Control Quote by Rafael Benitez

When you get lots of players up front, sometimes a counter-attack can take you by surprise and lead to a chance for the opposition.

— Cesar Azpilicueta

If you're dominant on one side of the ball, you set yourself up for getting beat if you're not on both sides of the…

— Ryan Day

If you have control of the midfield, you have control of the game, and you have more chances to win.

— Xabi Alonso

The better the opposition put in front of you, the better your team plays.

— Michael Owen

You can be dominant without the ball by trying to move the opposition where you want them to go.

— Frank de Boer

When you play the top sides you cannot afford to be as open as 4-4-2 can leave you. Consequently teams adapt their formation.

— Chris Hughton

You cannot have a situation where you think that if you want to attack, then you play this formation, and if you want to…

— Nuno Espirito Santo

Tactically, I know how to play on one side even though I remain convinced that I can play better through the middle.

— Samir Nasri

Some big teams prefer to be very strong defensively and have two, three, four counter-attacking players.

— Manuel Pellegrini

When you master all defensive and offensive aspects of the game and always enjoy the majority of possession, you're sitting in pole position to…

— Thiago Alcantara

Sometimes the games just pan out that way. One team is putting pressure on the other and when you are under pressure, you have…

— Eidur Gudjohnsen

In the centre, you play more with your back to the opponent's goal and have to move into the gaps.

— Thomas Muller