If you have played football at any level then you’ll be well aware of the concept of ‘Give and Go’ or ‘Pass and Move’. This fundamental of football offers the easiest way to move the ball closer to the opponent’s goal to present a goal-scoring opportunity underlined by the fact that the ball moves faster than any player.
The current Barcelona team exemplifies this. Guardiola allows all 10 outfield players to participate in the game – give the ball and make runs into spaces. Iniesta and Messi are experts at this simple play despite their abilities on the ball, a true testament of a great footballer.
It is a former Barcelona player that brought this play to Barcelona under Frank Rijkaard. Football is currently missing him, especially AC Milan in the permanent absence of Kaka. Ronaldinho was one of the best players at bringing his teammates into the game – purposely to draw away attention from his own game so he could also find space in which to hurt the opposition.
It’s been a torrid two years for Ronaldinho. The 2006 World Player of the Year has come under heavy criticism as he continues to drop off the radar. Some may blame his off the pitch lifestyle but others are simply angry that they have been robbed of one of the most dazzling players ever to play the game. His spell at Milan has been much of the same as the last season at Barcelona. Unfit and in turn slower and less able to pull off that miraculous skill we were treated to week in week out. There’s also the other element of Ronaldinho. He’ll take the ball, control it perfectly and then lay it off to a team member. Watching him lately though he seems once he’s made that first pass it is job done. The fitness really is key here – a drive to get on the end of a pass and to find space – Ronaldinho has lost this.
Milan medical staff has received high praise – if anyone can get him fit then it’s Milan. At the end of last season however, we were still stuck with the same Ronaldinho – one who is not only unwilling to track back, but sometimes incapable of doing so, much to the misfortune of his teammates, even the smile had disappeared.
People have often wondered if his time was up and he was past his best. His attitude showed signs of nonchalance, instead flying back to Barcelona seemed to be the reason he played football in the first place – for the lifestyle.
You can imagine the excitement then that built up inside of me then in a recent pre-season friendly against Boca Juniors when I saw Ronaldinho receive the ball in the middle of the pitch, turn and the proceed to sprint towards the goal – a quick turn of pace, immaculate ball control skills and then a one-two with Pato unfortunately ending up with the move breaking down.
Regardless of the end result, it’s about the ‘Give and Go’ – it’s about Ronaldinho finishing the same move he starts. Now that Kaka has moved on the role down the middle of the pitch for him is all but set up for him – this is Ronaldinho’s last chance to shine. I may be jumping the gun here and Ronaldinho may just fade into the background, but I am, at times, a purist. In the Boca game I saw not only the drive to ‘Give and Go’ but the disappointment rather than frustration that he didn’t do better. More importantly though I also saw a smile. The same one as I saw in Cataluña? Let’s hope so.
Written by Steven Jones
