NORWICH v Tottenham
---------------------------Guaita
Aarons---Söyüncü-------------Ake---------Lewis
---------Koopmeiners--------Sanches
Wilson----------------Brooks-------------Cantwell
------------------------Dolberg
Free Kicks – Wilson
Subs: Handanovic, Godfrey, Cahill, Berge, Billing, Bowen, Pukki
Our defensive unit consists of Caglar Söyüncü and Nathan Ake paired up at centre-back, Max Aarons at right-back and Jamal Lewis at left-back, with Teun Koopmeiners and Renato Sanches as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.
This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Koopmeiners and Sanches we have a perfect pairing to initiate attacks by distributing the ball in an intelligent fashion, to be key players in circulation and to prevent dangerous opposition attacks, being disciplined in positioning and limiting space in between the lines.
The strength of our double pivot is that Sanches can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Koopmeiners can maintain a good position to react if the initial press is bypassed. Our double pivot will offer huge defensive stability and will ensure that a structured shape is maintained.
Having two defensive midfielders centrally prevents others being dragged out of position to press.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Sanches’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.
With Sanches running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Teun Koopmeiners.
A holding midfielder through and through, Koopmeiners is not just your “win the ball and pass it on to the closest player” – there is a real creative mind in his locker, but it’s his ability to be the shield of the back four and then be creative once he gets the ball that makes Koopmeiners such a talent.
The attacking unit consists of Harry Wilson, David Brooks and Todd Cantwell as our band of three attacking midfielders with Kasper Dolberg as our lone central striker.
Our 4-2-3-1 is set up to have that wonderful ‘springy' quality - it absorbs pressure without breaking and then snaps back with surprising force.
In defence our 4-2-3-1 covers space very effectively, with the band of three attacking midfielders and centre forward able to press the opposition high up the pitch while the two defensive midfielders ensure that there is no space left in front of the defence. Then the back four can either play a high line, compressing the space even further, or drop deeper as preferred.
Once we have won the ball back, often by Koopmeiners or Sanches, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.
Aarons and Lewis can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Koopmeiners and Sanches can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Harry Wilson and Todd Cantwell, who are fast speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. David Brooks our attacking central midfielder’s low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Brooks is blessed with an instant first touch and can dribble with the ball at such a close proximity to his feet that it makes him almost impossible to tackle this creative passer who will look to play Wilson, Cantwell and Dolberg in via fast passing combinations.
Up front Dolberg’s biggest strength is his ability to move between the lines, which will make him extremely difficult to mark. Dropping into midfield will allow space for Wilson and Cantwell to advance and make runs from out to in. From these positions, they can make attempts on goal. Also, Dolberg has the ability to switch positions with our wide players, allowing them the freedom to move inside.
Dolberg’s speed on and off the ball is an attribute that will cause our opposition lots of problems. His movement deep into midfield will give him the opportunity to receive the ball without being marked and drive with the ball towards the goal.
Subs on 75 mins
Billing on for Sanches, Pukki on for Dolberg
Double substitution - Lots of energy in the last 15 minutes to look to trouble the opposition for a late goal regardless of the score line
High tempo total football 4-3-3
Away to Pool we go with an attacking team full of pace, playing with a high tempo in defence and attack. They have a strong attack, but so do we and we feel we have a strong defence to allow us to take the game to them and have the midfield to dominate.
We have a cm duo that are all strong defensively, giving freedom to our attacking players to get the best out of them. We have a front three full of pace, looking to stretch the opposition and create space for our midfielders to exploit.
In the midfield trio we have the powerful Rodri next to the energetic Neves and Thiago. Neves our deep playmaker in the centre with Thiago having more freedom to attack. In defence Rodri drops behind the other two cms who press the play as the trio narrow, similarly in attack Rodri stays deepest but the trio do not play so narrow. We have a defence full of pace and great energy in front so play a reasonably high line, helping us press Pool in high area, and aiding distribution out from the back line.
We look to play our usual high tempo attacking game and take the game to Pool, seeking to exploit space behind their midfield. We have a strong side defensively and in attack, our team is built to give Felix, Hazard and Thiago the space and freedom to find the ball in space in attacking positions to hurt Pool. Neves creating from deeper, getting the ball to the front four in the right positions.
