It’s 9 years since Pep Guardiola arrived at Manchester Metropolis and introduced with him a method of play that was to be adopted – and copied – by coaches up and down the nation, from the very best skilled stage to the novice and youth recreation.

As I talked about in a earlier column about the worth of defending correctly, Pep’s type of play didn’t simply change into ‘the best method’ to play, it additionally grew to become ‘the one method’.

On the time, with out query, Metropolis had the strongest squad of gamers, technically, within the Premier League, nevertheless it felt like many different managers and coaches put type over substance and, regardless of their strengths, many groups had been inspired to play possession-based soccer.

I all the time performed to my very own squad’s strengths, and have by no means modified my views on that precept, however you continue to need to admire the whole revolution that Pep and Metropolis created.

Possession soccer, with passes by the pitch and finish merchandise to complete off the phases of play, is incredible to look at.

However possession soccer, the place the goalkeeper and centre-backs play sq. passes backwards and forwards, just isn’t incredible to look at!

In my youthful days, we had been coached to have our first contact ahead, after which to play ahead to the perfect technical gamers we had on the pitch, who normally had been the extensive gamers and centre-forwards.

Soccer just isn’t, and shouldn’t be conditional – the place you play a sure method no matter the kind of gamers you’ve got.

Nonetheless, fashions carry on altering. Set-plays have come into style with nearly each workforce now attempting lengthy throws and in-swinging corners. Groups who had been being pressed by opposition forwards at goal-kicks are actually enjoying lengthy, to beat it.

A sure change of wind course is going down, and possibly it has turned again a notch. Even my outdated assistant, David Kemp, has been in his wardrobe to carry out his outdated bell-bottom denims – for these of you studying who’re too younger to recollect, they was once in style within the Seventies.

As a supervisor, I all the time noticed my job was to get outcomes. Perhaps substance over type is the course the Premier League is heading in now?

Tony Pulis was talking to BBC Sport’s Chris Bevan.