Team:

-------------------- D.De Gea -------------
Piszczek ----- Ramos -- Marquinhos ------ Bernat
----------- S.Busquets --- I.Rakitic ------
A.Robben ---------------------------------- F.Ribery
------------------ Carlos Tevez ----------------
------------------- Harry Kane -----------------

Subs : Caballero, Cahill, Coentrao, Fernando, Pastore, Jovetic, Bacca
-----------------
Pastore > Tevez - 70th minute - I want Pastore v direct when on the ball looking to drag players out of position and opening up the game.

Bacca > Kane - 80th minute - Occupy their defence make up ground and make them release the ball as quick as possible so they squander possesion with tight pressing.

Fernando > Busquets (If winning*) - 80th+ minute - Ensure we are dictating using his energy to press so we can win the ball back as quick as possible.
----------------------
The outline:
in form side, in form players we need to keep the momentum going as we enter the latter part of the season. we must play with high energy and intent no sidetracking, a win is vital and there is no stopping us now.

De Gea one of the best in the world at keeping the ball out through his agility and flexibility whether that be long-range, one on one or reaction saves.

In defence we look to defend deep as we feel this suits our CB’s best in looking to cut off any supply to their striker. We’ll look to dominate physically looking to bully off the ball showing who’s boss. Ramos and Marquinhos complement each other very well and must dominate from the outset with their exceptional quality coming to the fore. In midfield S.Busquets and I.Rakitic must maintain the pressure and look to disrupt the play.

Attacking wise we must look to stretch the opposition as much as possible getting the ball out to Robben and Ribery with my FB’s giving them real support. Tevez slots in just behind Kane looking to bully their defenders and giving as much support as possible, Kane will look to hold the ball up whilst others make runs off him so we can attack with pace whilst being his usual clinical self in-front of goal.
-----------------
Individual tactics:

De Gea has the ability to win games with his keeping. He has a real presence in and around his box so he must command well today, very vocal, quick off his feet and distribution swift and on point.

FB’s both very solid defensively and must look to keep it simple today, we need to present from the outset that it will take an almost striking effort to get past these two, I want us to get as physical as possible looking to muscle them off the ball and generally looking to use a bullying demeanour. Our wingers need to assist them as much as possible doubling up on the opposition’s and not giving an inch so we can prevent them cutting inside and imposing themselves.
Ramos and Marquinhos add additional layers to our defensive solidarity, Ramos is as committed as they come and should look to lead the line. He’s responsible for marking their main striker today and should firmly look to get stuck in going toe to toe with every challenge and pushing him back as much as possible, I want us to suck as much confidence out of their striker as possible due to his limited involvement so he makes fewer runs and worth ethic is questioned. Marquinhos partners Ramos and is entirely in his comfort zone. He should look to keep an eye on second runners and look to keep everything in check generally staying alert to any danger and covering Ramos's tracks through his more substantial pace and mobility.

S.Busquets adds force and bite to our midfield, He should look to flex his muscles and get snapping at heels. He must work tirelessly for the full 90 with his intensive pressing setting the perfect example to others as we work collectively to keep them out.
I.Rakitic partners and I want him to support Busquets as much as possible whilst playing in a more box to box role looking to run his socks off adding as much as possible to our play down both ends. Rakitic also adds so much creativity to the side so I want him dictating the tempo to our needs looking to make himself available at all times, getting our forward players in time and space and in short running the show.

Robben will act as the focal point, we generally want to get ball out to him as much as possible. I want him pulling the strings and dictating the play, v direct looking to use his drive to fly past challenges and opening up the game so others have the space and time when they receive the ball. Ribery has a similar role on the left, I want him taking on his FB as much as possible and mixing it up with deliveries, occasionally cutting inside to good measure with the support of Bernat in behind. C.Tevez starts in a more centrally attacking role today, I want him up and down that pitch supporting our play in every means possible, attacking wise looking to make himself a link in between our wingers so he is always available for a pass on the edge of the box and taking the burden of Kane occupying their defenders and riling them both on and off the ball.

H.Kane is the perfect foil for us up top today. He will defiantly get the better of defenders as he is strong, energetic, powerful and can hold his own. He’s able to score all types of goals and is a very willing runner pressing from the front. He’ll look to link-up with others as much as possible holding up the ball and bringing others into play generally influencing our play as much as possible.

-------------------------Foster
Lahm------Kompany--------Chiellini-----Gibbs
-------------Bender--------Yaya
Ronaldo--------Silva----------Ox
---------------------Aguero

Subs: Martinez, Chambers, Monreal, Coquelin, Campbell, Giroud, Ramsey

Subs:

70 mins - Ramsey for Silva
73 Mins – Giroux for Aguero
75 Mins – Coquelin for Yaya



GAME PLAN

I want my team to play counter attacking football. We have the players to play that way and we have the potential danger of harming our opposition. We want to play a pressing game where we shall play one defensive midfielder and one box to box midfielder. Yaya will be the box to box midfielder but he shall be playing as a DM when we are off the ball. Our team will be aiming to obtain the ball as soon as possible and then punish the opposition with swift attacks. We want to play a deep defensive line and keep things tight on the pitch. We want to reduce the amount of freedom the opposition has on the ball. Our players will keep close to the oppositions men and push them back. We want to force errors out of them and push off the ball. Our two centre backs will stick together, whether that is when we are off the ball or when we are up for set pieces. The full backs shall cover the goal area during these set pieces. Our full backs shall be keeping our defensive line tight when we are off the ball, sticking in a line with our centre backs. However on the ball I want them moving forward and helping form the attacks. Our two defensive midfielders will be looking to slow down play, hold the ball and create opportunities by moving the ball forward as quick as possible. Defensively this will force the game to be tight and cancel out the opposition. On the ball it should free up space for our attackers and move forward as quickly as possible.

Our attacking play will be fast and neat. Our two defensive midfielders will be breaking up play, holding on to the ball and then setting our wingers free. This means we want to play with plenty of pace. Out of our 2 wingers Ronaldo is our fastest and we are likely to get some space in this area. Silva is playing central today so he should be able to make plenty of runs. This shows that we have the capability of pulling of counter attacking football successfully. Our wingers and number 10 shall be integrating with each other’s play and therefore we will have plenty of options during our attacks. All of our attackers will be looking to work their way into space using physical and skilful football. Our full backs will also be there during attacks so our wingers can cut inside more as well.

Overall we need to be in their faces by continuously pressing them and keeping all men behind the ball. When on the ball we need to be direct and composed. We need to dominate the midfield battle and control the game how we want it to be controlled. Try and keep it tight for them.

POSITIONAL TACTICS

Lahm should play as a wing back. I want him to move forward during our attacks. He should stay out wide to create a crossing option. I want him to create space for our wingers. While defending Lahm should try and push the player back. If he can’t do that he should push him out wide to a position where he has to kick the ball off. Gibbs should play the same way.

Kompany should use his height and strength to keep the striker(s) out of the game. I want him to keep with that attacker at all times or keep him offside. He should try and header every ball out of the box or kick it away preferably to the wingers. He should only go up for corners/free kicks. Chiellini should play the same way as Kompany.

Bender will be the defensive midfielder. He should look to disrupt their attacking play and reduce the space around their playmaker. He should hold his position and not get caught up field. I want him to control the style of the game we play. While acting as cover for our defence he should also separate the midfield from the defence by keeping hold of the ball and form attacks.

Yaya will be our box-box midfielder. I want him to identify spaces up the pitch. He should take hold of the ball and supply it to any of the front 3 ahead and try to exploit any space. When we’re attacking I want him to move up and stay in space. When off the ball he should be a ball winning player.

I want Ronaldo to use his skill and pace and make runs into the box. He must use his pace to outrun the full back but also his quality control of the ball to dribble round him. When we’re off the ball I want him help Lahm cover their full back. I would like Ox to do the same.

Silva should use his pace and strength to make runs into the box and opening up space for Aguero. He will look to supply the ball to the wingers as well. Try and force their defensive midfielder to move out of position and allow our wingers to use that space by running into the centre. Off the ball he should drop back.

I would like Silva, Ronaldo and the ox to intersect and change positions.

Aguero must use his pace and skill to open up spaces for the wingers and central players to run into. He should make runs to the wing forcing the centre backs out wide. He should look to overpower their defenders with his pace and strength and height. He should constantly look to move into space to create himself as an option for the defence. When we’re defending he should mark the player at the edge of the box.

Captain: Yaya
Vice: Chiellini
Short FK: Ronaldo
Long FK: Silva
PK:Ronaldo
CK: Ronaldo

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Wolves v BIRMINGHAM

Injuries: Srna, Clasie, Ortola, Schmelzer

----------------------Hart
--------Boateng - Javi Martinez - Dante
Ivanovic - Schweinsteiger - Luiz - Adriano
----------------------Ozil
-------------Mandzukic - Reus

Subs: Zieler, Delph, Mkhitaryan, Navas, Bellarabi, Mertens, Dzeko

Big game at away to Wolves, we're going with a 3-4-1-2 in an attempt to be solid defensively while being able to hurt them on the counter attack. The back three of Boateng, Martinez and Dante should cope with Wolves' front two, with Ivanovic and Adriano at wingback dropping back to form a back five to keep the Wolves wingers at bay. Schweinsteiger, Luiz and Ozil command the midfield, giving defensive support to the back three and creative support to the front two. Mandzukic and Reus upfront to give Wolves real problems, Mandzukic the physical threat alongside Reus with his lightning pace.

Hart, stay calm under pressure, distribute the ball to your CB's but on occasion go long towards Mandzukic and Reus. Stay big for one on ones.

Boateng/Martinez/Dante, dealing with a front two, hence three of you playing. Mark one each and have an extra man to be first to any loose balls. In possession try to play through the middle, utilize the wingbacks and on occasion look for the ball over the top to Mandzukic or Reus.
Ivanovic/Adriano, playing the wingback role, without the ball drop to form a back five with Boateng, Martinez and Dante, and when their wingers run at you force them wide, prevent them from cutting inside. In possession get forward one at a time and look to overlap Ozil, and get crosses in for Mandzukic and Reus. Link with Schweinsteiger and Luiz.

Schweinsteiger and Luiz, sitting in midfield, I want you to go against the Wolves CM's, Luiz to prevent anyone dropping deep from influencing the game. Schweinsteiger to be the box to box man, assist Luiz when we don't have the ball, but when we win it back link with Ozil, the wingbacks and the strikers to cause Wolves problems.

Ozil, playing AM, link the play from front to back and side to side, drift left and right and look to supply Mandzukic and Reus with chances, also look for the wingback getting forward to support you, have a shot if the opportunity arises.

