Lothar Matthaus Quotes

If you look at Barcelona and the way they press high, or Bayern Munich, the way they press high... that's what makes them the best teams, because when they lose the ball, in the first three seconds, that's when they get the ball back, really, really high.

It is vital to maintain possession and to win it back as soon as possible, because if we win it high up, then the opposition has to run 70 metres.

I always like the players to be within 10 to 15 metres of each other. When the attacking players try what I am asking them to do, and it breaks down, there are players close enough to then go and win the ball back and counter press the game.

I'm a coach who likes to have the ball, but what I really think is, 'How can you be in charge of the game?' I think, but maybe I am the only one, that the defensive process can take care of the game. Why is that? Because teams wait to defend. If you create something where you go to defend, to steal the ball where you want, it's different.

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.

I like to play attacking football, but I think the big difference is that we expect a lot more from our strikers, to do more pressing and to keep compact. We like to play a high line defensively and press the ball.

What I want is to recover the ball as near to the other box as we can, and when we have the ball, play.

I would prefer to play for and against an attacking team, but I am now used to playing against defensive teams.

When we have to defend, I just try to recover the ball for the team because it's important, but I always try to go forward when we have the ball.

You can't play man to man against Liverpool and out-pass them. You have to keep your shape and stop them.

If you want to play dominant football, you need to get the ball, think fast, and play quick combinations in small spaces.

We have four parts of our game: working against the ball; in possession; losing the ball; winning the ball. If you are good in all four parts, you have a good chance of winning.

Guardiola has helped me so when I receive the ball, I have space.

I like it when the team is in control of the match. I like very much the ball possession; I like to play in the other half.

We know it's impossible sometimes to have good defending against Cristiano Ronaldo but we want to keep the ball, with good possession, as then he can do nothing in attack.

I always tried to defend high up the pitch, to be in the opposition's half and play the game there.

The teams that defend well are as important as those that attack well. If you don't concede goals it is much easier to win but it is all about having balance.

There is so much interaction in a football match: between you and your team-mates and how you support each other, work for each other, make runs. But I also enjoy the other aspect: the pressing and how people work so hard to recover the ball.

At Tottenham, I'm asked to take a lot of risks to keep maximum possession of the ball and build from the back.

Sometimes in midfield, it's nice because you do get a little bit more of the ball, and maybe out wide you rely on people to get you the ball.

It's not easy to create chances or a game when you're just receiving long balls.

I started in a 4-3-3 formation at Ajax, playing in left midfield. There, you need to be just as involved defensively as you are going forward. You attack and you defend, and that allows you to be a complete player.

I liked mostly to play football on the ground and have a little bit of playing tactics rather than just up and down, long balls and second balls. That's not really my game.

All coaches say, 'We want to control the game. We want the ball. Blah, blah, blah, blah,' but it's impossible to have the ball all the time.

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.