Laporte the man marker next to Varane who is free to use his pace to sweep up. In midfield, the trio narrow in front with the cm opposite play dropping behind, allowing the other two to press with cover. Felix drops deep to add protection in front of the fb and next to the two pressing cms. Closing down the space, narrowing to the side of play. Win the ball back from Pool quickly before they can get anywhere.
Quick passing and moving to find space in between the opposition lines. Using the pace of our wide cms, wide forwards and fbs (one bombs forward at a time) to create space as we push forward.
Key to our attack is quick passing play, not looking to force the play but moving the ball quickly. Pass and move. Tire the opposition out physically and mentally with our high tempo possession play. We look to vary our play, we can go long from the back or Schmeichel to mix the play up.
We have a cm duo who can both drop deep to offer an option and collect the ball from defence. Likewise a fluid front three, who can switch positions or drop deep to collect the ball from midfield. This fluidity will help the players to get away from their markers, catch the opposition out and create space. As we move forward we get quick one twos in the opposition half. With this fluid front three, Thiago supports using his pace and creativity to link the play.
------------------ Neuer ---------------
-----------------------------------------------
Pavard —- Varane -- Laporte -- Mendy
----------------------------------------------
-------------- Rodri -- Neves -----------
------------------ Thiago ------------------
J.Felix ---------------------------- Hazard
----------------- Ronaldo ------------------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Guendouzi, Sensi, Sane, Jesus, Lautaro
Defending high
When we lose the ball the closest player presses the ball, the second closest presses the obvious passing channel. As they’re doing this everyone gets into a narrow rigid formation behind the ball in position to press high up the park. Stop them breaking and press them high up the park.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
As Pool advance into higher areas of the park and into our half, our shape will resemble a 4-1-3-2. Felix drops deep and Rodri drops behind the other two cms pressing the space behind the two cms pressing the ball, sweeping up danger behind them and in front of the defence.
Hazard and Ronaldo in the space in between the opposition defence and midfield, and either side of their dm. This will make it difficult for their to dm to circulate possession back to their defence.
Felix and the two cms (Neves and Thiago) are the trio pressing the ball, and look to force Pool backwards. With the two forwards left forward this is where we look to press the opposition into mistakes and win the ball in high areas. With pace to join the attack quickly and overload Pool.
When Pool get past the initial press higher up the park, we drop deeper into a narrower tighter formation narrowing to the side of play, ensuring there are no gaps in the formation. Our fb’s have fantastic pace up against their wide forwards, bide their time, not diving in.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Jesus for Ronaldo. As Pool will push for a goal, give us fresh pace up top.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Guendouzi and Sane for Neves and Felix.
Fresh legs in cm keeping us on top, and pace to burn in attack.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Sane for Neves. Felix to AM. Thiago cm. Sane Rw.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Jesus for Felix. Playing off Ronaldo.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Sensi for Mendy. 352. Pavard 3rd cb.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Sane for Neves. Sane RW, Thiago cm. Felix Am.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Jesus and Sensi for Mendy and Felix. Thiago next to Neves and Sensi in cm. 352.
SUBS FOR RED
Subs if red. We bring on Jesus for Ronaldo up top after 65 mins - fresh legs and more pace and work rate needed.
If GK - Schmeichel on for Felix - 4-3-1-1
If rb/cb - bring on Bellerin for Felix (Pavard to cb if cb)
If lb bring on Grimaldo for Felix
If Thiago/Neves bring on Sensi for Felix.
If Rodri bring on Guendouzi for Felix
If Felix - no direct sub.
If Hazard - 4-3-1-1, no direct sub.
If Ronaldo bring on Jesus for Felix.
Attacking 4-3-3
At home, we aim to dominate the midfield and control the game playing a copy of Pep's City formation. With great pace at the back, we play a reasonably high line, using our two pacey wingers to stretch the game and pin back the opposition full backs, creating the space for our get our central to dominate possession of the ball.
We have four of City's key midfielders from last season, while Danilo and Mahrez also add a former City partnership on the right.
Going forward we look to use the ability of our central trio in tight spaces to get behind the Southampton midfield, and then play one of our attacking trio through on goal. We will look to spread the ball wide, get our wingers on the last men in defence. They stay wide on the touchline in the first two thirds of the park. In the final third they have freedom to stay wide or to look to get inside their man and through on goal.
One full back bombs forward at a time, combining with the winger to double up on the opposition full back.