Mandzukic/Reus, playing as a front two, Mandzukic to make his presence known by targeting their CB's physically, Reus to make runs in behind to get shots in on goal. Work together to drag defenders out of position, and shoot on sight. Occasionally when the long pass comes, Mandzukic try to flick headers on to Reus to get in on goal. Utilize your collective strength and pace.

---------------

Subs 70 mins;
If winning: Ozil off, Delph on. An extra CM in our midfield, wingbacks drop to fullback and we play a 5-3-1-1 with Reus off of Mandzukic. Absorb pressure and look to counter.

If drawing: Mandzukic off, Dzeko on. Same system, different striker with fresh legs and fresh ideas. Push for the winner without overcommitting.

If losing: Luiz and Dante off, Navas and Dzeko on. Change to 4-1-3-2, Ivanovic - Boateng - Martinez - Adriano along the back four, Schweinsteiger in CM, then Navas - Ozil - Reus behind the front two of Mandzukic and Dzeko. Push for goals.

----------------

In case of red card:
If Hart, Zieler on for Luiz, Martinez to DM, Ozil and Reus wide in a 4-4-1.
If Ivanovic, Boateng to RB in a 4-4-1.
If Boateng/Dante/Martinez/Luiz, change to a 4-4-1.
If Adriano, Boateng to LB in a 4-4-1.
If Schweinsteiger, Luiz and Martinez in midfield in a 4-4-1.
If Ozil, Reus drops in and play 3-4-1-1.
If Reus or Mandzukic, Play 3-4-1-1.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

Attacking 4-2-3-1. No sentiment, the team and style of United has changed, so we’re back to show United how to play, possession based attacking football with plenty of width.

Inherently an attacking formation to take the game to our opponents, our main defence is controlling possession and not letting the opposition have posssession. Carrick and Ander have struck up a fantastic winning partnership at United, they have the ability to not only dictate the tempo of the game but to open up the opposition with their passing.

We aim to score as many goals as possible. Patiently keeping posesesion to tire the opposition chasing the ball, and playing more direct in the final third. van Persie may not be the quickest anymore, but he will perfectly suit our style of play, he has world class ability and capable of scoring whenever he picks up the ball around the opposition box.

--------------- Caillas
Jenko – Dragovic – Manolas - Moreno
---------- Carrick – Ander.H
Jese.R ------ C.Eriksen ----- Draxler
-------------- van Persie

Subs. Butland, Reid, Baba, Matuidi, Herrera, Cerci, Llorente


Fast flowing possession based football, playing out from the back. Three players in midfield that can dictate and dominate possession. Manipulating the opposition formation and creating space for our attacking four, we play direct to these pockets of space where possible, allowing us to attack quickly and immediately put the opposition on the back foot. Or continue to keep possession till these spaces do open up.

Carrick always provides cover in front of the defence, pressing the space and being in the right place at the right time to stop United’s attacks. One full back bombs forward at a time, the other stays back.

Defence
Again we look to control the opposition with a rigid defensive unit, allowing them to play in areas we want them to. As they progress forward we get almost everyone behind the ball bar RVP. Leave no space, crowding them out. When we the ball back, we have numbers back to keep possession and build attacks from the back.

As Utd advance into higher areas of the park and into our half, our shape will resemble a 4-1-4-1.

In this deep tight rigid formation, we focus on pressing space. Ensuring there are no gaps in the formation. Carrick will be key here, sweeping in between the defence and midfield, reading any dangers to get across and stop Utd.

Ander and Eriksen, hold a central positions in front of the back 4, with the winger opposite to the play coming narrow and deep next to him providing a further wall in between those pressing and the back four. Narrowing the play to the side United are attacking, crowding them out and pushing them backwards and wide away from danger. When they switch play, we switch over.

Our fb’s up against their wide forwards are to drop off more and narrow the play so they can bide their time, waiting for the right time to make the tackle and not diving in. If he does manage to get past you, there’s a chance to stop the cross.

With no room to penetrate, Utd will look to force the play, and concede possession.

Attack

Win the ball, keep the ball. When we get to the final third, direct passing into space where possible. Quick interchangeable passing move. We have the perfect players for simple pass and move.

We have three players that can play game changing passes in the centre and we have the pace out wide, to get at the United defence.

We will generally look to start attacks playing out from the back, with Carrick setting our tempo, keeping things simple when we need to calm and retain possession. Our midfielders will look to come deep, to orchestrate the play, and entice the opposition out of position. Create gaps in their formation.

The midfield should never be flat. Create as many lines as possible to increase the options we have in possession, and to create gaps in the opposition.

Attacking movement in the final third is key. One fb bombs forward at a time. On the wing, either the fb or the winger run inside, the other going down the line. This ensures we have at least one dummy run, creating space and pulling defenders out of position.

van Persie has freedom to play his natural game, find space to get the ball, the attacking trio will be racing forward to join.

Subs. If drawing or winning after 70 mins bring on Matuidi for Eriksen. More power to overrun a tired Utd team that have been chasing us. Ander and Carrick controlling possession, Matuidi offering more options for them with his running helping us control the game.

If winning after 77 mins bring on Cerci for Jese. New ideas and fresh pace out wide.
If winning after 83 mins bring on Hector Herrera for Ander. Fresh energy against Utd who will be pushing for a goal.

If drawing after 77 mins bring on Llorente for Ander. Play more direct, we want more goals. Matuidi next to Carrick. Two up front.
If drawing after 85 mins bring on Cerci for Moreno. 3-5-2. Jenko third cb.

If losing after 60 mins bring on Matuidi for Eriksen.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Llorente for Carrick. Play more direct, we want more goals. Matuidi next to Ander. Two up front.
If losing after 80 mins bring on Cerci for Moreno. 3-5-2. Jenko third cb.

-----------------------Neuer----------------------
D.Alves------Varane------Bonucci------D.Blind
----------------Pogba------G.Inler---------------
Sanchez-------------James--------------Neymar
---------------------Benzema---------------------

Krul, Laporte, Delph, Sterling, Depay, Barkley, Morata

A little change around this week, Ricardo and Pereyra drop out and in come James Rodriguez, Gokhan Inler, Inler in to deal with the power WBA have in the centre of the midfield and James in to link everything up

In goal Neuer, a fantastic shot stopper and a keeper that instills confidence in the back four, leads by example from the back, shouting instructions to hos defenders. Out quickly to shut down strikers and close there shooting angles down. Punches clear what he cant catch from high balls and likes to release early to set up quick counters.

Varane and Bonucci are a solid pairing at CB, on this occassion Bonucci will man mark the CF quick and skillfull for a CB, with great marking abilities, will keep the CF away from goal and be on to him quickly as he comes forward so he can intercept any though he has of going for goal. When in possession he will carry the ball out and start attacks from the back. Varane alongside will mark men that come up for corners etc strong in the air and strong ion the tackle and make sure he is strong enough to get the ball away from danger, will help out Bonucci if needed.

D.Blind and D.Alves at fullback, when we attack one goes at a time the other sits back. When they attack I want them bombing down the wing over lapping the winger to allow them to cut inside, quick passing between the two to get them passed the opposition fullback, which will see the fullback drive towards the bye line to get a quick cross in. If its not a cross then look for the winger inside to play a quick pass back to them so they can drive into the box. Defending both will have to be vigilant and always mindful of the tricks the opposite winger can do. Be onto them quickly not allowing them the time to get going, push them out wide and stop them becoming a threat.

We go with Inler and Pogba in the centre of midfield, two absolute workhorses, can both defend and attack, Pogba more than Inler tho, he rarely does but can, when we defend they will work together to shut there midfield down the AM (Inler) and second most advanced CM , they will close down everything very quickly and not allow there players any time on the ball whatsoever, once the ball is won, then Pogba will drive on into support James and Benzema, the other will stay backjust in case Both good on the ball with a great eye for goal, can shoot from a variety of angles. look out for Neymar and Sanchez coming inside and put some nice crisp through balls into them and James and Benzema.

Sanchez and Neymar are chosen on the wings as Sanchez has tremendous work rate and will help out Alvess when and if needed. Both quick with nimble feet which more often than not takes them passed the fullback, wether they knock it passed them and drive on or simple a quick turn, and there away. Will have fullbacks supporting them so this allows them to pass and cut inside where both are very useful. Give and go, wait for the return and go for goal, or look to drive into the box in support of Benzema. Neymar focusses more on the tricks and twists to see him passed, whereas Sanchez likes to make the pass that gives him time to look for space for him to drive into and wait for the return. Both very dangerous and with support from there respective fullbacks we will be a danger out wide. When defending look to get back and stop there defenders becoming a threat. Like said they support the defenders when they have the ball and the defenders support them when we attack.

James Rodriguez is given a free role today to try and break them down, he will drift all over as to make it difficult for his marker to pick him up, as he drifts this will leave holes in the Aresnal midfield for us to take advantage of. He will switch with either Winger at times as he looks to get himself into dnagerous positons. If he drives centrally he and Benzema will cause a lot of problems, he will pass to the CF and look to move into fantastic positions for Benzema to get him in in on goal, when we defend I want him to run down the DM looking to keep him off the ball and foerce him into mistakes.

Benzema will get plenty chances, he must put away this WBA side who will be solid at the back. Get into positions that he can go for goalor at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Good in the air and two good feet, can score from various angles/ranges..All of our front four will be a threat today we must go for it and keep pace with the league leaders. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Neymar, James and Sanchez running into support.

A very difficult game but we have a good side defensively and going forward, quick passing, one twos and drive into positions to recieve a return ball, we really must go fr it, at the same time nothing risky.

Captain - Neuer
Free Kicks - James
Penalties - Neymar
Corners - Wingers

Subs:-
Losing -
70 Mins - Sterling on for James same position, fresh legs
80 Mins - Depay for Alves 3 at the back, Depay to LM, Neymar up top with Benzema
85 Mins - Morata for Benzema last throw

Winning -
80 Mins - Delph and Depay for James and Neymar, Delph sits in midfield, Depay to LM and track them down with fresh energy
85 Mins - Morata for Benzema

Drawing -
70 Mins - Sterling for James
80 Mins - Depay for Alves, go LW, Neymar up top

Leicester City v MANCHESTER UNITED

Injuries: Fabregas, Schurrle, Subotic, Blackett

-------------------Buffon
Debuchy - Sokratis - Howedes - Gaya
-------------Khedira - Perez
---------Ozil - Rooney - Hazard
----------------Mandzukic

Subs: Mandanda, Caceres, Illarramendi, Pirlo, Milner, Sam, Lukaku

--------------------------

Must win game today, we need to bounce back from recent results and get a win to keep our title ambitions alive, Leicester have some quality players but we have a front four to match anybody with a lot of emphasis on Hazard targetting Leicester's RB area as Danilo is missing. Our front four with assistance from the fullbacks should create plenty of chances in general, and in midfield we have a pairing who can dictate the game while keeping the stability required to allow the front four to roam in Khedira and Perez. We can get at this Leicester defence with our attack, Mandzukic playing up top with Rooney in behind, and with Ozil and Hazard either side of Rooney with licence to roam and swap positions we should be able to cause significant problems and score a few goals.

