The Hurricane

Here is a wind velocity diagram of a hurricane.

The lines show the direction of wind flow. In soccer the same thing happens with player movement, only the the ball rotates the opposite direction as the players do. How does that work?
Have you ever seen one of these puzzles?

When a piece slides into an open space, the open space moves the other way!
When a player moves into open space to collect the ball, where does the open space go?

It is where the player just left! Now rotate this slider puzzle so it looks like how we play: diagonally.

Green has the ball. He can't play forward because there is no space. The pass will be intercepted. So he plays back. Blue moves into space to collect and has only one option: the space he just created. Luckily, Grey was already moving into the space, which now leaves space for Green to receive the ball in the forward direction. The players all move clockwise, while passing counterclockwise.

This is how soccer is played! This is how basketball is played! This is how hockey is played! This is how lacrosse is played! Can you guess how water polo is played? Same way. 

If our hurricane stalls, the ball movement will stall. Players have to find open space. They have to move diagonally and laterally rather than just up and down the field. Doing so, we rotate into each other's positions and cover each other.

Now, if you were to watch this in real time, you would see that ball moves so fast, that all three of these slider things appear to happen almost at once. Green passes and is immediately off toward grey who is running toward Blue's spot who is just getting the ball, one touch to Grey, one touch to Green and we're through the defense.

Find space. Pass into space. Repeat.