Defensively we drop into a narrow 4-1-4-1 formation. The two wide men get back in to help us defend in a narrow shape. Fernandinho the midfielder dropping deeper behind the midfield four, sweeping up any danger in between the lines as the free man. The four midfielders in front of him look to press the ball, as the whole side narrows to the side of play. Closing out any space.
Rudiger is the central forward that man marks their forward, he has the pace and power to mark their most advanced forward. Romagnoli one of the best in the game for reading the play and mopping up is the sweeper of the two. Both importantly are strong on the ball.
----------------- Arrizabalaga
Danilo ----- Rudiger ----- Tomori ---- Theo.H
------------------ Fernandinho
----------- Gundogan---- D.Silva
Mahrez -------------------------------- T.Lemar
-------------------- Cutrone
Subs: Henderson, Hakimi, Allan, Elmas, Adelaide, Benzema, Abraham
Our defensive unit consists of Rudiger and Romagnoli paired up at centre-back, Danilo at right-back and Hernandez at left-back, with Fernandinho as our defensive midfielder screening them.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Fernandinho's role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow the bank of four defenders and midfielders to maintain their position, ensuring the zonal structure shape is maintained with no space for the opposition to work in.
Attack
We will control the tempo of our attacking play. Looking to play quickly when we feel we can counter, or slow the play when the opposition are back in a solid structure.
One of Danilo or Theo can surge up the wings in the knowledge that there are three other defenders to cover. As they come up the wings, both Mahrez and di Maria who are excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box.
Our two central midfielders are excellent in tight spaces and will look to link up with the wingers, playing quick one twos to set them off into space, or taking the time to play daring through balls that will cut the opposition open.
Cutrone will occupy the opposition’s centre backs, holding up possession and looking to turn the defender and shoot. He’ll be strong in the air and look out for his teammates trying to pick him out from deep. He'll get in the box, and always provide an option for the wide players. The winger opposite play always looks to get into the box adding an extra option for the wide player looking to cross or create in the middle.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh energy and power.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Abraham for Cutrone and Lemar for di Maria. Fresh power up top to hold up the ball and link play, and fresh pace on the wing.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Benzema for Cutrone.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh power.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Adelaide for Gundogan.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Abraham for Cutrone.
If losing after 65 mins bring on Benzema for Lemar. 4-3-1-2. Mahrez behind the front two. Fbs more attacking.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Hakimi for Danilo.
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PORTSMOUTH vs Bournemouth
---------------------------------------De Gea-----------------------------------
------------------Militao---------Koulibaly---------Ramos------------
---------------------------Fabian---------Verratti-------------------------
Atal------------------------------------------------------------------------Gaya
---------------------------------------Dybala-------------------------------------
------------------------Alcacer-----------------Werner----------------------
Subs - Butland, Ndidi, Rice, Draxler, Bailey, Kluivert, Leao
CAPTAIN - RAMOS
CK'S - ATAL
FK'S - DYBALA
PENALTIES - WERNER
When we don't have possession of the ball in our half I want the whole team except the strikers to get in our half and defend. Play a deep defensive line so that oppo can't use their pacy forwards to beat the offside trap. When we win possession of the ball I want the players to keep hold of possession and try and work some space. We have good ball players in Fabian and Verratti in the centre and they will help keep us ticking.
Defence
De Gea in net, command your box and don't do anything flashy. The defence is well balanced, with all 3 CB's having the pace and power to play the 3atb formation with ease. Koulibaly will focus on the oppo striker and will look to stick close to him and to watch out for his attacking runs. Use your superior strength to get the better of him. Militao and Ramos will look to stop the oppo LW/RW from creating chances as they will be helping our wingbacks double up on them. When either Militao or Ramos go to help the wingbacks I want Verratti to just sit a little more deep as to give Koulibaly some extra cover should someone from the opposition midfield make a late run into the box. Wingbacks will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Watch out for oppo wingers and stop them cutting in onto their stronger foot.
Centre Mids
Fabian + Verratti
Verratti will be the more defensive of the two as I want him to focus on helping out in covering for our wingbacks when they are out of position. Main job is to get the ball from deep and look to open up the oppo with your superb range of passing. Use your low centre of gravity to get away from oppo challenges and play quick simple passes with your teammates to work some space in the middle. Also when the oppo AM has the ball close him down asap don't give him time on the ball. Fabian will play a b2b role. Make runs forward and play pass and move passes with teammates and help the attack whenever you can. They both will be the engines that keep us ticking in the middle.
