Catenaccio Style Football
Catenaccio soccer philosophy: if the opponents cannot score
a goal, they cannot win the match
Catenaccio is a defense-oriented strategy first introduced by Austrian coach Karl Rappan in
the 1930s. It became popular during the 1960s when Argentinean coach Helenio Herrera
used it to lead Serie A club Inter Milano to several championships.
The success of Inter Milano under Herrera encouraged many Italian teams to adopt
Catenaccio style soccer. This same strategy was utilized by the Italian national team when
Herrera was appointed its manager.
Because of its popularity in Italy, Catenaccio calcio became almost synonymous with
Italian football in the 1960s.
But in the 1980s Catenaccio began to decline as it proved to be ineffective against attackoriented strategies such as total football. Yet there remain teams today that still used the old
soccer style that once dominated Europe.
How does Catenaccio calcio
work?
Catenaccio calcio literally translates
as “door bolt football.” It is a
football strategy that employs a very
tight man-marking defense, with
players staying deep in their own half
to prevent any offense by the
opponents.
Catenaccio defense seems to block
any passage towards the goal, and so the name “door bolt” soccer. The most significant
innovation of catenaccio is an additional defensive player called the libero or sweeper.
The libero is an Italian word which means “free”. Most often, he freely roams in front of
the goal to prevent any penetration by the opponents. The sweeper or libero also performs a
number of other defensive tasks for the team.
The sweeper covers an opponent who manages to break the two lines of defense. He is also
tasked to control loose balls and double-mark an opponent when necessary. If the opposing
team has a talented striker, the sweeper may be assigned to man-mark him.
With the libero to provide an additional line of defense, the other defenders and midfielders
perform other assignments to prevent the opponents from scoring.
The midfield and the defensive back keep the ball from getting near the goal. Their primary
objectives are to disrupt any offensive flow, put pressure on the attackers, and deny the best
offensive players from getting the ball.
While teams utilizing catenaccio focus primarily on defense, it does not mean that they are
not dangerous offensively. The catenaccio tactic can easily be used for counterattack, which
may leave the offensive team with no time to react to the quick play switch of catenaccio
calcio.
Fouling and conceding free kicks is alright in catenaccio, as long as they are far from the
goal and they do not lead to bookings. Since this tactic employs additional rank, the
catenaccio formation is often 1-3-3-3, 1-4-4-1, or 1-4-3-2.
The pros and cons of the catenaccio formation
Strengths

Catenaccio is an effective defensive football
strategy. The double line of defense prevents
opponents from getting the ball near the goal.
In case these two ranks are broken, the libero
and goalkeeper will still be there to protect the
goal.

The libero is useful if the opposing team has a
brilliant striker. By closely marking the striker,
the libero weakens him as it would require him
extra effort to get the ball. Having a man that
marks the striker also means that he will never
be left open to use his offensive skills to score.

Catenaccio is an excellent formation for counterattacking. By creating strong
defensive walls, the opponents will be forced to add more players to their offense.
This weakens their defense and creates a chance for the catenaccio formation to
make a long pass to its forwards.

Catenaccio relies primarily on collective hard work and not on individual skills.
Therefore, it is an effective strategy for weaker teams. It is also effective for teams
who become undermanned after a red card.

Emphasis on a defensive style of play greatly improves the defense of players.
Some of the best soccer defenders are product of catenaccio calcio. They are
Claudio Gentile, Gaetano Scirea, Paolo Maldini, and Alessandro Costacurta.
Weaknesses

Although catenaccio was extensively used in the 1960s and 1970s by the Italian
national football team, it is nearly obsolete at present. Teams need to adopt more
offensive strategies in order to advance in football competitions since wins are now
given bigger points. Before, teams are rewarded 2 points for a win, 1 point for a
draw, and 0 for a loss. The same points are awarded today for loss and draw, but a
win is already awarded with 3 points to encourage teams to true spirit of football—
lively and attacking.

Catenaccio calcio is a poorly balanced playing style since it focuses too much on
defense. It is not practical for stronger teams to play catenaccio since it nullifies
their offensive force.

Catennacio football requires players to man-mark. This can easily lead to confusion
when playing against a team whose players regularly switch positions, as in total
soccer.

Since teams prioritize defense when playing catenaccio soccer, they will have to
adopt a retreat game style. This can make teams unpopular and will subject them to
criticism for using an anti football strategy.
Catenaccio in the past
Catenaccio was first introduced by Austrian football
coach Karl Rappan in the 1930s. As a coach for Swiss
football club Servette in 1932, Rappan first introduce the
libero then known as “verrou” which means “lock” in
French.
Rappan also became the manager of Switzerland’s
national team, which he led to successful international
matches against powerhouses like Germany and England.
Catenaccio football, however, is closely associated with Italy since it was the Italians who
played it extensively. In 1947, Italian coach Nereo Rocco used catenaccio calcio to make
Triestina finish second place in Serie A, the Italian football league.
In the 1960s, catenaccio soccer was
utilized by Helenio Herrera who
brought Internazionale Milano to 3
Serie A Championship titles and 2
European Championship Cups. In
1969, Herrera moved to AS Roma
where he won the Italian Cup using
the same defensive soccer strategy.
Herrera was famous for using
catenaccio calcio to win 1-0 matches.
The basic elements to Herrera’s
strategy were tight defense and rapid counterattacks.
But in 1970, catenaccio-style soccer began to decline because of more innovative and more
offensive strategies. In 1972, Herrera’s Inter was defeated 2-0 in the European Cup finals
by Ajax, with its total football strategy.
The following year, Nereo Rocco’s AC Milan reached the European Super Cup finals only
to be hammered by Ajax 6-0. These two major defeats of Inter and AC Milan signaled the
need for a change in catenaccio-style soccer. Italians began revising their strategies in favor
of more offensive play without having to give up their strong defense.
By 1982, the Italian national team has come up with a semi-zonal system, which they used
to win over Germany in the 1982 World Cup Finals by 3 goals to 1.
It became apparent in that tournament that Italy was starting to evolve from a highly
defensive system in favor of more attack-oriented football strategies.
Catenaccio at present
Catenaccio is rarely used today after it diminished in the 1980s. However, hyper-defensive
styles similar to catenaccio are still used at present.
In the 2004 European Football Championship, underdog Greece used a defense-oriented
football to triumph over Portugal in the final. The Greek football squad’s style of play
reminded many of the catenaccio tactic Italy used to be famous for.
In that game, the Portuguese soccer team kept possession most of the time but were
unable to score because of the tight Greek defense. Greece played defense patiently until
they had the chance to score.
In the 57th minute, Greece stole the ball and Angelos Charisteas dribbled all the way to the
top of Portugal's goal to score with a blaster. Greece’s defense prevented Portugal from
scoring and won the match 1-0.
One football manager closely associated with catenaccio calcio is Jose Mourinho, who
coached F.C. Internazionale Milano from 2008 to 2010.
In April 2010, when Milano beat Barcelona in the European Champion’s League semis,
the club used a defensive strategy similar to the catenaccio played by Herrera and Rocco in
Italy in the 1950s and 1960s.
Inter defended tightly and often doubled the man with the ball. Inter also played tough
defense against Barca’s strikers, such as Lionel Messi.
Mourinho’s catenaccio, however, required players to play further up the field, unlike the
traditional catenaccio where players stayed deep in their own pitch.
Today, most of the clubs noted for the catenaccio style of play are Italian. The list includes
Roma, with its strong four-man defense at the back and the Italian national team itself, for
its 4-3-3 formation which sometimes work as the classic catenaccio formation of 1-3-3-3.