Johan Cruyff Quotes

I don't like getting pinned back with a line of four in midfield. You risk losing too much space.

When you play the top sides you cannot afford to be as open as 4-4-2 can leave you. Consequently teams adapt their formation.

It's not so easy for us when we play teams who have a different mindset, like Chelsea or Inter Milan, because they have the intention of trying to stop us rather than playing a game that is more attractive for the spectators to enjoy.

Whenever we don't turn the ball over, we're pretty productive. When you're turning the ball over, you're cutting down on offensive opportunities.

Obviously, you want to demand the puck; you want to have it as much as you can because you feel like good things can happen when it's on your stick.

Any pick you make, or any player you sign, something can go wrong.

I can be the only defensive midfielder and try and break up play. Or I can play a little more forward.

In football, you don't hold on to the ball just to hold on to the ball. When you have it you need to be dangerous, create opportunities and score goals. And when you don't, you make sure the opposition doesn't.

Regarding my coaching philosophy, I think it is important to adapt to the team/players and the culture in the country where you are coaching, but to keep possession is a key issue wherever you are.

When I go into games as a forward, my job is really clear, and I just have to execute. But as a midfielder, you get to sort of enjoy the game more, and you get to feel the game and dictate the play.

You will not create a lot of chances in every game, but if you stop the opponent getting chances, you will win more.

If you play every time, long balls, you lose possession and you lose momentum. I don't want to be like that.

I like to control the ball and analyse the game.

When I've watched teams that play with five at the back and wing-backs, I've looked at their starting positions and positions out of possession because that comes a little bit more unnaturally to me.

When you master all defensive and offensive aspects of the game and always enjoy the majority of possession, you're sitting in pole position to win.

I don't want just pure roll out of the back four. I want productive mixed play... how many ways can you affect a game?

You don't have to commit a lot of fouls, especially if you are 1-0 down. If you are 1-0 down, then don't commit 10 fouls in the next ten minutes.

When you play against a top side, you know they will have more possession, and they will be in more control, and you have to find one or two counterattacks.

Every game, well most of them, come down to turnovers and the turnover battle.

Real Madrid, they are the best counter-attacking team in the world.

We need the ball even to defend; that's our objective: having the ball and having it as far as possible from our goal as possible.

I've played on the wing in some games and found myself in the middle for five or 10 minutes when others drift wide. It's about creating chances, scoring goals and helping the team win.

Every goalkeeper has a different way of playing. Some will take risks to help the team - coming for high balls, being prepared to be attacked in the box knowing there is not much protection from the referees - but that might mean they make more mistakes. Some try to be safer to avoid those situations, but it does not help the team.

When you get lots of players up front, sometimes a counter-attack can take you by surprise and lead to a chance for the opposition.

The Scottish game is not easy - far from it.You don't have so much time on the ball. There are aggressive defenders but it is good. Every opponent likes to mark closely so it is not so easy to score. In Germany there was more space to run into other areas of the pitch.