FC Barcelona’s Xavi Hernandez is seen by many as the Einstein of Football. His vision and awareness provide the perfect example for young players who aspire to develop a deep understanding of the game. These skills, combined with a level of technical ability rarely surpassed, have led to Xavi engineering some of the most unique, creative and exciting goals in world football. “When you arrive at Barcelona the first thing they teach you is: think. Think, think, and think quickly. Lift your head up, move your head, see, and think. Look…
creativity
The difference between a good player and a great player can often come down their ability to consistently show creativity under pressure – to be able to move beyond tricks and flicks, to a new level of control which makes them truly illusive. James Vaughan, expert in the area of creativity in football, breaks down the subtle, instinctive characteristics that separate the legends from the rest. Imagine a player has just received the ball from their goalkeeper and is attempting to play forward (task) against a high press…
Using Barcelona’s dynamic attacking trio of Messi, Suarez and Neymar as the example, PDP Lead Researcher, James Vaughan examines the impact of a positive organisational culture. How do we create value driven organisations that allow creativity and a shared understanding to thrive, both on and off the field? Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr and Luis Suarez are the attacking trident spearheading FC Barcelona’s charge towards a 2015 treble. They looked unstoppable in their Champions League demolitions of Manchester City, PSG and Bayern Munich. Tormenting defenders, each…
The FIFA saga is not a long time ago in a galaxy far, far, away. It is here and now. Our game is being used and abused for personal gain, but what does it all mean, who is to blame and should we be surprised? We’ll look at the motivational systems involved in football’s governing body, as well as the impact of power and money – the sport’s very own dark side. Is it time for a rebellion? At the moment it’s easy to…
What are the challenges creativity poses? PDP Lead Researcher James Vaughan challenges the place of this important ingredient in human development. The problem with creativity is that our world is not designed for it…however, before we get into that, a few disclaimers: 1. This blog post may be viewed as controversial, confronting and a bit annoying (but it is all evidence based). Therefore, when I want to make an important point, I’ll use an academic reference (peer reviewed) and, where possible, I’ll include a full…