The Specialist: The Sliding Tackle…

It’s the ultimate solution when there are no more football solutions left to win the ball back. Although for some players, it is/was their trade mark. The sliding tackle is part of the tool box of any defender or midfielder who does everything to win. Dirk Marcellis (PSV) is one of those players…

Marcellis pondering his sliding tackle…

Definition
A sliding is a certain movement that’s deployed often in the game. A player slides with his leg up front towards the ball (the legal version) instead of the opponent (the foul version). This means that a player first needs to play the ball. If the slider also hits the opponent after he played the ball, then it’s an ok sliding. When the first target hit is the leg of the other player, the ref is supposed to whistle.

The Different Versions
The Standard Sliding: The player runs along side the opponent with the ball and slides the ball away (Tony Adams, Jaap Stam, Dirk Marcellis, Sergio Ramos).
The Block tackle: The player with the ball tries to take on the defender who slides and blocks the ball and the opponent. If this tackle is deployed perfectly, the slider gets up before the striker does and the ball is in possession of the tackler. (Frank de Boer, Danny Blind, Gio)
The Razor: This one is deployed sideways. The slider uses the first leg to play the ball, only to use the second leg to take the opponent down (many Italian players and John de Wolf, Adri van Tiggelen )
The African tackle: The infamous tackle with two stretched legs forward… Ultimately dangerous tackle. When the ball is played, sometimes refs let it go (depends on the country) but normally rewarded with yellow or red card (Edgar Davids, Henk Fraser).

De Nees with one of his…

The Specialists
Dutch football has a number of specialists in the field. The traditional examples are Theo The Tank Laseroms (Feyenoord) and Johan Neeskens. The latter had his own variance, the flying tackle… Johan could fly through the air only to land right next to the opponent, taking the ball and the player into the stands… Wonderful sight, unless you are that other player… Some players, like Frank de Boer, had a perfect sliding tackle in their arsenal but hardly used it. De Boer’s vision and positioning helped him to play as clean as possible. Other players, like John de Wolf, used the sliding as “communication tool” towards the opponents and the fans. Neeskens was nicknamed El Torro in Barcelona. Whenever he started to chase players and use his tackle, the fans would yell OLEEE and the rest of the team would step it up a notch… Dirk Marcellis: “I don’t know if there’s specialists these days. Most players know how to do it, but in Oranje, players like Nigel de Jong and Mark van Bommel use it a lot. Most players know how to do it, although most players who can only make a sliding to the left or right, instead of at both sides…” Marcellis uses the tackle regularly. “I think I make four or five per match. But it depends what my position is. A sliding is ideal for full backs. As a center back, you want to be on your feet most of the time.”

Marcellis thinks a sliding is a sort of emergency measure. “You use it when you’re too late or it’s the last resort, you know? When you decide to go, it’s all or nothing. Once you’re down, you better have the ball, or the opponent will pass you and you sort of look silly.”

Wham bam, thank you m’am…by Jaap Stam!

The Training
Marcellis admits he doesn’t train on the sliding, and he only manages a one-sided one. “It’s weird, I have never met a player who can do both sides. But I have to admit, I don’t really train on it. It’s more like you encounter a situation in the game where you have to go for it. It’s one of those things, you learn by doing. No one ever helped me at training mastering this aspect of the game.”

Wiel Coerver, ex NEC and Feyenoord coach, wrote a whole training book on slidings. He taught his players how to execute one. Marcellis is surprised. “I didn’t know that! I only know the wounds I get in summer when the fields are dry and hard….”

Coerver: No no no!! Use the other leg!!