The foundations for Total Football were laid by Jack Reynolds,[2] who was the manager of Ajax from 1915–1925, 1928–1940, and 1945–1947. An early form of Total Football was also developed by the Hungarian national football team of the 1950s, the Magical Magyars, who were managed by Gusztáv Sebes and were especially inspired by the experienced coaching of Burnley born and bred Jimmy Hogan.[3] The first British side, and one of the first in the world to be an exponent of Total Football were Burnley F.C. in the 1950s. Led by Harry Potts, Burnley went on to win the 1959-60 English League title with an attacking, dominating style of football "where every footballer in the team could play at every position", nowadays known as Total Football. Burnley's style of play won many admirers, including all-time English First Division top scorer Jimmy Greaves.[4]
Rinus Michels, who played under Reynolds, became manager of Ajax himself in 1965 and refined the concept into what is known today as "Total Football" (Totaalvoetbal in Dutch), using it in his training for the Ajax squad and the Netherlands national team in the 1970s. It was further refined by new Ajax manager Stefan Kovacs, after Michels left Ajax for Barcelona in 1971. Dutch forward Johan Cruyff was the system's most famous exponent.[5]
Although Cruyff was fielded as centre forward, he wandered all over the pitch, popping up wherever he could do most damage to the opposing team. This resulted in a need for a dynamic system like Total Football. Cruyff's teammates adapted themselves flexibly around his movements, regularly switching positions so that the tactical roles in the team were always filled.