YOU could argue that Jonathan Wilson had the final word on football tactics, but if you want to know how European football got to where it is today, Michael Cox’s stage-by-stage story provides a different angle on whiteboard thinking. Zonal Marking is an excellent read and is thought-provoking in the way the author views the transitional phases of European football. You may not agree with his take on the various moments in time when Portugal, Netherlands, Italy and others supposedly led the way, certainly I don’t think it was as clear-cut as Mr. Cox, but it is an interesting study nonetheless. Until Spain took the helm in 2008-12, I personally believe football was drifting for a while. In hindsight, that wonderful thing, we could…