Wing backs
Atal + Gaya
Gaya and Atal will look to help both in attack and defence. When the oppo has the ball come back into the defence to make a rock solid back 5. Make forays forward when we have the ball in the oppos side of the pitch but track back when we don't. Get some low crosses into the box as my strikers are good at playing in between the lines.
Attack Mid
Dybala
Dybala will be playing as the AM today. I want him to use his great dribbling ability and passing to create chances for our 2 strikers up front. Look out for the runs of our attackers and make late runs into the box whenever you can. Shoot from range if you see an opportunity.
Strikers
Alcacer + Werner
I want both the strikers to use their pace and play off of the oppo shoulders and try and beat the offside trap. Be aware of lofted through balls and time your runs as best as you can. When in the box use your quickness and agility to get into good positions away from oppo defenders. Play quick one two's with each other to penetrate the oppo defence.
IF WINNING BY 65 MINS
Take off Alcacer and put on Rice in DM to give the defence even more protection. Formation will be 361 and Gaya and Atal will make less attacking runs now. Ndidi on for Dybala aswell on 80mins if still leading.
IF LOSING BY 65 MINS
Take off Verratti and put on Leao in strike. Leao will play in the middle of Werner and Alcacer who will become a front 3. Play close to each other and put a tonne of pressure in the oppo defence. Defend high up and try and score a goal.
IF DRAWING BY 65MINS
Leao on for Alcacer
Draxler on for Dybala
Ndidi on for Fabian
Fresh legs.
SOTON vs Chelsea
------------------------------------------Meslier-----------------------
Odriozola---------Upamecano-----------Dias-----------Chilwell
---------------------------Torreira----------Tielemans-----------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres--------------------------------------------------------------Pulisic
-----------------------------------J Rodriguez------------------------------------
----------------------------------------Kean-------------------------------------
Subs - Kabak, M Sarr, McTominay, Lo Celso, Under, Zaniolo, Piatek
CAPTAIN - TIELEMANS
CK'S - JAMES
FK'S - JAMES
PENALTIES - KEAN
I want us to hold a deep defensive line to start of with so the oppo don't get an early goal. Keep things simple in the beginning and only pressure the oppo when they get in our half. When we have the ball I want the team to play pass and move football. Don't stay static, try and get in behind the oppo defence as there is a lot of pace in our attacking players. As the game goes on, when we don't have the ball I want the team to defend from the front line and pressure the oppo and try and win possession back. Do this in fits and bursts as it is a tiring tactic.
Defence
GK to be confident in box. Don't take risks. Punch the ball away if the shot is too powerful. Command your area. The defence is well balanced. Upamecano and Dias bring a lot of strength and pace to the defence. Dias will marshal the defence and Upamecano will look to use his pace to close the oppo strikers down. Stay vocal with each other and cover for each other if oppo gets past one of you. Full backs will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Torreira will be covering for them when they go attacking.
Defence Mids
Torreira + Tielemans
Torreira will be the anchor in the middle. Stay back in front of the defence and protect the defence with your life. If the oppo play an AM then stick close to him and mark him if possible. When our fullbacks are attacking then your main priority will be to cover for them. When in possession pass the ball out to the wings or play a through ball from deep to our wingers. He will also be the bridge to connect the defence and midfield. I want him to get the ball from deep and look for the runs of players around him.
Tielemans will look to pick the ball up from deep and use his pace and energy to dribble the ball out. Make runs forward and help our attacking players whenever you can. Play quick passes forward and use your strength to outmuscle the oppo players. When not in possession of the ball I want him to sit alongside Nkunku in the middle and protect the defence.
Wingers
Neres + Pulisic
These 2 will be the focal point of my attack. I want to give them the freedom to express themselves in attack. Pulisic will be looking to cut in from the left and Neres will be looking to cut in from the right. I want you both to try and beat the oppo fullbacks with your pace and dribbling ability but don't try too hard as if you see them doubling up on you you can either pass back or into the centre of the pitch to one of our CM's. I want you both to be aware of our fullbacks and play pass and move 1 2's with them to try and penetrate the oppo back line. Odriozola and Chilwell are no slouches attacking wise so use them! If you can cut in onto your stronger foot, don't be afraid to shoot from range as you both have the ability to score from long range. If there is no space to do so then take the ball to the byline and whip in crosses for Kean to get his head on. Help our FB's in defensive duties if the oppo winger is trying to take them on. Track back and double up on him or mark the run of the opposition FB if they try to make an overlapping run. When we are defending corners I want both of them to stay near the halfway line so we can hit the oppo on the counter attack.
