Im confused, how did it take so long for long ball to become so irrelevant? When I watch games from 2003 every team just lobs the ball up over and over.
Im confused, how did it take so long for long ball to become so irrelevant? When I watch games from 2003 every team just lobs the ball up over and over.
I looked through the comments and haven’t seen this mentioned yet but truly I think it’s the most important reason.
The condition of the football pitches have improved tremendously and in my opinion has been the biggest reason why longball football is no longer as viable as it once was.
Even today, when big clubs (domestic or international) play smaller teams, there are occasions that they struggle and give the reason for the struggle as the poor quality of the pitch.
It was a real skill leveller that made other qualities (size, strength and jumping ability) much more important than technical skill.
A poor pitch would make passing from the back risky as it was easier to misplace a pass and lose possession and therefore many defenders would find it easier to just bypass the midfield with a long ball to the big man up top, or to one of the channels for one of your faster players to chase.