The 5 best Positional Play books: A personal review

Positional Play is a way of play that became well known due to Pep Guardiola and the magnificent teams he builds. It’s a whole philosophy that includes many theories that a coach must be familiar with in order to be able to implement it. Here I present the 4 best Positional Play books that I have read and that I believe include all the necessary information (theory and practice) that a coach must learn before trying to implement the Positional Play style.

You can also read a more detailed article on Positional Play

1. How to Train Positional Play – 15 Exercises from Theory to Practice

Positional Play Methodology ( “Juego de Posicion” in Spanish) provides a set of guidelines and structures for the attacking phase of the game. The main idea behind the positional play is to create superiorities (different kinds of superiorities) in specific areas of the pitch. In this book, you will find 15 exercises on how to train Positional Play football.

The book aims to explain in simple words, the most important aspects of Positional Play. The objective is for the reader to understand the key principles and the general guidelines and concepts behind this methodology and to implement them using the 15 exercises presented in this book to train positional play.

The content is influenced by Guardiola’s philosophy and training methods but also by other supporters of Positional Play. Of course, the methodology goes beyond plain tactical guidelines and includes theory from the areas of neuroscience and complex systems, but here the main objective is to offer to all coaches and football lovers the opportunity to understand the basic rules of thumps.

2. Coaching Positional Play – “Expansive Football” Attacking tactics & Practises

This fantastic book is written by Pasquale Casà Basile, a UEFA Pro Licence Coach and a specialist in tactics and team management. Learn how to coach positional play and develop your tactics with the Spanish game model of “Expansive Football” so your team can play effective attacking football.

Through this method of teaching, players are also helped to grow in personality and taught fundamental values such as work rate, competitiveness, teamwork and the desire to win.

This book also provides a detailed analysis of 34 different tactical situations and provides 47 practices for you to use when training your team.

The author

Pasquale Casà Basile (UEFA Pro Licence Coach) has had various roles, including with the Catalan Football Association and RCD Espanyol, where he coordinates, facilitates and develops the work of the youth team coaches, directing the development of tactics and periodization of the Spanish football model.

34 Tactical Situations were analyzed including:

• Building Up Play Against the Opposition’s High Press (2 Markers) 
• Support Play When the Ball is Out Wide
• Retaining a Balanced Formation in the Possession Phase
• The Transition from Attack to Defence

47 practices including:

• Switching the Point of Attack with Player Movement in the Final Third
• Quick Combination Play with Positional Inter-Changing of Diagonal Movements
• Maintaining Possession in the Centre with a Quick Break Attack
• “Expansive Football” Combination Play in a 7 v 2 Attack vs Defence Practice

3. Positional Play in Modern Football

Positional Play or “Juego de Posición” is a methodology, a way of play that provides to the plays a set of guidelines, a cognitive map on the pitch that can use in order to apply in the most efficient way the team’s Game Model. The most common misconception is confusing Positional Play with Possession Play. Even though on many occasions to play Positionally you need to have possession of the ball, they are not obligated to be used together. Saying this, we can play possession without using positional principles and using positional play we can also adopt a more direct way of play.

The book will reveal the most important aspects of the specific football philosophy in a simplified form. The aim is for the reader to understand the key principles and the general guidelines and concepts behind this methodology. The content is influenced by Guardiola’s philosophy and training methods but also by other supporters of Positional Play. Of course, the methodology goes beyond plain tactical guidelines and includes theory from the areas of neuroscience and complex systems, but here the main objective is to offer to all coaches and football lovers the opportunity to understand the basic rules of thumps.

Additionally, the book contains 7 exercises that will allow the theory to get a more practical form and the coaches will be able to see how they can train the Positional Play in a simple way.

See below a sample of pages from the book:

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4. Pep Guardiola – 88 Attacking combinations and Positional Patterns of Play directed from Pep’s training sessions – Vol 1

Learn, practice and apply Pep Guardiola’s exact attacking combinations and patterns of play direct from his training sessions, to reproduce his magnificent style of play.

This FULL-COLOUR book gives you a rare opportunity to use Pep Guardiola’s Practices and learn from one of the best coaches in the history of football. The 88 Attacking Combinations and Attacking Positional Patterns of Play included are taken directly from Pep Guardiola’s training sessions at Manchester City, Bayern Munich, and FC BarcelonaFind out why Pep Guardiola marks out zones on the training pitch and how he uses them to practice his unique positional patterns of play, maximize space, disorganize the opposition and move the ball into dangerous attacking areas (“Half Spaces”).

Pep Guardiola Practice Topics Included:

• 60 Attacking Positional Patterns of Play in the 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 Formations
  (50 Manchester City, 3 Bayern Munich & 7 FC Barcelona)
• 28 Attacking Combination Practices
  (8 Manchester City, 10 Bayern Munich & 10 FC Barcelona)

Pep Guardiola Practice Examples:

• Passing Combination and Aerial Pass in Behind for a Third Man Run
• Fast Combination Play with Lay-off, Overlap Run, Cross and Finish
• Switching Play for the Wing Back to Receive in Behind with Overlap Run
• Both Forwards Drop Back to Combine + Attacking Midfielder’s Third Man Run
• Fast Combination Play + Short Diagonal Aerial Pass in Behind

See below a sample of pages from the book:

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5. Pep Guardiola – 85 Passing, Rondos, Possession Games & Technical Circuits directed from Pep’s Training Sessions – Vol 2

Learn, and apply Pep Guardiola’s practices direct from his training sessions, to reproduce his magnificent style of play.

After the hugely popular Volume 1, Volume 2 gives you rare insight into Pep Guardiola’s Training Sessions with another chance to learn from one of the best coaches in the history of football.

Pep Guardiola 85 Practices Include:

• Warm-ups (training and match day)
•  Speed & Agility (without/with ball)
•  Technical Circuits
•  Passing
•  Rondos
•  Juego de Posición (Positional Games)
•  Possession Games
•  Attacking Positional Patterns of Play
•  Small to Large Sided Games

Taken directly from Pep’s training sessions at Manchester City, Bayern Munich and FC Barcelona.

This is your chance to practice and apply Pep Guardiola’s training sessions to develop your players’ speed, agility, technique and positional play – a unique opportunity to improve your team’s performance using practices from the highest level.

Pep Guardiola Practice Topics Include:

•  Training Session Warm-up Exercises (3 Man City)
•  Manchester City Pre-Match Warm-up
•  Speed and Agility Exercises Without a Ball (2 Man City, 1 Bayern)
•  Speed and Agility Exercises With a Ball (7 Barcelona)
•  Technical Circuits (8 Man City, 10 Bayern)
•  Manchester City Passing Practices (6 Man City)
•  Bayern Munich Passing Practices (7 Bayern)
•  FC Barcelona Passing Practices (12 Barcelona)
•  Rondos (5 Man City, 1 Barcelona)
• Attacking Positional Patterns of Play (4 Man City)
•  Small to Large Sided Games (2 Man City, 1 Bayern, 2 Barcelona)

See below a sample of pages from the book

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Conclusion on best Positional Play books

The above is just a collection of the 4 best positional play books I have read and in my personal opinion can be a great guide for any coach who loves Pep Guardiola’s way of play.

Of course, the number of books, articles, and videos on the specific subject is thousands. A coach must be in a position to check the different resources and choose the most suitable for him.