Attack Mid
James Rodríguez
Rodríguez will be playing just behind Kean and will look to help him out in attack. Be ready for passes into your feet and shoot if you see an opportunity. Mix up your attacking runs to throw off the oppo DM. I want him to dribble with the ball and play 1 2's with the rest of the team. Shoot if you see an opening.
Striker
Kean
Kean is a striker that has the deadly combination of pace and power. He will look to use his strength to get the better of the oppo defence. Be vary of crosses into the box as you are decent in the air, and if you are through on goal, use your expert finishing to score. Time your runs off the shoulders of the oppo CB's and use your pace to get away from them.
Subs if LOSING BY 65MINS
Put on Piatek for Torreira and Zaniolo for James to bring some more attacking impetus on. Play a high line and try and get a goal. Change formation to 41212.
-----------------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Upamecano-------------Dias---------Chilwell
--------------------------------------Tielemans------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres---------------------------------------------------------------Pulisic
-----------------------------------------Zaniolo-------------------------------
--------------------------------Piatek-----------Kean------------------------
Subs if WINNING BY 80MINS
Take off James and put on Kabak in CB. Play defensive with everyone in our own half defending for their lives, waiting to hit the oppo on the counter attack. Under on for Neres and McTominay for Tielemans to add a bit more defensive energy into the midfield.
----------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Dias------Dayot------Kabak--------Chilwell
-------------------------Torreira--------McTom---------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------Under----------------------------------------------Pulisic-------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------Kean---------------------------------------
Subs if DRAWING BY 65MINS
Under on for Neres
Zaniolo on for James
Piatek on for Kean
Fresh legs to bring on.
NEWCASTLE 4-3-3
___________Alisson
Trent____Matip___Hummels___Rose
____________Kante
________Henderson___Gini
Salah______Firmino________Mane
SUBS: Alder, Ox, Mount, Milner, Jorginho, Suarez, Lozano
Captain: Reus
Penalties: Mo Salah
Corners: Reus
Freekicks: Reus
The formation deployed today is so that we regain as much possession as possible higher up the pitch. We expect to have a fair portion of the ball so patience is key. Today we have pace all across the pitch to deal with their fearsome front three. We also expect the four behind the striker to drift around a bit, getting into positions where their natural play can cause damage. The striker up front presses when we don’t have the ball and the entire team will support him cut passing lanes to help win the ball higher up. The quality of our players will allow us to break through the oppositions press. When we have the ball we will want to attract the press and use the spaces that they open up to attack.
Full backs will get forward when the opportunity arises. Our full backs are good at feeding our forward line with their ability on the ball and we aim to utilize that with their ability to get up the pitch and tactical arareness. We also need our full backs to widen the pitch for us. Our centre halves are good on the ball, and a long punt every now and then to utilize our pace out wide is encouraged. Our right back will also tuck in to help solidify the team.
The DM will use his energy to overpower their midfield and be in charge of driving our midfield forward. Our midfield will be flexible, if one of their midfielders steps forward, one of ours will move into the space they vacated. The DM will be the link between our defence, midfield, and forwards and because of the way he plays, he will draw the opponents forward towards him to attack the ball, pulling their team’s lines apart. This will create more spaces between the lines for our midfield and forward lines to move into. The right centre mid will be the more attacking one in his box to box role, closing down space and cutting passing lanes with his incredible energy and also driving the team forward. Playing alongside the DM will give him less areas of the pitch to cover, and shorter distance needed to win the ball back to start the next attack. Both centre mids will float between the lines during the attacking phase just behind our forwards. The left centre mid will add a bit of finesse, with his ability on the ball and eye for threading balls through to our forwards.
By having our wide forwards up front when we have the ball it will effectively create space out wide. We would expect our full backs to sometimes go infield to collect the ball from the keeper, while one of the midfielders goes wide so when he receives the ball he will have time to look up and pick passes as the opposition midfield will be reluctant to press which will leave a man free in midfield. This can be done by a midfielder too, dropping deep to create a free man in the first line with time on the ball, ping it straight to the striker who can lay it off to the other onrushing midfielder.