Buffon - Distribute from the back to the fullbacks/CM's, stay in communication with your defence throughout, be wary of long range efforts and ensure you stay big for any one on ones. On occasion go long for Mandzukic.

Sokratis/Howedes - Sokratis to mark their striker, force him high up the pitch thus limiting his impact close to goal, and Howedes to be the spare man, be first to the second ball and their second striker/AM making runs from midfield. When in possession bring the ball out of defence and use the midfielders ahead of you to help us play out from the back. Both of you go forward for setpieces.

Debuchy/Gaya - Both of you to force the Leicester wingers out wide, do not allow them to come inside as this will cause more problems for our midfield. They will want to cut inside so force them outside and block their crosses at source. They will try to create problems infield so its vital you only show them down the wing. If they play a diamond with no wingers you will need to form a narrow back four with the CB's and leave no spaces in behind. When we have possession, push forward and support Ozil/Hazard as they will try to run inside the fullback and you will provide the overlap to either create space or supply crosses into the area for Mandzukic and Rooney, also link with Rooney when he drops deep. You will need to track back very quickly to ensure we don't get caught on the break.

Khedira/Perez - Khedira to patrol infront of the back four, if they play an AM stay on him, but don't follow if he drifts wide. Be first to any loose balls and in possession look for the attackers and pass rather than bring the ball out. Perez the box to box man, assist Khedira and the CB's in dealing with the Leicester attack when we don't have the ball, but in possession get forward, be the link between the defence and the attackers, use your ball playing ability to our advantage, link with Ozil and Hazard, and look to create chances for Rooney and Mandzukic. Remain composed throughout.

Ozil/Hazard - Both playing out wide but in RAM and LAM positions, both of you have the pace and trickery to beat the Leicester fullbacks and get crosses in, but both of you will also have our fullback overlapping giving you the chance to cut inside and get shots in. Their DM will be tasked with keeping tabs on you, but with one of you either side of him one of you will be free to cause carnage in the middle of the park. Get yourself between their DM and the ball, make them go through you and foul you to stop you, thus creating setpiece chances for us. Look to supply Rooney and Mandzukic with chances and also provide yourselves with chances. Link up with Perez, Rooney and Mandzukic, and capitalise on the space Rooney and Martinez's presence will create for you. Without the ball I expect you two to track back and assist your fullback.

Rooney/Mandzukic - you will be expected to occupy the Leicester centrebacks, hold up possession and look to turn the defender and shoot. Be strong in the air and look for your teammates trying to pick you out from deep. Shoot on sight. Link together to create chances for each other. Stay on the last defender's shoulder for any passes in behind. Rooney to drop to AM without the ball to make sure we're not exposed to any counter attacks.

Subs 70 mins:
If winning: Mandzukic and Ozil off, Pirlo and Milner on. Switch to 4-5-1 with Pirlo, Khedira and Perez in midfield, Milner to RW with Hazard at LW and Rooney upfront, Milner and Hazard drop deeper out wide to make it 4-5-1. Absorb pressure and hit on the break.

If drawing: Perez off, Pirlo on. Same system, Pirlo a playmaker to come in and give us something different, push for the winner without overcommitting.

If losing: Gaya, Perez and Khedira off, Lukaku, Sam and Pirlo on. Switch to 3-1-4-2, back three of Debuchy - Sokratis - Howedes, Pirlo the DM, Sam - Rooney - Ozil - Hazard behind a front two of Mandzukic and Lukaku upfront. Push for goals.

ASTON VILLA

3-4-1-2

_______________________Navas______________________
__________Toprak____Mertesacker_____Gustavo_________
Zabaleta_______Koke______________Kroos________Shaw
______________________De Bruyne___________________
_____________Sturridge____________Dost_____________
SUBS: Begovic, Cole, Coleman, Gerrard, Fernandinho, Son, Pelle

Captain: Toni Kroos
Right free-kicks: Toni Kroos
Left free-kicks: Toni Kroos
Penalties: Daniel Sturridge
Right corners: Toni Kroos
Left corners: Toni Kroos

General:
Aston Villa’s set-up will be reminiscent to the Dutch team in the 2014 World Cup. A back three, two central midfielders, 2 wing backs, a 10 and two centre forwards. Aston Villa’s back three can situationally morph into a back five with the wing backs dropping into the defensive line. Aston Villa’s 3-2 defensive block will allow easy circulation of the ball in the defensive area due to the natural positioning of the players in this system. This team will be one that presses in defensive phase, one which moves the ball quickly in transition phase and one which circulates the ball to open spaces. The 3 up front will look to take up good positions and cover space, reducing possible passes for the opposition team. The ball will be moved quickly when Aston Villa regain possession to take advantage of opened up space with the opposition not in their normal defensive structure. Both forwards need to make sure they run into wide areas where the full backs are probably missing and get a 1v1 with the centre halves where one could put the ball in and while the other gets into the box, link up with full backs when they come forward as well. The centre midfielder and the number 10 will get up to support the attack. Defending the 18 yard line is the main aim and will limit the opposition to long shots. All players stick to positions and won’t be dragged out of position. If the opposition want to play fancy passing and have 90% possession, let them, but our team will be compact not allowing anything to get into the 18 yard box.

Navas:
Claim crosses if possible. Always clear lines, and hoof up the pitch towards the strikers whenever possible. The ball must stay clear of the 18 yard box at all times. Communication is key with centre halves to avoid confusion when deciding who claims a loose ball / cross.

Toprak and Gustavo:
Deals with opposition attackers. Gustavo keeps an eye on their attacking midfielder when he gets close to the 18 yard line. Gustavo will also mark their striker closely not allowing him space to turn. Gustavo or Koke will deal with knock-downs to their supporting player depending on who is closer. Toprak will try and win headers when long balls are played towards the back line. Toprak will not be as aggressive but step up to attack players that come down his side. Gustavo will be the centre half who steps up and clears up balls before it reaches their attackers, but must only go if he’s 100% sure he’ll get it. Both will protect the central centre half to the best of their abilities. Go up for corners.

Mertesacker:
Sits in line with the other two centre halves, he is not a sweeper. Will try and win headers when long balls are played towards the back line. Will also clean up any balls / players who manage to get through the other two centre halves. Go up for corners. 

Zabaleta and Shaw:
Will both go forwards and support the attack. Will also act as extra bodies in midfield to help with holding onto the ball. Can drop into a back 5 if necessary. Main aim is to provide width and thump in crosses at every opportunity. Shoot if there is a clear sight of goal. Stays back for corners. Must not commit to tackles otherwise wingers will skip past them, just stay close, limit their space and show them onto their weaker foot.

Koke and Kroos:
Sits deep, breaks up play and snap at their heels then break with the ball. Koke is an engine that can cover a lot of ground when defending. Kroos will buzz around and dictate play, bursting forwards at times to provide an extra body in attack. Kroos will be a bit ahead of Koke to be more involved in exchanging passes with full backs / De Bruyne, even going level with De Bruyne at times to use his incredible vision to find teammates. Koke stays close to the centre halves. Both sprays balls wide to wing backs and directly to the front 3. Koke stays back for corners. Will not allow the opposition any time on the ball in front of centre halves. Koke sticks to position when wing backs fly forwards, providing cover if needed. Koke will stand outside the box during set pieces to smack in rebounds if not taking a set piece.

De Bruyne:
Will constantly hit balls towards both strikers and if not possible, to the wing backs flying forwards. The number 10 will press the opposition along with the the other midfielders when without the ball. Will stand outside the box if not taking a set piece to hit a rebound.

Sturridge and Dost:
Holds up play for the support midfielders and spray the ball wide to wing backs when they come forward, if not then they will pull wide to exploit attacking space. Get into the box at every opportunity when their partner pulls out to wide areas. Both should be able to play quick one-twos with each other if they happen to be close to each other. Both will play on the shoulder of the opposition defence and will attempt at times to get in the space between centre halves and full backs, if there isn’t a lot of space. Their pace will allow long balls to be launched occasionally to them.

SUBS:
Winning/Drawing:
75 mins: De Bruyne OFF Fernandinho ON
Fernandinho replaces De Bruyne and will slot into centre midfield to shore up the midfield and to help keep the ball better in order to close the game out. Proper 3 in midfield.

Losing:
75 mins: De Bruyne OFF Pelle ON
Essentially going 3-4-3 where Pelle will join Sturridge and Dost up front. Offers the option for the others to hoof the ball up to the front line.

------------------------Perin
---------Mustafi-----Godin-----Sakho
Candreva-----------------------------Siqueira
--------------Pjanic-----Henderson
-------------Suarez----------Mata
---------------------Higuain

Subs
Szczęsny, Uchida, Rojo, Strootman, Callejon, Nasri, Icardi

Tactics

Overview
We have set up with a 3-4-3 formation today, with the aim to getting extra attacking presences further up the pitch without losing strength in midfield or attack. We are going to play an attacking style of football, being aggressive in the way we defend by pressing quickly and high up the pitch.

Goalkeeper
Come for set pieces, punch rather than try the catch, when passing the ball look to play the percentage pass to the wing backs/outside centre backs and keep possession.

Centre Backs
Godin will sit at the base of the 3 organising the back line and is tasked with stopping any attacks coming through the centre of the pitch, and have him go against the striker when balls are played into him.

The other 2 centre backs will play wider, having more freedom to move around and help the wing backs with wide threats or stopping runs from attacking midfielders and press higher up the pitch, they are also both good on the ball so when in possession if there is space to run into, they are given the freedom to move into it and advance the play.

Wing Backs
Both guys have the energy levels to get up and down the pitch all match long, they will be tasked with keeping the width across the pitch forcing the opposition to keep their full backs from constricting the centre of the pitch. They won't put many crosses in, rather playing shorter passes to players who have come from the middle of the pitch.

Defensively, they have the wider centre backs to help them if they are outnumbered, but we want them to stop the wide men from cutting inside, forcing them to cross, which gives us a better chance of getting the ball back quickly and starting an attack.

