There is no winning formula. But try telling Watford, Wimbledon or Stoke that the long-ball game doesn’t work; try telling the Greece of 2004 that attacking soccer wins out more often than the defensive variety; try telling Barcelona or Spain to clear their lines. To each their own. As Bob Paisley, the Liverpool manager, once said: “It’s not about the long ball or the short ball, it’s about the right ball.”
