Total Football (
Dutch:
totaalvoetbal) is the label given to an influential tactical theory of
football in which any
outfield player can take over the role of any other player in a team. It was best known by the
Netherlands National Football Team in the
1974 FIFA World Cup. Early exponents of Total Football were
Real Madrid,
Brazilian side
Santos F.C., the
Golden Team of Hungary and
English side
Burnley F.C.[1] in the 1950s.
In Total Football, a player who moves out of his position is replaced by another from his team, thus retaining the team's intended organisational structure. In this fluid system, no outfield player is fixed in a predetermined role; anyone can successively play as an
attacker, a
midfielder and a
defender. The only player who must stay in a specified position is the
goalkeeper.
Total Football's tactical success depends largely on the adaptability of each footballer within the team, in particular the ability to quickly switch positions depending on the on-field situation. The theory requires players to be comfortable in multiple positions; hence, it places high technical and physical demands on them.
During this era Ajax played some of their finest football ever, achieving home wins (46–0–0) for two full seasons (1971–72 and 1972–73), just one defeat in the whole of the 1971–72 season, and celebrating four titles in 1972 (the
Netherlands national league,
KNVB Cup,
European Cup and
Intercontinental Cup).
The foundations for Total Football were laid by
Jack Reynolds,
[2] who was the manager of Ajax from 1915–1925, 1928–1940, and 1945–1947. An early form of Total Football was also developed by the Hungarian national football team of the 1950s, the
Magical Magyars, who were managed by
Gusztáv Sebes and were especially inspired by the experienced coaching of
Burnley born and bred
Jimmy Hogan.
[3] The first British side, and one of the first in the world to be an exponent of Total Football were
Burnley F.C. in the 1950s. Led by
Harry Potts, Burnley went on to win the
1959-60 English League title with an attacking, dominating style of football "where every footballer in the team could play at every position", nowadays known as Total Football. Burnley's style of play won many admirers, including all-time
English First Division top scorer Jimmy Greaves.
[4]
Rinus Michels, who played under Reynolds, became manager of Ajax himself in 1965 and refined the concept into what is known today as "Total Football" (
Totaalvoetbal in
Dutch), using it in his training for the Ajax squad and the
Netherlands national team in the 1970s. It was further refined by new
Ajax manager
Stefan Kovacs, after Michels left
Ajax for
Barcelona in 1971. Dutch
forward Johan Cruyff was the system's most famous exponent.
[5]
Although Cruyff was fielded as centre forward, he wandered all over the pitch, popping up wherever he could do most damage to the opposing team. This resulted in a need for a dynamic system like Total Football. Cruyff's teammates adapted themselves flexibly around his movements, regularly switching positions so that the tactical roles in the team were always filled.
Space and the creation of it were central to the concept of Total Football. Ajax defender
Barry Hulshoff explained how the team that won the
European Cup in 1971, 1972, and 1973 worked it to their advantage: "We discussed space the whole time. Johan Cruyff always talked about where people should run and where they should stand, and when they should not move."
[6]
The constant switching of positions that became known as Total Football only came about because of this spatial awareness. "It was about making space, coming into space, and organizing space-like architecture on the football pitch," said Hulshoff. The system developed organically and collaboratively: it was not down to coach Rinus Michels, his successor Stefan Kovacs or Cruyff alone. Cruyff summed up his (Total Football) philosophy: "Simple football is the most beautiful. But playing simple football is the hardest thing."
[7]
The 1972
European Cup final proved to be Total Football's finest hour. After Ajax's 2–0 victory over
Internazionale, newspapers around Europe reported the "death of
Catenaccio." The Dutch newspaper
Algemeen Dagblad declared: "The Inter system undermined. Defensive football is destroyed."
[8]
Michels was appointed for the
1974 FIFA World Cup campaign by the
KNVB. Most of the 1974 team were made up of players from Ajax and
Feyenoord. However,
Rob Rensenbrink was an outsider, having played for clubs in neighbouring
Belgium, and was unfamiliar with Total Football, although he was selected and adapted well. During the tournament, the Netherlands coasted through their first and second round matches, defeating
Argentina (4–0),
East Germany (2–0) and
Brazil (2–0) to set up a meeting with hosts
West Germany.
[9]
In the 1974 final, Cruyff kicked off and the ball was passed around Oranje thirteen times before returning to Cruyff, who then went on a rush that eluded
Berti Vogts and ended when he was fouled by
Uli Hoeneß. The referee awarded the penalty and teammate
Johan Neeskens scored from the spot kick to give the Netherlands a 1–0 lead with 80 seconds of play elapsed, and the Germans not even touching the ball. Cruyff's playmaking influence was stifled in the second half of the match by the effective marking of Berti Vogts, while
Franz Beckenbauer,
Uli Hoeneß, and
Wolfgang Overath dominated midfield, enabling West Germany to win 2–1.
[10]
The ill-fated
Austrian "Wunderteam" of the 1930s is also credited in some circles as being the first national team to play Total Football. It is no coincidence that
Ernst Happel, a talented Austrian player in the 1940s and 1950s, was coach in the Netherlands in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He introduced a tougher style of play at
ADO Den Haag and Feyenoord. Happel managed the Netherlands national team in the
1978 World Cup, where they again finished as runners-up. Hungary also had a big role in laying down the tactical fundaments of Total Football in the 1950s, dominating international football with the remarkable Golden Team which included legends like captain
Ferenc Puskás.
The term Total Football is often misused to describe any attacking football. In its purest form, Total Football is
proactive, not
counter-attacking, based on positional interchange and hard pressing.
[11]FC Barcelona and the
Spanish national team play a style of football known as "
tiki-taka" that has roots in the philosophy of Total Football's greatest icon
Johan Cruyff, who was manager of Barcelona from 1988 to 1996