Centre Mids


Pjanic and Hendo will be utilising their high energy styles to get themselves around the pitch, being key figures in the pressing game and always making themselves available for a pass when we are in the final third to shift their defensive players that little bit more which could be the difference in getting a player behind them. When defending, both players are looking to press in the middle third of the pitch, pressing the opposition CMs as they are on the ball to rush their decisions and win the ball back.

Attacking Midfielder

Both guys should be looking to make themselves available for a pass as much as possible, having free roles to drift around between their defence and midfield, when we have the ball in the middle of the pitch, they should be looking to drift around the space between the CMs and the defence and make them have to make decisions on who goes to them. They should also look to be moving out wider to get the ball and run at defenders or make key passes and make themselves available when the wing backs have the ball out wide.

Defensively, when their CBs/Keeper have the ball they will be working with Higuain to block off the lines to the full back and any CM that comes deep to get the ball to force a long kick, in general gameplay, they will track the full backs, looking to stop them pushing on too much.



Strikers


When attacking, Higuain will look to play a high energy game by being a willing runner down the channels and constantly drift around the defenders looking to get himself a bit of space enough for him to face the defenders and take them on. When defending, he will be the first line of defence, letting the CBs have the ball as much as they want, focusing instead of cutting off the passing lines to the full backs, the aim is to get their CB's/Keeper to kick it long with us having a better chance to win the ball back.

Set Pieces


Corners - Pjanic takes the corners, the CB's go into the box, the WB's stay back to prevent counters, the CB's, Suarez and Higuain work in a group to make little blocks and cross-runs to lose a marker to get a free run at the ball, Mata looks to limit the opposition keeper from moving outside the 6 yard box and use his quick reactions to deflect shots going near him. Hendo takes a position outside the box to pick up weak clearances and occasionally providing the short option to try and draw 2 defenders out of the box.





Free Kicks - Suarez takes Direct FK's



For Indirect FK's, same instructions as Corners





Penalties - Suarez is the designated taker.

Subs

If Winning


68 mins - Strootman for Mata - Strooty CM, Pjanic AM Fresh legs, gets more stuck in with defensive work.

75 mins - Uchida + Rojo for Candreva + Siqueira - Fresh defensive legs, Wing backs tuck back in more.

If Losing

65 mins - Callejon for Siqueira - Wing backs act more as wingers, and we go all out to win the tie, Suarez moves alongside Higuain.

78 mins - Strootman + Nasri for Mustafi + Candreva - more attacking options with more runs coming from the CB position.

Arsenal tactics 1000 words exactly

Cech
Lahm Chiellini Kompany Monreal
Coquelin Bender
Ronaldo Yaya Silva
Giroud

Subs: Foster, Jones, Gibbs, Di Maria, Ramsey, Aguero, The Ox

Subs:

60th Minute - Di Maria for Coquelin - play Bender as main DM, Yaya next to him, Silva behind striker and Di Maria on the left wing. I want the team to become more attacking on the wings.

70th Minute - Aguero for Giroud - similar role to Giroud.

75th Minute - Ramsey for Yaya - I want Ramsey to control the tempo of the game more.

GAME PLAN

I want us to play a direct pressing game. This will entail moving the ball about quickly and getting it to our target player as soon as possible. I want us to use the wings as much as possible when on the attack. We must close down the opposition with immediate effect, pressuring them off the ball and forcing mistakes. The centre of the field will have players capable of winning the midfield battle by using their physique, skill and power to overrun the opposition. This game is all about limiting their options at the centre of the field and then releasing the ball to the creative players. We have slightly less pace on the pitch than usual but we will be able to use our winners to open up the opposition. They will be looking to move the ball forward as quick as possible so by using the skill of our players, we can take advantage of any space left.

Off the ball we need to force them into making mistakes. This means keeping the game tight and stopping the opposition any freedom on the ball. Push the opposition out wide and back towards their goal. I want them to be so pressured that every time they collect the ball there is someone on them. I want them to get frustrated and physical so we increase the chances of them having a player sent off.

I want us to play dirty in order to get the frustration out of them and open more space for our side to take advantage of. This means being a bit extra physical in our tackles. I also want us to look for a penalty when in the box by diving when possible. We need to get the goals so if the opportunity arises we need to take advantage of it.

If we are winning from the 70th minute I want us to start to keep the ball for longer periods and hold possession. Slow play right down and seriously time waste.

Positional Tactics

Our full backs defensively need to push the opposition back and reduce the space made available on this side of the pitch. They need to prevent the wingers from running in behind them and cutting inside of them. They need to cancel them out and limit the opportunities for them to make runs and collect the ball in good areas. Offensively they will need to move forward with the ball and use up and space left by the opposition. When our wingers cut in, I want our full backs to take up the wide position and put the crosses in.

Our centre backs need to keep with the strikers, stay in command of their play. We need to limit the opportunity for them to find space by keeping goal side of them at all times. They need to use their height and strength to beat them off the ball. They also must be aware of any high balls into the box and runners that have cut inside. Offensively only go up for corners.

We will play two defensive midfielders today who will both protect the defence and hold up play. This means filling the gaps and creating a defensive wall to stop the opposition from breaking through. Coquelin must keep with the playmaker by discouraging him from moving into space, limit the chances he's able to create and keeping goal side of him at all times. Bender must stay with any midfielder who moves forward to join in the attack. Limit the available players for the, and force them to pass the ball back. Offsensively I will not allow Coquelin to go forward. Bender has the freedom to move forward in order to create that extra option.

Our attacking midfielder will be Yaya who will look to run into space and finding the opportunity to change and dictate the game. He must force the opposition to open up space and allow the attacking players to break through. I want him to move about all across the centre and depending on move towards the right or the left to the ball. Defensively I want Yaya to track back and try and dominate the midfield battle. He must prevent people running forward and creating more ability for runs. He must try and collect the ball and release it to our wingers to form attacks since.

Our wingers need to use plenty of their skill, strength, power, pace and physicality to open up the opposition. I want them to force the attacks straight at them, bring the defenders out and then allow our attackers to take advantage. They must cut inside, run in from behind and cross the ball in so that our attacks don't end up predictable. Try and use our full backs as much as possible when attacking the opposition so that having to handle more than one player forces a mistake. Defensively they should fall back and help the full backs to defending and prevent the wingers from creating opportunities. Ronaldo should stay further forward as most players will look to leave the ball for him in the next attack.

Our striker needs to use their brain to workout how the defence works. They need to run at them using their strength and skill to cause nerves in their defence and force mistakes. The striker needs to open up space and find space as he is good at getting On the end of crosses and opportunities created. He needs to use his height to open the scoring and also use his power to force his way into goal scoring opportunities. Defensively I want him to move back to the centre circle and wait for the midfield to supply the ball to him in the event of an attack, if after 70 mins and we are winning I want the striker to move further back to control and protect the nation. We just time waste as much as possible.

RED CARD

Cech - Yaya for foster, foster GK
Full back - Yaya for Jones - move to full back
Centre back - Same as above but move to centre back
Defensive midfielders - move Yaya back
Wingers - Di Maria for Coquelin - move Di Maria to mising wing position and put Yaya next to bender.
Yaya - Ramsey for Coquelin, no change in positions
Giroud - Aguero for Yaya, move forward

Pens: Ronaldo
Long FK: silva
Short FK: Ronaldo
Corners: silva

DELETE THE ABOVE

Cech
Lahm Chiellini Kompany Gibbs
Coquelin Bender
Ronaldo Yaya Silva
Giroud

Subs: Foster, Jones, Bellerin, Di Maria, Ramsey, Aguero, The Ox

Subs:

60th Minute - Di Maria for Coquelin - play Bender as main DM, Yaya next to him, Silva behind striker and Di Maria on the left wing. I want the team to become more attacking on the wings.

70th Minute - Aguero for Giroud - similar role to Giroud.

75th Minute - Ramsey for Yaya - I want Ramsey to control the tempo of the game more.

GAME PLAN

I want us to play a direct pressing game. This will entail moving the ball about quickly and getting it to our target player as soon as possible. I want us to use the wings as much as possible when on the attack. We must close down the opposition with immediate effect, pressuring them off the ball and forcing mistakes. The centre of the field will have players capable of winning the midfield battle by using their physique, skill and power to overrun the opposition. This game is all about limiting their options at the centre of the field and then releasing the ball to the creative players. We have slightly less pace on the pitch than usual but we will be able to use our winners to open up the opposition. They will be looking to move the ball forward as quick as possible so by using the skill of our players, we can take advantage of any space left.

Off the ball we need to force them into making mistakes. This means keeping the game tight and stopping the opposition any freedom on the ball. Push the opposition out wide and back towards their goal. I want them to be so pressured that every time they collect the ball there is someone on them. I want them to get frustrated and physical so we increase the chances of them having a player sent off.

I want us to play dirty in order to get the frustration out of them and open more space for our side to take advantage of. This means being a bit extra physical in our tackles. I also want us to look for a penalty when in the box by diving when possible. We need to get the goals so if the opportunity arises we need to take advantage of it.

If we are winning from the 70th minute I want us to start to keep the ball for longer periods and hold possession. Slow play right down and seriously time waste.

Positional Tactics

Our full backs defensively need to push the opposition back and reduce the space made available on this side of the pitch. They need to prevent the wingers from running in behind them and cutting inside of them. They need to cancel them out and limit the opportunities for them to make runs and collect the ball in good areas. Offensively they will need to move forward with the ball and use up and space left by the opposition. When our wingers cut in, I want our full backs to take up the wide position and put the crosses in.

Our centre backs need to keep with the strikers, stay in command of their play. We need to limit the opportunity for them to find space by keeping goal side of them at all times. They need to use their height and strength to beat them off the ball. They also must be aware of any high balls into the box and runners that have cut inside. Offensively only go up for corners.

We will play two defensive midfielders today who will both protect the defence and hold up play. This means filling the gaps and creating a defensive wall to stop the opposition from breaking through. Coquelin must keep with the playmaker by discouraging him from moving into space, limit the chances he's able to create and keeping goal side of him at all times. Bender must stay with any midfielder who moves forward to join in the attack. Limit the available players for the, and force them to pass the ball back. Offsensively I will not allow Coquelin to go forward. Bender has the freedom to move forward in order to create that extra option.

Our attacking midfielder will be Yaya who will look to run into space and finding the opportunity to change and dictate the game. He must force the opposition to open up space and allow the attacking players to break through. I want him to move about all across the centre and depending on move towards the right or the left to the ball. Defensively I want Yaya to track back and try and dominate the midfield battle. He must prevent people running forward and creating more ability for runs. He must try and collect the ball and release it to our wingers to form attacks since.

