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Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics Paperback – August 4, 2009
There is a newer edition of this item:
- Print length384 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherOrion
- Publication dateAugust 4, 2009
- Dimensions5.25 x 1 x 8 inches
- ISBN-101409102041
- ISBN-13978-1409102045
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Product details
- Publisher : Orion (August 4, 2009)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 384 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1409102041
- ISBN-13 : 978-1409102045
- Item Weight : 10.9 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.25 x 1 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #3,792,191 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,167 in Soccer (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Jonathan Wilson is the editor of the Blizzard and a freelance writer for the Guardian, World Soccer and Sports Illustrated. He is the author of eleven books, including 'Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics', 'Behind the Curtain: Football in Eastern Europe', 'Angels with Dirty Faces: The Footballing History of Argentina', 'The Barcelona Legacy' and 'The Names Heard Long Ago'.
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Wilson discusses many of the great sides and the tactical innovations they introduced. Wilson starts in Britain in the 19th century. Scotland had an early reputation for slick, passing football with quick, skillful players, in marked contrast to England's more direct and pragmatic style. The English considered `passing' to be unmanly.
The game grew as British expats took the game to South America and continental Europe. Wilson describes how the game developed in different parts of the world. Wilson analyzes the boring, anti-football pf the Italian teams of the 1960s. The exciting Brazilian teams of the 1950s and 1960s. The "Total Football" of the Dutch in the 1970s. He does not spend much time discussing German football, which is a pity.
Wilson describes the sometimes eccentric coaches who built successful teams. Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman introduced the W-M system (3-2-2-3) in the 1920s. This system was used in England until the 1960s. Chapman is also credited with introducing the numbers on player's shirts. Gustav Sebes, who pioneered the 4-2-4 formation, was the coach of the fabulous Hungarian team of the 1950's. His ideas were taken to Brazil by his protégé Bela Guttman. The 4-2-4 formation was popular until 1966, when England won the World Cup playing 4-1-3-2.
The book discusses the innovations of Scotsmen Bill Shankly (Liverpool) and Matt Busby (Manchester United) who changed the face of the English game in the 1960s. He also writes about Valeriy Lobanovsky (Dynamo Kiev), Arrigo Sacchi (AC Milan), Helenio Herrera (Inter), Rinus Michels (Ajax) and many others. The author debunks the theories of Charles Reep and Charles Hughes, and their pseudo-scientific justification of direct football. Hughes claimed the Dutch and Brazilians were playing football the wrong way.
Today, 4-2-3-1, 4-3-2-1, and 4-3-3 are popular formations in the English Premier League. Many professional teams are flexible enough to change their formation during games. Inverting the Pyramid is an enjoyable and engrossing read. I would recommended it to anyone interested in understanding the tactical history of the game.
For the casual fan it might present you with an opportunity to finally fall in love with the beautiful game. Mr. Jonathan Wilson has done a fantastic job taking football tactics right from the blackboard to paper, all without leaving anything behind.









