After watching Real Madrid commit Champion's League suicide today by giving up two goals via defensive errors near their own goal, I was wondering if anyone has ever done any statistical analysis of whether or not trying to keep possession by playing the ball backwards (including all the way back to your keeper) is a statistically good strategy. Because it sure seems like the occasional killer errors outweigh any potential benefit from keeping possession a little bit longer, since it creates the possibility of turning the ball over much closer to your own goal.
Wow this forum doesn't get much action huh? You posted aug 7 and it's still the top thread but with no replies. Anyhow, I like your inquiry. I've noticed this (playing back and giving up a goal) happen a bunch. I posted in another thread about a recent UCL game where Juventus scored twice on failed play-it-back attempts. But I do think your perspective is extreme. It's just how soccer is played. Playing it back is and always will be an option. Most of time it's a valuable option. But all are human and fallible. I do though think that some go to extreme with it. Some believe that possession is all that matters. And you should play it back and play out of the back no matter what. You never just boot it without clear intent because then you lose possession and that is a no-go for some people/some cultures.
I'm one of the most frequent posters in this forum. In the Europa League last week, Bayer Leverkusen won 2-1 hosting Hapoel Beer Sheva. Hapoel's only goal came when a horizontal pass between defenders was way to slow considering the distance between them, and a Hapoel player intercepted and scored. In the Concacaf League, Forge FC's goalkeeper had the ball, kept it for too long, and ended up kicking it off the attacker right by him and into the goal. Having the ball near one's own goal from backpasses and other things can cause problems.