Our wingers need to use plenty of their skill, strength, power, pace and physicality to open up the opposition. I want them to force the attacks straight at them, bring the defenders out and then allow our attackers to take advantage. They must cut inside, run in from behind and cross the ball in so that our attacks don't end up predictable. Try and use our full backs as much as possible when attacking the opposition so that having to handle more than one player forces a mistake. Defensively they should fall back and help the full backs to defending and prevent the wingers from creating opportunities. Ronaldo should stay further forward as most players will look to leave the ball for him in the next attack.

Our striker needs to use their brain to workout how the defence works. They need to run at them using their strength and skill to cause nerves in their defence and force mistakes. The striker needs to open up space and find space as he is good at getting On the end of crosses and opportunities created. He needs to use his height to open the scoring and also use his power to force his way into goal scoring opportunities. Defensively I want him to move back to the centre circle and wait for the midfield to supply the ball to him in the event of an attack, if after 70 mins and we are winning I want the striker to move further back to control and protect the nation. We just time waste as much as possible.

RED CARD

Cech - Yaya for foster, foster GK
Full back - Yaya for Jones - move to full back
Centre back - Same as above but move to centre back
Defensive midfielders - move Yaya back
Wingers - Di Maria for Coquelin - move Di Maria to mising wing position and put Yaya next to bender.
Yaya - Ramsey for Coquelin, no change in positions
Giroud - Aguero for Yaya, move forward

Pens: Ronaldo
Long FK: silva
Short FK: Ronaldo
Corners: silva

------------------Valdes-----------------
Richards J.Stones Jagielka L.Baines
--------M.Fellaini----Wanyama--------
Willian--------Johansen-------Lallana
------------------Austin-----------------

Kiko, Montoya, McCarthy, Iturraspe, Januzaj, Naismith, Bony


Victor Valdes, experienced goalkeeper, great shot stopper, great to have him in goal behind the back four. Will look to dominate his patch of grass and get the ball moving quickly.

Baines and Richards at fullback, John stones moves in alongside Jagielka. We must keep concentration at all times, Mark the attacking players ie Richards and Baines must stop their wingers getting to the bye line any way they can and stop them cutting inside. Richards will be with the hard working Willian ahead of him, even though it will be difficult the two should work well together. Stones will pick up their centre forward and mark him very tightly. Jagielka back as the Captain today and he is there to lead by example, keep the back four in a line when we defend making it impossible for them to break us down. Jagielka and Stones are a huge pressence at set pieces so for set pieces and corners they both go up, Wanyama sits in..

Wanyama again in the DM role, a hard man to break down and very effective in the tackle his experience gets him into the correct positions when he needs to be to stop there attacking midfielder, do not allow him time or space to support the CF or indeed shorten the time he has to pass the ball around him. Fellaini just ahead in the centre of the pitch, look to dominate the game, both Wanyama and Fellaini can move up the field to assist Austin but they must be careful, we cannot be exposed against a very good side, Fellaini will be a huge danger with his power and height and will support Austin and Johansen, his flick ons and through balls to the CF will be great to set Austin off on goal. In Willian and Lallana we have two very quick wingers, when we attack I want it to be done very quickly. Down the right I want Richards and Willian to work in tandom, thus using each other to get the space required to get Willian to the bye line, give and go. Willian is very quick and skillful so will be a handful for there Left back. When the right hand attacks Baines stays back, Lallana moves into the box to support Austin and the same on the other side when the left hand side attacks, Willian gets into the box, Richards stays back, so when we are going forward we always have at least two ready to pounce on the cross balls, Johansen or Fellaini on the edge and depending what side two players down the wing looking to get these cross balls in. As said prerviously Willian and Lallana, Willian in particular are hard working winges so will look to help out our fullbacks in what will be a very difficult game, they must get back and support Richards and Baines.

Stefan Johansen gives us that bit of creativeness we are apparently lacking in the final third, heat times can be genius on the ball so look to pick up from deep and spread it about to Lallana, Willian, and Austin
Defending this must be a stringent 4-1-4 system that will stop them coming through, they must work hard as they have some fantastic players who must not be allowed to play.

Austin is the prefect No.9, strong, a bit of pace and most of all he can score goals, can hold of the CB marking him and drive into the area. Or indeed, he can hold the ball up looking for the support coming his way in from Willian, Lallana, Johansen and Fellaini. Always on the last man ready to get into dangerous areas. He is fantastic in the air so must always look to beat the centre back to the ball, always has his head up looking to go for goaWe have a huge aeriel threat from set pieces with the two CBs and Fellaini all there to cause problems.

Captain is Phil Jagielka
Penalty taker - Austin
Free Kicks - Lallana
Corners - Willian and Lallana

Substitutes

If we are losing Bony will come on for Johansen and we go 442 on 75 Mins, Naismith and Januzaj for Lallana and Willian respectively on 80 Mins

If we are winning Iturraspe will come on for Fellaini on 70 Mins, Bony for Austin

And if we are drawing, Bony for Austin, Januzaj for Lallana on 70 Mins

Liverpool v PORTSMOUTH


Line up:

ter-Stegen
Carvajal Pepe Hummels Marcelo
Nainggolan De Rossi Modric
Coutinho Goetze
Lewandowski

Substitutes:
Soares; Kongolo; Guarin; Goretzka; Fekir; Anderson; Berardi


Captain: Hummels
Penalties: Lewandowski
Corner Kicks: Coutinho
Free Kicks: Goetze


Tactics: Confidence is high in the Pompey dressing room coming off the back of a solid victory against a strong Hull City side. With this in mind, we have decided to line up with the same formation and only one change to the side that defeated Hull: De Rossi coming in to replace Guarin.

The purpose of the 4-3-2-1 formation is to provide enough of a midfield presence to crowd out Liverpool's attacks whilst providing enough space of our own for the counter.

We will be playing with one holding midfielder and two mobile central midfielders who will roam around the midfield area, closing off passing lanes and harassing the ball carrier. Our two attacking midfielders will also drop deep to cover space in the midfield whilst the centre forward will stay up top to instigate the counter attack.

he midfield revolves around De Rossi holding a fairly central role that gives Nainggolan and Modric the freedom to roam up and down the pitch and, if necessary, out to the flanks in order to cover against the Scouse wingers.

We know that Liverpool are a very strong side so we will be looking to move the ball up the field quickly where our pace can catch their defence on the back foot. We want to play the ball around so that their players start to push forward and come out of possession, whereby we will be able to exploit the space that they will leave.

Whereas in the last game we played an aggressive pressing formation, in this match we want to emulate the style that Arsenal used against Manchester City, setting up a solid 4-5-1 when not in possession. We will allow Liverpool to move the ball around their back 4 with minimal pressing from Lewandowski as our aim will be to invite them in to our half where our superior numbers in midfield will allow us to crowd out playing space and to regain possession.

It is imperative that our team plays as a cohesive unit in defence and with a blistering aggression in attack and so we have gone with an unchanged lineup that will help with team cohesion. We have pace up front and a great deal of experience at the back that we feel should lead to a confident performance and victory.


Individual Tactics:

ter-Stegen: A fantastic shot stopper who will be looking to put in a superb performance in order to stake his claim for the 'keeper's spot.

Carvajal + Marcelo: In defence, they will be combative and will not let their man go down the flanks. They will prefer to push them in to the midfield where our other players can dispossess them. Offensively, they will look to hug the flanks and drill the ball in low and hard.

Pepe + Hummels: Pepe will go up for every ball with their centre forward, knowing that he is strong enough to dominate physically and aerially. Hummels will drop back and will be looking to pick up any runs off the centre forward's shoulder or any runs behind the full backs.

Nainggolan + Modric + De Rossi: Each midfielder will be expected to pull his weight equally in both attack and defence. With De Rossi holding the centre of the pitch, on the ball, this allows Nainggolan and Modric the freedom to charge forward and help in attack. When defending, they will be expected to push slightly wider to cut off passing lanes to Liverpool's flanks.

In defence, De Rossi will be looking to negate the runs of Liverpool's attacking midfielder while our other midfielders will look to cut out any passes in behind the defence or out wide.

Coutinho + Goetze: Given the opportunity to roam around the pitch, dragging players out of defence. They will always be on the lookout for that ball or run in behind the defence. In defence, Goetze and Coutinho will both drop in to the centre of midfield to help crowd out Liverpool's midfield.

Lewandowski: When we're in possession, he will play off the last shoulder, looking to get in behind for the goal. In defence, he will close down the man with the ball every time. We don't want them playing out from the back.


Substitutions:

75 minutes: Berardi for Lewandowski: Berardi will provide a new burst of energy and pace to our front line.

80 minutes: Anderson for Coutinho: Anderson is more direct and a more accomplished goalscorer which we hope will give us the edge late on.

80 minutes: Guarin for Modric: Guarin will provide more stamina and a greater box to box role. He will be given encouragement to shoot from range.

Comment deleted by Site Moderator

-------------------Courtois
Corchia-----Garay------Terry------Luis
------------Matic-----Kondogbia
----Cuadrado-------------------Oscar
-------------Benteke---Costa

Subs: Ryan, N'Koulou, Tielemans, Verratti, Praet, Origi, Lamela

Captain: John Terry
Free Kicks: Christian Benteke
Corners: Juan Cuadrado
Penalties: Diego Costa

We look to control things from the off with an Atletico Madrid style set up, on and off the ball, getting in their faces high up the pitch and attacking them with pace, power and aggression.

The front four close down with intense pressure, stopping the opposition back line being able to play the ball out into midfield, force them back to the keeper and long or wide to the FBs. Benteke and Costa close on the CBs whilst the energetic Oscar/Cuadrado come inside and block the route to the midfield. FBs push up to cover the quick wide attacks, leave them no space. If they do get it forward quickly, Matic and Kondogbia cover with a strong tackle and slow them down.

We will set up to play in horizontal lines, compact in order to give us numerical advantages wherever play is happening and look to surround Portsmouths players and leave them no way forward. When they go wide the FB and AM are the two to press the players, with Costa and one CM coming across to squeeze the space and step in if the other two are beaten, give them no way of playing the ball centrally, if they push it forward or Central the rest of our midfield is there waiting to step in, whilst the defence make sure the striker can't link play if the ball is sent up to him. The key is to make sure we are together, two players engaging the attack, 4 closing off the space and the remaining defenders in position to step in and cut out long balls.

