Buildup on the Dribble: What Fernando Diniz Is Doing Differently Today

Fernando Diniz is often associated with relationism, but focusing only on that label risks missing something equally important: how his teams are evolving the first phase of the game. Rather than relying on fixed positional structures, Vasco consistently altered who occupied the first line. Midfielders dropped into buildup alongside — and sometimes instead of — the center backs. The center backs themselves pushed wider and higher, arriving in advanced areas on the dribble rather than simply circulating the ball.

This had a clear effect against man-to-man pressing. By constantly shifting reference points, Vasco were able to progress not just through passing, but through ball-carrying — unbalancing the opponent and creating overloads on their own terms.

When it came to goal-kick restarts, instead of defaulting to goalkeeper-to-center-back sequences, Diniz positioned creative midfield profiles deeper in the structure, allowing technically gifted players to solve pressure in tight spaces where defenders are less comfortable. These ideas raise bigger questions about where the game is heading. As pressing becomes more aggressive and more individual-oriented, traditional positional labels begin to lose relevance. The future may belong less to positions and more to functional units — players moving fluidly between roles based on the problem in front of them.

In the video below, we break down two specific buildup concepts from Fernando Diniz’s Vasco side and explore what they might tell us about the next evolution of buildup play. Please 'like' and subscribe if you enjoy it!

If you enjoy the Breakdown, we’re taking this topic much further in our next Modern Soccer Coach webinar:

Webinar: Coaching Tactical Flexibility (Attacking Focus)

📅 January 6th⏰ Live Presentation + Q&A💡 Special offer: Only $15 for early registration

This webinar will go beyond the video theory and show coaches:

• How to build multiple shapes out of one base system

• How elite teams vary their build-up structures

• How to coach rotations without confusion

• How to layer flexibility into training design

• How to help youth players understand why structures change

• How to create attacking unpredictability without losing identity

  
  

You’ll walk away with clear training ideas, full session templates, and a framework to make your team more fluid, adaptable, and dangerous going forward. Click here to register

And if you prefer ongoing education, this webinar is included at no extra cost inside the MSC Insider package — along with all previous MSC webinars, exclusive weekly content, and full downloadable training sessions.