If short passing options aren’t available the passing range and accuracy of our keeper will safely transfer the ball forwards via our full backs, wherever they are on the pitch. The keeper can also dink the ball into space for the striker or wide forward to control taking out 6 or 7 opposition players in the process.
The striker’s main role will be to create space for the wide forwards. He will drop deep into a ten to drag defenders out and create space for our wide forwards to run into. This will tie into our quick short passing which is aimed at dragging their players out of position and create space between their lines. Our team will always recycle the ball to keep possession and to keep the ball moving.
When we don’t have the ball we will expect our four behind the striker to drop into a 4-5-1 in support of our midfield. We will also create triangles to trap the opposition players that have the ball, cutting the passing lanes and others putting pressure on players that might receive the ball. We stop the oppositions rhythm and force them into mistakes with our pressure. To stop their counter attacks after we lose the ball, three players will swarm the ball carrier before he can get his head up to play. If they beat the immediate press when the team’s main goal is to push their play wide where they can do the least damage. Our midfielders are an integral part to our play, when we win the ball back we will create space and time for them with our team shape. There will be times when we are under the cosh and will have the option of deploying a bowl shaped 5 at the back, with the right centre mid dropping in to make closing down the opponents very effective.
Subs
70 mins: Ox comes on for Henderson, our legs will start to tire, so will theirs, Ox will add box to box ability and energy late in the game.
75 mins: Suarez comes on for Firmino, a different style of forward play for the opposition to think about.
If winning 80 mins: Milner comes on for Gini to close out the game.
If losing/drawing 80 mins: Lozano comes on for Jorginho and play 2 up front.
LIVERPOOL
___________ter Stegen
Weiser____Davinson___de Ligt___Zinchenko
__________Partey
________Kovacic___Dele
Sancho______Kane________Sterling
SUBS: Pope, Can, Kessie, Son, Rebic, Sarr, Mertens
Captain: Harry Kane
Penalties: Harry Kane
Corners: Sancho
Freekicks: Sterling
Crossing Freekick: Sterling
The formation deployed today is so that we gain as much control as possible higher up he pitch. We expect to have more of the ball so patience is key. We also expect the four behind the striker to drift around a bit, getting into positions where their natural play can cause damage. The striker up front presses when we don’t have the ball and the entire team will support him cut passing lanes to help win the ball higher up. The quality of our players will allow us to break through the oppositions press. When we have the ball we will want to attract the press and use the spaces that they open up to attack.
Full backs will get forward when the opportunity arises. Our full backs are good at feeding our forward line with their ability on the ball and we aim to utilize that with their ability to get up the pitch and tactical arareness. We also need our full backs to widen the pitch for us. Our centre halves are good on the ball, and a long punt every now and then to utilize our pace out wide is encouraged. Our right back will also tuck in to help solidify the team.
The regista will drop in to form a back three so that the centre backs can split wide to push the full backs general position higher up in line with the midfielders (and wide forwards engage their back line along with the striker). In doing so we create a four man midfield to overpower their midfield. This will allow our midfield to be flexible, if one of their midfielders steps forward, one of ours will move into the space they vacated. The regista will be the link between our defence and midfield and because of the way he plays, he will draw the opponents forward towards him to attack the ball, pulling their team’s lines apart. This will create more spaces between the lines for our midfield and forward lines to move into. The right centre mid will be the more defensive one in his box to box role, closing down space and cutting passing lanes with his incredible interception ability. Playing alongside the regista will give him less areas of the pitch to cover, and shorter distance needed to win the ball back to start the next attack. Both centre mids will float between the lines during the attacking phase just behind our forwards.
By having our wide forwards up front when we have the ball it will effectively create space out wide. We would expect our full backs to sometimes go infield to collect the ball from the keeper, while one of the midfielders goes wide so when he receives the ball he will have time to look up and pick passes as the opposition midfield will be reluctant to press which will leave a man free in midfield. This can be done by a midfielder too, dropping deep to create a free man in the first line with time on the ball, ping it straight to the striker who can lay it off to the other onrushing midfielder.
If short passing options aren’t available the passing range and accuracy of our keeper will safely transfer the ball forwards via our full backs, wherever they are on the pitch. The keeper can also dink the ball into space for the striker or wide forward to control taking out 6 or 7 opposition players in the process.