If they have the ball central we set up with two banks of four and the two strikers dropping in to press the deeper midfielders, if the midfielders get beyond those two they will have a compact midfield 4 to get through. We squeeze the space in the midfield, keep the lines compact with the AMs moving out to stop the FBs if they try and double up out wide and keeping compact if they use their AMs infield. Keeping the lines tight allows us to squeeze the ball if they get it to the striker. They key here is to have the 6 ahead of the defence all in their faces, don't allow them to control possession centrally, if we have to we make the game scrappy, first to every loose ball in the middle and quick to close off the man on the balls options. If they are really pushing us back, fall to defend the 18 yard box, FBs tuck in alongside the CBs to give us to compact banks of four, only pushing wide if Portsmouth do, keep disciplined, Matic and Kondogbia especially making sure they cover the space between the lines rather than stepping up, stop Portsmouths two creative players playing in that space, with the AM/CFs job to press the CMs.

We want to attack as soon as we have the ball, being direct and attacking in the horizontal areas of the field we win the ball in, whether it being on the counter or sustained possession, the attacks must be swift and carried out in these areas in order to take advantage of our defensive system giving us lots of players in one area of the field, opening up quick passing triangles and overloads. The main aim really is to get the attack in the wide areas where we feel we can drag Portsmouth about, so if we win it wide we will have the midfield and FB ready to attack this area, using the FB and AM to overload and the DMs going forward with them being there to keep the ball moving and provide quick one two's to get us down the sides of Portsmouth. If we win it centrally we have two very good DMs who can get past challenges and move the ball into the wide areas, again allowing us to move our set up to the flanks. We have two excellent forward thinking Fbs who are going to be big attacking weapons today, looking to make overlapping runs and get lots of crosses in, using their excellent pace to get to the byline. We also have AMs who offer different things, so that when we attack down the left, Oscar is able to play Luis in behind, whilst Cuadrado can hold a wider position in order for a quick pass out to him to stretch the game, and when we attack down the right Cuadrado loves to run at the FB, use his trickery and take advantage of Corchia's underlapping runs to get round the outside of Marcelo and cross, whilst Oscar can then come across and use his link up play to increase our overload, rather like Koke for Atleti, and work off the Cfs, use the space we carve out of Portsmouths midfield, one Cf can drop into this space too. Another huge benefit to this system is that if they win the ball off us, we already have them surrounded making it easy to get into their faces quickly and make the only means of a counter a long ball, where we have two huge CBs to cover off that option anyway. Once we get into their final third the ball must come back central, either with a cross into the box or the AMs coming infield to go at their CBs, we even have Corchia to make runs between defenders from deeper, we feel our best route will be Oscar/Corchia/CFs getting into the channels, between defenders, or the FBs putting the crosses in for two giant strikers. We must take advantage of our front two today, not only with their movement in attack or getting crosses into them, but also to go route 1 if we are under pressure, allowing us to bypass midfield and put their CBs under intense pressure, then we can get the AMs working off the strikers.

Subs:

If Winning: Verratti for Cuadrado 65', fresh legs and another hard worker to keep us compact. Tielemans for Benteke 75', we can play 5 in the midfield, all energetic players who can keep things compact. N'Koulou for Oscar 80', 5-4-1, N'Koulou comes in to make sure if they go more direct we have the CBs to deal with it, as well as any attempt to use the channels, midfield remains combative, can control possession and see the game out.

If Drawing: Praet for Cuadrado 70', Oscar right, Praet left, fresh legs and someone who can beat his man, and someone who can take advantage of space infield when we drag them wide. Origi and Verratti for Kondogbia and Benteke 75', Verratti can find the gaps, Origi extra pace to get into channels and makes runs towards the flanks, something that can drag a CB out with him and create more space for the movement of Costa, who can now stay as the focal point.

If Losing: Verratti for Kondogbia 60' or any time after if losing, gives us a more creative CM. Origi and Nkoulou for Corchia and Costa 70', 3-4-1-2:

Courtois
N'Koulou Terry Garay
Cuadrado Matic Verratti Luis
Oscar
Origi Benteke

Push really high up and gets lots of crosses into two big strikers, who also have the pace to get behind, with Oscar looking to play in the hole and create things and get into the box as well.

Hull tactics vs Swansea

-------------------------------Patricio--------------------------------

Juanfran----------Otamendi--------Benatia--------Sandro

-----------------------------Cabaye----------------------------------

------------------Pereyra----------Marchisio---------------------------

Lucas Moura----------------------------------------------Reus

-----------------------------Vietto------------------------------------



Game Plan: another big game up against Swansea today, so we're ready and looking for a reaction after a defeat last time out, we'll set up in our usual 4-3-3 system, we'll look to dominate possession from the off, every man from 1-11 is very comfortable in possession. By keeping as much possession as possible we'll look to be patient and create space by moving the ball from side to side with a quick tempo, with Swansea expected to play a similar system to us it should give us plenty of opportunity to dominate the midfield and then take advantage in the wide areas with the pace and movement of our front 3, if however they set up in a natural 4-2-3-1 or a 3-4-3 formations that have been used in the past then we can adapt, 4-2-3-1 would give us more opportunity to dominate the midfield centrally and 3-5-2 would make it easier to be effective in the wide areas.

Defensively we will look to push high up the pitch, all of our defenders are lightning quick so are able to do this without fear of Swansea being able to spring us on the counter attack. The reason for the high line is to condense the space while out of possession for the Swansea attackers denying them the space to get on the ball and turn at our defence will be crucial in winning this game, the idea is to keep their quality attacking players as far away from our goal as possible. The gap between the defence and the forwards should be very tight, we don't necessarily need to go chasing the ball from their CB's but when the wing backs and midfielders of Swansea receive the ball, the nearest player (whether that be a midfielder, striker or defender) should be sprinting out to him to put him under pressure, when a player leaves his position, the next man must always be aware to cover the space he leaves, it's a very fluid system that requires a lot of hard work and concentration but we're good enough to do it, we want to force Swansea to either have to pass backwards or force a mistake from the man in possession.

As spoken of previously in the tactics, we will look to be in possession a damn site more than we are out of it, we will move the ball with tempo and pace between the midfielders and forwards, however we must not be afraid to play the ball backwards in order to keep the ball if a forward pass is not on, the idea behind keeping possession for so long is to draw defenders out of position and exploit the gaps that they leave, it's very difficult to concentrate as a defender of you're under pressure for a long time, mistakes will happen.

Our 3 forwards Lucas, Reus and Luciano Vietto again are all comfortable receiving the ball to feet and linking play effectively, their movement and pace will be key in dragging defenders out of position and then exploiting that space in order to create chances, this front 3 will always create chances with the quality of our midfield supplying them, they just have to take them, and they have all proven capable of that in their careers

If winning after 70 minutes, Onazi for Lucas Moura, switch to 4-1-4-1 Onazi and Marchisio in CM, Reus left, Pereyra right but less attacking and more disciplined


Captain: Marchisio
Corners: Marchisio
Free Kicks: Reus
Penalties: Reus

Birmingham
Injuries:
Karim Bellarabi
Branislav Ivanovic
Karim Rekik
Edin Dzeko

..........................Hart...........................
Srna.......Dante......Boateng...Schmelzer
...............Luiz....Schweinsteiger........
Navas...............Hamsik...........Lavezzi
.........................Cavani......................

Subs: Ortola, Martinez, Gylfi, Jackson M, Tiago, Townsend, Ogbonna

Big changes today for the second city derby, Tino takes over at Blues and dismantles the side, We set up today with a solid spine as we aim to make ourselves difficult to break down.....Comfortable ball players in the centre as we look to dictate the tempo of the game and retain possession, pulling Villa out of position before hitting them with pace out-wide

Hart - Englands #1, a great shot stopper, and comfortbale with that ball at his feet will keep it simple as we recycle possession

Srna/Schmelzer - Normally given freedom to attack at will but today are asked to be more conservative in their attacks, will show their man the line forcing the cross or the backwards pass, don't allow the cut-in, play the man if required.

Dante/Boateng - A nice blend of pace and power at centre-back, which lends itself to our high line and heavy pressing of the ball, forcing the quick balls (rushed) and mistakes allowing us to nip in and intercept.

Luiz/Schweiny - Both asked to play as box to boxers today as they get up and down the pitch linking defence-attack, central to our heavy pressing system they move as a unit closing down space and harrying the man in possession, When we have the ball both are good with it at their feet as we look to get a rhythm going, by linking with Hamsik in neat crisp passing triangles.

Navas/Lavezzi - Kind of opposite players but I feel they'll work well enough, Navas is lightening quick and he'll look to peg his full back, back as he will fancy his chances in a race, a great option to open up the defence on the counter...Lavezzi on the other hand is a trickier player who will cut inside and connect with Cavani/Hamsik and Luiz/Schweiny on the overlap. With Navas spreading the defence on the right and Lavezzi cutting on the left we look to turn their defence frequently

Hamsik - The #10 a fantastically talented playmaker, great vision and an eye for goal will stay close to Cavani feeding off knock-downs and lay-offs before redirecting the play or having a go himself, will look to stay right up forcing Villa to either mark him with a CB or drop a midfielder further back giving our midfielders even more space to attack

Cavani - The target-man, that's not to say we're going direct but it's a viable option, allowing him to bully defenders and bring others into play around him, with 2 wide men drilling balls in for him, should have bags of service

Subs 65 mins regardless of score

Townsend > Lavezzi...A second flying winger cutting inside shooting from range his pace and direct running, should trouble a tiring defence

Martinez > Cavani...Like for like as Jackson comes on to terrorize the defence for the final 25 mins

Team:

-------------------- D.De Gea -------------
Piszczek ----- Ramos -- Marquinhos ------ Coentrao
----- Fernando -- S.Busquets -- I.Rakitic ------
S.Cazorla ------ Carlos Tevez ------------- F.Ribery

Subs: Caballero, Cahill, Nagatamo, Wilshere, Pastore, Kane, Bacca
------------------------------------
Subs:
Wilshere > Fernando – 60th min – Wilshere look to get stuck in and keep the energy levels up.

Kane > Rakitic – 75th minute – 4-2-2-2) – Another presence up front, we’ll look to get it into the box and cause havoc.
-------------------------------
Outline:
A key game today and one that we go in with plenty of confidence and on the back of some very good form, we go in with a 4-3-3 with the aim of outnumbering them in midfield so we can dictate possession as well as being near enough impossible to break down.

The front 3 are all grafters and should look to push from the front, we need to pressurise their defence allowing them no time to pick a pass further up the field. If they do manage to get in possession past the half-way line, wingers get back and we form a midfield bank of 5 limiting both space and options.
It’s vitally important we look to slow their game down, I want as little fluidity as possible with constant breaks in the game, we need to be clever in the foul in areas their not likely to hurt us with a S.Busquets master class in midfield.

