Arguably, the term gegenpressing has become overly mythicised in recent years. Klopp’s success with both Mainz and Dortmund utilising the pressing idea, before bringing it to the Premier League has created a certain overcomplicated aura around the term.
Klopp himself remarked on his surprise at the fascination that English fans had with the system, when he took the helm at Liverpool.
At its roots, the term translates to ‘counter-pressing’, which, put simply, is immediately pressing the ball the moment it is lost in attack, aiming to stifle the opposition and force a double-turnover.
The system involves walking a fine line between aggressive counter-pressing and knowing when to drop back into your defensive structure. If a side fully commits to counter-pressing and is unsuccessful, their opposition have an extremely open counter-attacking opportunity.
Despite the term gegenpressing being synonymous with Jurgen Klopp in the modern game, the roots of the idea go much further back.
The Originator of the Idea – Viktor Maslov’s Dynamo Kiev Side
The first known use of immediate, aggressive pressing after the ball is lost is seen in Viktor Maslov’s Dynamo Kiev side.
Maslov held the managerial position at Dynamo Kiev from 1964-1970. After taking the helm, he proved to be an innovator – placing more focus on his player’s individual fitness and nutrition, as well as pulling back his wide forwards in the popular 4-2-4 formation of the time – creating what many consider to be the first instance of a 4-4-2 in football’s development.
In many ways Maslov was a tactical pioneer, he was arguably also one of the first to truly encourage his full backs to be integral attacking players.
Largely due to the prominence placed upon fitness and nutrition, Maslov was able to take inspiration from ice hockey and implement the revolutionary pressing ideology.
At the time it was typical to drop into a defensive structure as soon as possession of the ball was lost, however Maslov’s Kiev side would immediately close down their opposition the moment that they no longer held possession of the ball – through organised movement, the on-ball player would be closed down. They would find their options and time on the ball limited before they could even fully consider them.
This, twinned with the side’s zonal marking proved to yield great results for Maslov’s side – as they claimed three league titles and 2 domestic cups during his tenure.
Tracks in England – Shankly’s Liverpool
A culture of intense counter-pressing also came to fruition in England at a similar time. This was found in Bill Shankly’s Liverpool side.
Shankly’s tactical set-up was highly oriented around his side acting as one unit. He incorporated a disciplined man-to-man marking system in defence, which demanded hard work and strong organisation from his sides.
However Shankly also encouraged his side to press the opposition aggressively – implementing a system of high-energy, pressing as one group – this had the intention of consistently denying their opposition any passing options and forcing a double-turnover after losing the ball.
Dutch Innovation – Ernst Happel
Despite Maslov’s innovative pressing ideas, counter-pressing, as is the case with many famous tactical developments in football, made its name in the Netherlands.
Ernst Happel was an Austrian coach who plied his trade all over Europe – winning league titles in four different nations.
The most notable periods of Happel’s career came in the Netherlands, both with domestic giants Feyenoord and with the national team.
Happel adopted a similar ideology to that of Maslov – encouraging his team to press as a group, in an organised manner, as soon as possession was lost.
Having grown up in Austria, during the golden years of the wünderteam, Happel took great tactical inspiration from Meisl’s side – favouring a quick and fluid brand of football.
Alongside building a side with great attacking prowess, their ever-stifling, highly-organised, pressing proved effective for Feyenoord as they claimed an Eredivisie title and a European Cup under Happel.
He would also go on to use a similar tactical ideology to take the Netherlands to the final of the World Cup in 1978.
Total Football – Counter-pressing’s place within Rinus Michel’s innovative tactic
Unsurprisingly, the gegenpressing ideology also holds links to Rinus Michel’s tactical set-up – total football.
When considering total football, pressing would not be the first thing to come to mind for many – however it in fact sits at the very heart of Michels’ ideology.
Indeed, he went as far as to write: ”I want to get people away from total football as this is not my expression. For me, it would be better to call my game pressing football.”
Michels encouraged his players to hunt as a unit, or in packs – pressuring the on-ball player whilst also closing off escape routes. The awareness required to press as a pack, ensuring each option is fully closed off, is in many ways indicative of the on-ball side of total football as well – working fluidly as one group, through awareness of the positioning of your teammates and accurate space manipulation to cover in.
Rinus Michel’s managerial successes with the total football tactic are well known – four Eredivisie titles and a European cup with Ajax, a La Liga title with Barcelona, and a European Championship with the Dutch national side.
Counteracting Catenaccio – Arrigo Sacchi’s AC Milan Side
Famed tactician Arrigo Sacchi also received great success by implementing a philosophy of counter-pressing into his Milan side.
He utilised the tactical idea as a means to counteract the entrenched, defence-centric ideas in Italian football.
The success both Milanese clubs saw in the 1960s was informed by the use of the catenaccio system and ultimately it has had lasting effects on the league even to the modern day.
Sacchi worked to beat this through counter-pressing, not allowing the opposition time on the ball to transition into their counter-attack, and forcing them to commit more to the attack in order to gain any substantive attacking outcomes.
Sacchi was extremely successful in his time at Milan – winning a Serie A, a Supercoppa Italiana and, two European Cups.
Gegenpressing today – Ralf Rangnick and Jurgen Klopp
Gegenpressing as we know it today is often thought about in the same breath as managers such as Jurgen Klopp and Ralf Rangnick.
Both men have utilised the idea to great effect in their various managerial stints and their influence is a large reason why the idea of counter-pressing is now so often considered alongside German football.
Rangnick in particular developed the system further than its previous incarnations by encouraging his players to place a particular focus upon the lesser-skilled players in the sides that his team faced up against.
By specifically targeting certain players upon which intense unit pressing would likely take the largest effect, the likelihood of a turnover through counter-pressing is instantly increased.
Their success in utilising the idea of gegenpressing is largely why the idea holds such great weight in football’s modern age.
However, it is important to note that counter-pressing, as an idea, is commonplace in the modern game. It would be wrong to suggest that this is something unique to teams managed by certain individuals. Rather, it can be seen in some form in almost every modern side.
Final Thoughts
Gegenpressing has taken on new life in the modern age. With the great success found under Klopp, and the further development under Rangnick, it remains at the forefront of modern football.
Indeed, many would consider pressing to be the greatest tactical focus of football’s recent history, and while names such as Klopp and Rangnick are the big figures of the tactic, almost every side institutes counter-pressing to some degree in football’s current era.
It is a highly energetic system, which, when done correctly can yield great results.
However, it would be a mistake to consider it’s use by today’s managers (particularly those who have worked in the Bundesliga) as the creators – for that we must thank Viktor Maslov and the inspiration he took from ice hockey.