After last night's stunning 5-1 victory from the Netherlands against current World champions Spain, questions have been raised about each sides playing style. Is it the end of the Spanish tiki-taka style of play, and can the same be said of the Netherlands's Total Football system?

Although the Spanish tactical demise is not the topic of this article, (you can read about it here https://www.vavel.com/en-us/soccer/359731-is-this-the-end-of-an-era-for-spain.html ) the way in which the Dutch adapted their system to counteract the tiki-taka may well end up renovating the Oranje's system.

The Total Football system was displayed for the first time on an international stage by Rinus Michels' 1974 World Cup runners-up, the Netherlands. Led by the irresistable Johan Cruyff and co., they reached the final in '74 and '78, losing out to more muscular sides (West Germany and Argentina) on both occasions. Total Football is a style of play where all 10 outfield players are comfortable in any position. The only player with a fixed position is the goalkeeper, with defenders, midfielders and strikers all costless to interchange, taking advantage of space left by the opposition. The system was all about creating space. Cruyff played in an advanced role, but would roam all over the pitch, meaning his teammates needed to be adept at switching positions.

However, in 2010, the concepts of the Dutch, who were widely renowned for their beautiful, flowing style of play, were dramatically changed by manager at the time, Bert van Marwijk. The new approach still, however, brought defeat in the final against Spain, and the symbol of the Dutch campaign was this awful challenge from Nigel De Jong on Xabi Alonso in the final.

The formation usually employed by the Dutch was a 4-3-3, but current manager Louis van Gaal, ( who is Manchester United bound after the World Cup ) had experimented with a 4-3-1-2 and a 3-4-1-2 before the tournament, admitted that "I played this system because I believe that we are not good enough to beat Spain with our normal 4-3-3 formation. If I played with three attackers, my wingers would have chased down the Spain backs too much, that would be a waste."

Instead, van Gaal set out with a 3-5-2, ( or 5-3-2 ) designed to put high pressure on the Spaniard's when they had possession, and never allowed their tiki-taka system to come to the fore in the match. The high pressure employed, unlike in 2010, was aggresive but not cynical, and this has gained plaudits worldwide. The result was a revitalising 5-1 victory for the Oranje, and the question left after the game was whether they would retain the 3-5-2 system or revert back to the Total Football of old.