In terms of attacking we go with a mixture of options looking ranging from counter attacker to using Tevez as an out ball, one area we must look to target is attacks down the flanks looking to square them up and pushing one on one situations as much as possible, Tevez must use his strong build to hold the ball up and get others involved whilst as they tire in the latter stages of the game we’ll look to play more long ball and exploit the gaps with runners.

I also want us to draw as much fouls as possible and with the resulting set-pieces looking to get significant height and power into the box.
------
De Gea has the ability to win games with his keeping. He has a real presence in and around his box so he must command well today, very vocal, quick off his feet and distribution swift and on point.

FB’s both very solid defensively and must look to keep it simple today, we need to present from the outset that it will take an almost striking effort to get past these two, I want us to get as physical as possible looking to muscle them off the ball and pushing them out wide so they have as little space as possible to work with whilst ensuring putting in a decent delivery is as difficult as possible. Our wingers need to assist them as much as possible doubling up on the opposition’s and not giving an inch so we can prevent them cutting inside and imposing themselves whilst limiting 2-1 on situations.

Ramos and Marquinhos add additional layers to our defensive solidarity, Ramos is as committed as they come and should look to lead the line. He’s responsible for marking their main striker today and should firmly look to get stuck in going toe to toe with every challenge and pushing him back as much as possible, Ramos is a tough nut and one of the best when it comes to adapting to a physical nature so will put his body on the line for his side today. Marquinhos partners Ramos and is entirely in his comfort zone. He should look to keep an eye on second runners and look to keep everything in check generally staying alert to any danger and covering Ramos's tracks through his more substantial pace and mobility.

Busquets adds force and bite to our midfield, He should look to flex his muscles and get snapping at heels. He must work tirelessly for the full 90 with his intensive pressing setting the perfect example to others as we work collectively to keep them out. He’s as tactically astute as they come and knows how to work a situation to his advantage so I want him on top of his game today. I.Rakitic partners and I want him to support Busquets as much as possible whilst playing in a more box to box role looking to run his socks off adding as much as possible to our play down both ends. Rakitic also adds so much creativity to the side so I want him dictating the tempo to our needs looking to make himself available at all times, getting our forward players in time and space and in short running the show. Fernando come into the side and I want him to support Busquets and Rakitic as much as possible, The thorn in their necks, I want high engery looking to commit to challenges from going into one and getting up and going into the next, keep the shape and maintain responsibility.

Cazorla and Ribery start on the wings. In terms of quick transition from defence to attack both of them are key today, Cazorla is technically very good on the ball and with a excellent range of passing ability will know who is best placed to receive the ball, v clever with off the ball runs and taking up good positions, I want him very direct with subtle changes of pace swiftly linking with others and opening up their defence. Ribery on the left will act as the focal point, I generally want us to get ball out to him as much as possible. I want him pulling the strings and dictating the play, v direct looking to use his drive to fly past challenges and linking with his FB on the outside so we can get as much service as possible into the box.

C.Tevez is the perfect foil for us up top today. He will defiantly get the better of defenders as he is strong, energetic, powerful and can hold his own. He’s able to score all types of goals and is a very willing runner pressing from the front. He’ll look to link-up with others as much as possible holding up the ball and bringing others into play generally influencing our play as much as possible.
--------------------------------
Red card –
Dea Gea – Caballero on, Cazorla off (Rakitic RW, (4-4-1)
RB – Cahill on, Cazorla off (Marquinhos RB, Cahill CB, 4-4-1)
CB – Cahill on, Cazorla off (4-4-1)
LB – Nagatamo on, Cazorla off (4-4-1)
CM’s – Wilshere on, Cazorla off (Rakitic RW) 4-4-1)
WG’s – 4-4-1(Rakitic move to either wing 4-4-1)
ST – Kane on, Cazorla off (Rakitic RW – 4-4-1)
------------------------------
Captain – Ramos
FK’s/corners – Tevez/Rakitic
Pens - Tevez

EVERTON v Wolves

Line Up:

Kivrak
Van Rhijn Skrtel Jesus Maxwell
Toulalan Montolivo
Volland Menez Choupo-Moting
Negredo

Bench: Schmeichel; Walker; Carrico; Guerreiro; Castro; Mauri; Hernandez

Captain: Toulalan
Penalties: Menez
Corners: Menez
Free Kicks: Menez

Game Plan:
The key to Everton's style is solidity through the middle with the majority of our attacking flair coming from the flanks. Wolves have a very strong core to their team with some tricky wingers that can cause damage so we will be looking to counter that by playing an intelligent marking system. Our set up for this game is focussed on having as much possession of the ball as is possible whilst completely nullifying Wolves’ attacking game.

In attack, Toulalan will drop just in front of the two centre backs and will look to control the game from deep, giving us three at the back; Van Rhijn and Maxwell will push forward and overlap with Choupo-Moting and Volland so that they can drop inside. By setting up like this, we look to increase our efficiency in terms of space covered so that there will always be a spare man to pass to. We are looking to play a slow, methodical passing game with lots of free movement in to space so that we can keep Wolves off the ball and tire them out chasing shadows all game. We will look to spread the ball around the pitch as much as possible to force holes in Wolves’ defence and our players will consistently swap positions to keep the opposition guessing.

In the final third of the pitch, Menez, Volland and Choupo-Moting will look to exploit gaps between the full backs and centre backs and they will be looking to get behind the defence. Negredo will play off the last man and make a nuisance of himself in the box and our four midfielders will push high up the pitch to provide support, whilst still being wary of counter attacks.

Individual Tactics:

Kivrak: It is important for him to remain vocal at all times and to marshal the team from his vantage point. Keep spirits high and keep motivating the team.

Van Rhijn and Maxwell: Both very strong going forward which will be pivotal to stretching Wolves' formation out. In defence, they need to be smart and stand up to their man, not letting Wolves' wingers get down the wing.

Skrtel and Jesus: Skrtel will fight for every ball in the air and Jesus will drop back, cleaning up any loose balls and being wary of runs in behind.

Toulalan and Montolivo: Toulalan will drop deep and protect the centre backs so that Montolivo can be more adventurous. Both are very good on the ball and, thus, will be pivotal in dictating the rythm of the game.

Menez, Volland and Choupo-Moting: All three are very direct attackers and are dangerous to every defence in the league on their day. They will be given free roles to move around the pitch and look for space in between and behinf the Wolves defence.

Negredo: Will run the length of the line, closing everything down. He will look to shift his body weight around and bully the Wolves centre backs, challenging in the air and on the ground for every ball and generally making a nuisance of himself.

Substitutes:
70 minutes: Guerreiro for Choupo-Moting - Pacey and very direct. Guerreiro will provid us with a more traditional style of winger as well as the added bonus of better defensive work.

80 minutes: Hernandez for Menez - We move to a 4-4-2 formation with Hernandez playing off Negredo's shoulder and looking for the chance to poach a goal.

85 minutes: Mauri for Montolivo - Highly rated, this will be a small chance for Mauri to show his talents to the world so he will be sure to take the opportunity with both hands.

-----------------------Neuer-----------------------
D.Alves------Bonucci------Laporte------D.Blind
-----------------Vidal--------Pogba---------------
-----------------------James----------------------
---Sanchez----------------------------Neymar---
--------------------K.Benzema--------------------

Mvogo, Darmian, Witsel, Depay, Sterling, Aubamayang, Morata

This is a must win, it will be difficult but we set out to out play, out pass and out manouvre Man Utd..

In goal Neuer, a fantastic shot stopper and a keeper that instills confidence in the back four, leads by example from the back, shouting instructions to hos defenders. Out quickly to shut down strikers and close there shooting angles down. Punches clear what he cant catch from high balls and likes to release early to set up quick counters.

Laporte comes in to replace Varane and alongside Bonucci they should be a solid pairing at CB, on this occassion Bonucci will man mark the CF quick and skillfull for a CB, with great marking abilities, will keep the CF away from goal and be on to him quickly as he comes forward so he can intercept any though he has of going for goal. When in possession he will carry the ball out and start attacks from the back. Laporte alongside will mark men that come up for corners etc strong in the air and strong ion the tackle and make sure he is strong enough to get the ball away from danger, will help out Bonucci if needed.

D.Blind and D.Alves at fullback, when we attack one goes at a time the other sits back. When they attack I want them bombing down the wing over lapping the winger to allow them to cut inside, quick passing between the two to get them passed the opposition fullback, which will see the fullback drive towards the bye line to get a quick cross in. If its not a cross then look for the winger inside to play a quick pass back to them so they can drive into the box. Defending both will have to be vigilant and always mindful of the tricks the opposite winger can do. Be onto them quickly not allowing them the time to get going, push them out wide and stop them becoming a threat.

We go with Vidaland Pogba in the centre of midfield, two absolute workhorses, with fantastic defensive attributes as well as being good on the attack, when we defend they will work together to shut there midfield down the AM and second most advanced CM , they will close down everything very quickly and not allow there players any time on the ball whatsoever, once the ball is won, then Pogba or Vidal will drive on into support James and Benzema, the other will stay back just in case Both good on the ball with a great eye for goal, can shoot from a variety of angles. look out for Neymar and Sanchez coming inside and put some nice crisp through balls into them and James and Benzema. Quick passing from the two as to not be shut down by the Man Utd midfielders.

Sanchez and Neymar are chosen on the wings as Sanchez has tremendous work rate and will help out Alves when and if needed. Both quick with nimble feet which more often than not takes them passed the fullback, wether they knock it passed them and drive on or simple a quick turn, and there away. Will have fullbacks supporting them so this allows them to pass and cut inside where both are very useful. Give and go, wait for the return and go for goal, or look to drive into the box in support of Benzema. Neymar focusses more on the tricks and twists to see him passed, whereas Sanchez likes to make the pass that gives him time to look for space for him to drive into and wait for the return. Both very dangerous and with support from there respective fullbacks we will be a danger out wide. When defending look to get back and stop there defenders becoming a threat. Like said they support the defenders when they have the ball and the defenders support them when we attack.

James Rodriguez is given a free role today to try and break them down, he will drift all over as to make it difficult for his marker to pick him up, as he drifts this will leave holes in the Man utd midfield for us to take advantage of. He will switch with either Winger at times as he looks to get himself into dnagerous positons. If he drives centrally he and Benzema will cause a lot of problems, he will pass to the CF and look to move into fantastic positions for Benzema to get him in in on goal, when we defend I want him to run down the DM looking to keep him off the ball and foerce him into mistakes.

