The leading director of the German Football Association's (DFB) coaches' training facilities Frank Wormuth says tactics are "overrated" and that the quality of players is more important.
Wormuth has been the director of the DFB's coaches' training facilities since 2007, and up until last summer was also in charge of Germany's under-20 side.
"It's always about the qualities of the players first, and not about the basic shape and system," Wormuth told Funke Media Group.
"If a Pep Guardiola turns a back four into a three-man defence by pulling David Alaba into midfield, the opponent has a problem mainly because an outstanding midfielder now is in a central and more attacking position. That's what I have to react to as the opposing coach."
In recent years hype around tactics has been big in Germany, where first spielverlagerung.de and then several other blogs pushed tactical analysis into mainstream media.
Wormuth believes tactical analysis should not be viewed as an art form, comparing it to how he feels people spend unnecessarily large sums of money on paintings.
"The people ask themselves what the painter wanted to express and then pay ridiculous money for it," he said. "But what did the painter want to say? Nothing!"
Wormuth concluded that tactical variations in a match are "overrated" and added that he thinks coaches these days can get lost in tactical thinking.
Borussia Monchengladbach coach Dieter Hecking also said recently that it is difficult for him to understand what some experts concluded about his tactics when watching matches he coached.
He said: "I read one of those pieces following a Wolfsburg match [where he coached until late 2016], and asked myself, 'They say I came up with those highly complex things?'"
Hecking added in Suddeutsche Zeitung in December that he thinks the current terminology used to describe football reminded him of a secret lore.