The striker’s main role will be to create space for the wide forwards. He will drop deep into a ten to drag defenders out and create space for our wide forwards to run into. This will tie into our quick short passing which is aimed at dragging their players out of position and create space between their lines. Our team will always recycle the ball back to the regista to keep possession and to keep the ball moving.
When we don’t have the ball we will expect our four behind the striker to drop into a 4-5-1 in support of our regista and right centre mid. We will also create triangles to trap the opposition players that have the ball, cutting the passing lanes and others putting pressure on players that might receive the ball. We stop the oppositions rhythm and force them into mistakes with our pressure. To stop their counter attacks after we lose the ball, three players will swarm the ball carrier before he can get his head up to play. If they beat the immediate press when the team’s main goal is to push their play wide where they can do the least damage. Our midfielders are an integral part to our play, when we win the ball back we will create space and time for them with our team shape. There will be times when we are under the cosh and will have the option of deploying a bowl shaped 5 at the back, with the right centre mid dropping in to make closing down the opponents very effective.
Subs
70 mins: Kessie comes on for Dele, our legs will start to tire, so will theirs, Kessie will add box to box ability and energy late in the game.
75 mins: Mertens comes on for Sancho, a different style of forward play for the opposition to think about.
If winning 80 mins: Can comes on for Kovacic to close out the game.
If losing/drawing 80 mins: Son comes on for Rakitic and play 2 up front.
Red go 4-4-1
Pope if keeper sent off
Can if back four
Kessie if midfield 3
Son if front line
Liverpool/Newcastle both lose slots
------------------------- Oblak --------------------------
Walker ------ van Dijk ------ Lenglet ------ Lucas.H
---------------- Fabinho ----- de Jong -----------------
Mbappe -------------- Grealish -------------- Neymar
----------------------- Lacazette ------------------------
Lafont, Llorente, Tielemans, Zaniolo, Chiesa, Greenwood, Dembele
Our game is based solely on possession football, quick on the break and really pressurise the opposition with an in your face performance from the front, we want to hit them quickly so we need to press them quickly to get the ball, when we defend, the back 4 must stay solid with Fabinho and de Jong ahead of them just in front harassing the man with the ball before they get to our back 4 and our midfield will be in and around the half way line, Lacazette slightly higher up, this will congest the midfield and allow us to dictate play, defend from the front, stop them coming forward from the back, however, if they do push forward onto us and we get the ball they will be on the back foot and will really struggle with our front 3/4 with Fullbacks who are always ready to pounce and hit them with pace.
van Dijk picks up the CF not much gets passed him, Lenglet spare picks up the AM if he gets away from our midfield, keep the forward(s) away from the danger area, get onto them quickly, take the ball away from them and play it out of defence, look to get it out wide quickly, Both are comfortable on the ball so can bring it out when in no danger and look for the pass longer to the forwards to hit them with pace, both must attack high balls to get the ball away from the opposition big men. Fullbacks keep the wingers quiet, stop their attacks Keep them away from shooting areas and stop them becoming dangerous in any position by standing tall against them and keeping them on there 'bad' foot. When they attack, only one at a time, they drive down the line in support of the wingers drive on the outside making an extra man. If either get caught up field I want Fabinho & de Jong to drift to the side and this allows the fullbacks to make their way to midfield to cover. van Dijk and Lenglet to go up for corners, with the fullbacks and Fabinho sitting back.
Fabinho our deepest midfielder sitting just in front of the CB's he will shadow there AM and not allow him to control the game, must be aware of all that is around him, be in the right place at the right time and look to cover for defensive players moving forward, he has to impose himself early on the AM to make him wary of holding onto the ball too long, once on the ball look around, head up and pick the pass that will get us moving forward quickly always making himself for a return ball from a deeper angle as he spreads it from side to side then eventually forward he is always looking for the ball to start again if need be, can be out to the fullbacks or indeed a longer ball to the front three to take the opposition out of it as they are still high up the pitch. de Jong will help stop the run of play quicker to make our defenders jobs a lot easier, protect our defence as best as possible, in possession get it to the front 3 but also look for fullbacks and Grealish as they move into space, keep it simple, he has a very good range of pass. Either pass and move(triangles) into space or look for a piercing through ball to our front three to drive onto.Can move forward to assist and look for balls coming out so he can either, shoot or whip straight back in. Grealish is essential to our style of play, he is the link between defence and attack, as we break quickly he will look to set up our front three and at times be in an advanced No.10 role and look for the de jong/Fabinho/CB pass. He will drop back at times to pick it up and will look to his dribbling capabilities to get him around players, sometimes taking a foul as he is a tricky player to mark. When in possession always head up looking for the movement of our front three to play them in, he will follow his pass and make up the numbers up front. When he doesn't drop deep i.e when the defenders go long, he will look to form a front four as they move around and look to tear the defence apart. All of our midfield three must press the opposition and get to grips with this game very early on.
