Suarez.Herrera, who was strict disciplinarian, focused on player diet & fitness, hard-work, psychology among other things. He was also the one who implemented the ritiro, confining players to a camp three days before a match. Although, these things are common practice in today’s age, in those years, he was the pioneer. He was obsessed with discipline and controlled everything from players’ diet, training to their sleeping patterns. Anyone going against his authority was mercilessly thwarted.
Within three years of his appointment, Herrera’s team was top of the league. They then went on to win the European Cup for two years in succession. Gracing the trophy cabinet is also the inter-continental cup. It makes people speculate about the reason for this enormous success using a system which many others weren’t able to achieve success with. There were rumours about players being dosed with performance enhancing substance or for that matter, referees being bought by Inter. However, the main reason for their success was how Herrera implemented the system, which gave them an edge over their opponents.
The System used by Herrera at Inter Milan
Although the Catenaccio was a defensive system, Herrera imbibed into it several attacking principles which were unique to any teams across Europe. From the back, in front of the goal-keeper was the sweeper or as it was known as the libero. Armando Picchi was the man who occupied this position for most of Herrera’s time at Inter. He was tough defender who could do everything from defending in a one-on-one situation to double marking the opponents, picking up loose balls and also throbbing accurate longs balls using his great vision to initiate counter-attacks. There were two Central Defenders in front of the sweeper who would man mark the opposing forwards. To the left would be Giacinto Facchetti, who was given a license to bomb forward with his lightning pace. The one advantage the Facchetti enjoyed besides his pace was that in those days the Right Winger would be sitting a little deeper, enabling Facchetti to move up in the field. On the Right wing, Jair would be playing deep in his own half as he enjoyed having space to run at the defenders and then delivering a cross to the forwards. Perhaps the most important component of Herrera’s success formula was Luis Suarez who played as deep-lying midfielder also known as the Regista. He would spray accurate passes all across the pitch. It was his passing that won many matches for Inter. Mazzola played as the Fantasist. It was his job to convert those half chances into goals, which made the difference at the end of the match.
Herrera was able to effectively create a winning team out of these men. He believed that the team shall move from defence to attack in just three passes. His team would try to score first and sit back and defend their lead. His strategies were characterised by tight man-marking and players who could make accurate long passes. Also, the pace at which Inter attacked surprised many teams. Although, Catenaccio achieved enormous success, it is rarely used these days. For all the superiority it possessed, there were shortcomings which led to its end. We will look at how Catenaccio came to an end in the last part of this series.