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Pressing · Method piece · 12 min

Man-marking is back, and it is not what it was

The version that has returned is conditional, and the condition is what makes it work.

Rui Barbosa · 8 August 2026 · 5 clips

GK CB CB 6 ST LW CM
Conditional man-marking. Everyone is matched, but only inside the trigger zone.

Key moments

  1. —

    The condition

    It only applies once the ball is inside their own third.

  2. —

    The switch

    What happens the moment they break the first line.

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