Benzema will get plenty chances, he must put away this Man Utd side who will be solid at the back. Get into positions that he can go for goalor at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Good in the air and two good feet, can score from various angles/ranges..All of our front four will be a threat today we must go for it and keep pace with the league leaders. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Neymar, James and Sanchez running into support.

A very difficult game but we have a good side defensively and going forward, quick passing, one twos and drive into positions to recieve a return ball, we really must go fr it, at the same time nothing risky.

Captain - Vidal
Free Kicks - James
Penalties - Neymar
Corners - Wingers

Subs:-
Losing -
70 Mins - Aubamayang will come on for Benzema, he is great in front of goal and will give the tiring CBs a hard time
75 Mins - Sterling for James will play higher up and support Auba
83 Mins - Morata for Alves, 3 at the back, Sanchez and Sterling on the wings Morata-Auba-Neymar up top really drive on

Winning -
70 Mins - Aubamayang for Benzema
80 Mins - Witsel for James, he sits right hand side of Vidal to shore the midfield up
85 Mins - Darmian for Neymar

Drawing -
70 Mins - Aubamayang for Benzema, Sterling for James, Sterling pushes higher up
80 Mins - Morata for Sanchez, Sterling right 4-4-2
87 Mins - Neymar up top, Sterling support 4213

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Birmingham 4-4-2 Diamond

......................Hart.....................
Srna........Boateng...Dante.....Adriano
......................Luiz..........................
........Schweinsteiger.....Martinez.......
......................Hamsik...................
..............Cavani......Martinez............

Subs: Ortola,Ogbonna,Navas,Tiago,Defoe,Townsend,Rekik

We set up today to be solid as, through the middle as we look to steam-roll Southampton this weekend...forcing them to either stay compact or attempt to hurt us out wide thus leaving us more space in the middle.

Game plan

As the home team it's possession based but not passing for passing sake, yes keep the ball and if thats simple passes sidewards then so be it, but it's done with a purpose as we look to create space for our side to exploit

Hart - Usual stuff, so won't waffle on

The defence
Zonal marking across the back line....Srna and Adriano given licence to bomb on and join the attack, giving us width and stretching Soton's defence...Boateng and Dante to hold the line, play alongside each other for Bayern so know each others games inside out......

Midifeld
Move forwards and back as a unit, keeping each other close by, this provides several functions, one being that as we press hard they stay together to harry their opponents meaning there's less gaps in the ranks for Soton to exploit, also by moving together it ensures that there is always an easy ball open to us...the long ball is an option too but not just punts for puntings sake
Luiz is the DM - has all the attributes to play the role well, without the responsibility of having to hold the line, giving him the freedom to spread the play and get forwards

Schweiny/Martinez - Two box-boxers, both have great engines and will get up and down all game adding to our numbers uptop as well as helping out the defence when needed

Hamsik - The #10 - Tip of the diamond and such a clever little player, will track back to help out and keep our shape as and when required...offensively will drift around timing his runs into the box taking a defender with him, creating some space for Schweiny/Martinez to run into

Cavani/Martinez - Two big strong old fashioned type strikers. Soton's defenders will know they've been in a game with these two.....Cavani will drop off and pull wide as we try to pull them out of position, Jackson will be very much through the middle as we try to smash our way through their defence...

Subs

65 Mins
Winning/Drawing - N/A
Losing Defoe > Jackson
Defoe is the fox in the box playing off the shoulder of the last man, collecting knock-ons from Cav and using his pace to run at defenders

Hull tactics vs Bham

-------------------------------Patricio--------------------------------

Juanfran----------Otamendi--------Benatia--------Sandro

-----------------------------Cabaye----------------------------------

------------------Pereyra----------Moutinho---------------------------

Lucas Moura----------------------------------------------Reus

-----------------------------Vietto------------------------------------



Game Plan: another big game up against Birmingham today, so we're ready and looking for a reaction after a defeat last time out, we'll set up in our usual 4-3-3 system, we'll look to dominate possession from the off, every man from 1-11 is very comfortable in possession. By keeping as much possession as possible we'll look to be patient and create space by moving the ball from side to side with a quick tempo, with Bham expected to play a similar system to us it should give us plenty of opportunity to dominate the midfield and then take advantage in the wide areas with the pace and movement of our front 3, if however they set up in a natural 4-2-3-1 or a 3-4-3 formations that have been used in the past then we can adapt, 4-2-3-1 would give us more opportunity to dominate the midfield centrally and 3-5-2 would make it easier to be effective in the wide areas.

Defensively we will look to push high up the pitch, all of our defenders are lightning quick so are able to do this without fear of Bham being able to spring us on the counter attack. The reason for the high line is to condense the space while out of possession for the Opposition attackers denying them the space to get on the ball and turn at our defence will be crucial in winning this game, the idea is to keep their quality attacking players as far away from our goal as possible. The gap between the defence and the forwards should be very tight, we don't necessarily need to go chasing the ball from their CB's but when the wing backs and midfielders of Bham receive the ball, the nearest player (whether that be a midfielder, striker or defender) should be sprinting out to him to put him under pressure, when a player leaves his position, the next man must always be aware to cover the space he leaves, it's a very fluid system that requires a lot of hard work and concentration but we're good enough to do it, we want to force Bham to either have to pass backwards or force a mistake from the man in possession.

As spoken of previously in the tactics, we will look to be in possession a damn site more than we are out of it, we will move the ball with tempo and pace between the midfielders and forwards, however we must not be afraid to play the ball backwards in order to keep the ball if a forward pass is not on, the idea behind keeping possession for so long is to draw defenders out of position and exploit the gaps that they leave, it's very difficult to concentrate as a defender of you're under pressure for a long time, mistakes will happen.

Our 3 forwards Lucas, Reus and Luciano Vietto again are all comfortable receiving the ball to feet and linking play effectively, their movement and pace will be key in dragging defenders out of position and then exploiting that space in order to create chances, this front 3 will always create chances with the quality of our midfield supplying them, they just have to take them, and they have all proven capable of that in their careers

If winning after 70 minutes, Bentaleb for Lucas Moura, switch to 4-1-4-1 Bentaleb and Moutinho in CM, Reus left, Pereyra right but less attacking and more disciplined


Captain: Moutinho
Corners: Moutinho
Free Kicks: Reus
Penalties: Reus

--------------------Perin
Clyne-----Mustafi-----Godin-----Clichy
-------Henderson-----Pjanic
Candreva----------Mata-------------Nasri
--------------------Suarez
Subs
Szczęsny, Ginter, Siquera, Strootman, Parejo, Feghouli, Higuain

Tactical Overview
Back to the 4-2-3-1 formation today, this shifts our attacking focus to playing a quick passing style and getting men around Suarez. We are going to play an attacking style of football, being aggressive in the way we defend by pressing quickly and high up the pitch.

Keeper


When distributing the ball, he should look to keep it simple and play the simple pass. At crosses and set pieces, should look to punch rather than flap at pressurised catches.



Full Backs

Defensively the objective is to sit back and tuck in slightly, looking to stop balls being played between them and the centre backs, we want them to stop the wide men from cutting inside, forcing them to cross, which gives us a better chance of getting the ball back quickly and launching an attack of our own.

 Their objective when attacking will be keeping the width across the pitch forcing the opposition to keep their full backs from constricting the centre of the pitch. They won't put many crosses in, preferring to play shorter passes to the wingers or players who have come out from the middle of the pitch.

Centre Backs

Godin will compete with the striker for the aerial balls played to him, with Mustafi concentrating on winning the 2nd ball. When the ball is on the floor, Mustafi will be the defender who looks to meet the striker looking to stifle his space and rush his decisions, with Godin making the covering run. When on the ball, if the opposition are giving them space to come out with the ball, then they should look to take it forward, if not, keep it simple and play it to a man in space and retain possession.



Centre Mids


Henderson and Pjanic will be utilising their high energy, all action styles to get themselves around the pitch, being key figures in the pressing game and always making themselves available for a pass when we are in the final third to shift their defensive players that little bit more which could be the difference in getting a player behind them. When defending, both players are looking to press in the middle third of the pitch, pressing the opposition CMs as they are on the ball to rush their decisions and win the ball back.

Attacking Midfielder

Mata should be looking to make himself available for a pass as much as possible, having a free role to drift around between their defence and midfield, when we have the ball in the middle of the pitch, he should be looking to drift around the space between the DM and full backs and make them have to make decisions on who goes to him. He should also look to be moving out wider to get the ball and run at defenders or make a key pass when the wing backs have the ball out wide.
Defensively, he should be looking to occupy the playmaking centre mid, stop him dictating the play and being an out ball for the opposition.





Wingers


When they are off the ball, the emphasis for both wingers will be to drift around combining with the other attackers to get little areas of space. then when they are on the ball the emphasis will be more on cutting inside with the occasional long shot to test the keeper, and only occasionally putting in crosses, getting involved in a fast intricate style of passing with Mata and Suarez, they should also look to run at players as they will be cautious not to give away a free kick or penalty. When the opposite winger has the ball, the winger without the ball should look to find space between the CB and FB to add an extra body in the box. When defending, they should be blocking the passing lines to the full backs as well as keeping track of them when they go forward.





Striker


When attacking, he will look to play a high energy game by being a willing runner down the channels and constantly drift around the defenders looking to get himself a bit of space enough for him to face the defenders and take them on. He will also be looking to use his unpredictable style when on the ball to cause a bit of confusion in the minds of the defenders and crate a chance for himself or others. He also has a knack of being the first to react to get onto rebounds or parries and taking those one touch chances. When defending, he will be the first line of defence, looking to pressurise the centre backs into making quick decisions.

Set Pieces


Corners - Pjanic takes the corners, the CB's go into the box, the FB's stay back to prevent counters, the CB's, Suarez and Candreva work in a group to make little blocks and cross-runs to lose a marker so 1 or 2 can get a free run at the ball, Henderson looks to limit the opposition keeper from moving around the 6 yard box. Mata and Nasri take positions just outside the box to pick up weak clearances and occasionally providing the short option to try and draw 2 defenders out of the box.





Free Kicks - Suarez takes Direct FK's



For Indirect FK's, same instructions as Corners





Penalties - Suarez is the designated taker.





Subs



If Winning


72 mins - Parejo for Mata - The wingers tuck back, but look to get out quickly and counter if the opposition over-commit for a route back into the game.
 move to a 3 CM midfield.




85 + 87 Mins - Feghouli for Candreva and Siquera for Nasri - Fresh legs and more defensive players with the added element of running down the clock.



If Losing



71 Mins - Higuain, Siquera and Ginter for Clyne, Clichy and Nasri - switch to a 3-5-2 with emphasis on the wings backs acting as wingers and we go all out attacking for a way to get back into the game.