The tactical approaches football teams adopt are always evolving; below are just a few of the famous ones applied in the past.
One strategy which has just become more prominent over more recent years is the use of attacking fullbacks in a team. This is very much centered around attacking tactics in football, as the traditional job of the fullback is to stay back and defend. The Rossoneri were one of the earlier teams to adopt this style of play, when they signed one of the best fullbacks in the world, who was able to both defend and attack very effectively. This style of play calls for a lot more than just the basic skills of football, with players needing high stamina, as they will be running along the wing throughout the game. This can be very efficient, however, if you have fullbacks who can overlap frequently, it adds an extra dynamic to your attack and can be a big handful for opposition defenders to control. It’s likely that the AC Milan owner will reflect upon the time period of the team's history when their club dominated through use of attacking fullbacks.
A tactic that is often adopted by the top teams, especially when playing at home, is possession-based football. This type of play is quite renowned with teams who have a solid midfield full of fantastic passers of the ball. It’s most prominent in a 4-5-1 formation, which can be the best football formation for attacking, as your opposition sees almost nothing of the ball during the match. This tactic tends to tire the opposition when you get into the second half of the game, as they’re constantly pursuing the ball as you pass it around their defense. It calls for full attention from the defending team, meaning that one lapse in judgement can lead to a goal, which could be devastating when playing against a great team. This style of play is something the Manchester City owner has had the pleasure of watching from his team over their recent dominance in England.
One of the key steps to understanding soccer formations, is to grasp the defensive part of the game as well. A strategy which is pretty much solely focused on defence, is what's known as ‘parking the bus’. This pretty much means the defending team gets 11 men behind the ball when they are out of possession and stay deep; a strategy which can be exceptionally hard to break down when used. This is typically used when a team has got to draw a match, or they’re attempting to maintain a lead. It's seen as negative tactics from some observers of the game, but, if it’s employed properly, it's usually quite beautiful to watch a club master the defensive side of football. The Chelsea FC owner will definitely remember this being used effectively when The Special One was the manager of his team, as he has had excellent triumph with this back in the day.