When the long ball becomes a tactical choice

Watch how many Serie A sides now go direct when pressed man-to-man. It is not panic. It is a calculated way to bypass the first line and create chaos for second balls -7.

Take Bologna against a high-pressing opponent. They look for Santiago Castro with driven passes into his feet or chest. He does not need to win every header. He just needs to make contact and let the ball run for Jonathan Rowe or the other wide player running inside. That is the real threat, the runner off the knockdown, not the duel itself -7.

The space appears behind the pressing full-back when the ball goes long. The defender steps up, the winger goes, and suddenly the passing lane is gone for the opposition.

The long ball is not a failure of build-up. It is a tool to skip a press and force the opponent to defend facing their own goal.

Question: When you see a centre-forward targeted with long passes, where do you look first: at the striker, or at the runners arriving around him?