Until then, the most popular tactic was the "metodo", a more defensive arrangement whose strength was mainly the counterattack, which had allowed the Italy national team of Vittorio Pozzo to win the 1934 and 1938 World Cups. In defence, there were only two fullbacks and a defensive midfielder which shuttled forward on the offence. In midfield, the offence was set by the centre midfielders, while the wingers were designed to serve the ball for the striker. The attacking phase was not easy, as the offside rule stipulated there must be three players between the striker and the goal, therefore only one defender had to advance to trigger the offside trap.