Our wingers are extremely quick, when we don't have the ball they drop back a bit to make up the numbers as they attack, push into the faces of the opposition to force them into mistakes and hopefully in the end they lose the ball, when they do lose the ball we charge at them and we do it quickly, either a long ball over defenders our defenders are superb long ball passers, go through the cms or out to one of our attacking fullbacks.however, the movement up front between Mbappe and Neymar will cause them problems drifting in an out, thus allowing Grealish to pick his moment to move into space either as a 10 or out wide. If he does push wide this will allow Mbappe/Neymar to go in central as we will have an attacking fullback up and supporting. Quick passing in triangles that will get us in and beyond their defenders and eventually to Lacazette who can beat any defender with power and pace and the other wingers who will look to get into space to get a shot off, if there defence is on top then we can always go direct at times and fire early crosses especially from deep from the fullbacks into Lacazette who will sit on the last foot so he can spring them and have a shoot or sight mentality, can move central, we must always make sure he is well supported, if he cant get the shot away he will be looking to bring others into the game by dropping slightly back to get numbers for the attack he is a very tireless worker, who also helps defend from the from by harassing there back line/DM.
Captain - van Dijk
Penalties - Neymar
Free Kicks - Neymar (when going for goal)
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Greenwood for Grealish, he goes to No.10 and play just off Lacazette
75 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette, Greenwood beside 4-4-2
80 Mins - Tielemans for de Jong, try and open them up
Winning -
70 Mins - Tielemans for Grealish, will play as a No.8 just ahead of Fabinho and de jong and he will harass the Lesta players, also his passing is superb
80 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette
86 Mins - Llorente for de Jong, strong player for final 5
Drawing -
70 Mins - Zaniolo for Grealish, Dembele for Lacazette, change of personnel up top
75 Mins - Tielemans for de Jong
High tempo total football 4-3-3
In the cup we go with an attacking team full of pace, playing with a high tempo in defence and attack. Key to our gameplan is the midfield trio and Hazard and Felix working as a five to dominate possession. The back four and full backs are also key to our possession retention, as both full backs get bomb forward in attack. Rodri has a defensive role when we attack and are in possession, as he fills in as a third centre back and Neves sits in front as a deep playmaker. Thiago in advance midfield role.
The fbs therefore provide the width in attack, stretching the play, allowing Hazard and Felix to come inside to work with Thiago and overload the Chelsea defence. Neves, Thiago, Hazard and Felix working the ball in central areas to control possession and the tempo of the game, always having the fbs outside them offering an option to attack down the wings.
As we look to control possession, we play quick pass and move football at a high tempo seeking to find holes in the Chelsea defence. As we work the ball wide one of Felix/Hazard works with the attacking fb to try and double up on the Chelsea fbs.
That leaves Jesus and Hazard central to get in the box, the opposite fb coming in at the back post and Thiago outside the box. Jesus gets the nod for his pace and high energy. He dictates the pace of our play from the front. The energetic Felix also adds high tempo as we accept that this isn't Hazard's game, he has more freedom.
Whern we lose the ball initially Rodri is in a centre back position to guard against counter attacks. As the fbs get back, he moves forwared behind the other two cms who press the play as the trio narrow. We have a defence full of pace and great energy in front so play a reasonably high line, helping us press Chelsea in high area, and aiding distribution out from the back line. Neuer plays as a sweeper keeper, so if they do play long we outmuscle them in the air or have him to sweep up.
We look to play our usual high tempo attacking game and take the game to Chelsea, seeking to exploit their defence with high numbers in attack. We have a strong side defensively and in attack, our team is built to give Felix, Hazard and Thiago the space and freedom to find the ball in space in attacking positions. Neves creating from deeper, getting the ball to the front four and fbs in the right positions.
Quick passing and moving to find space in between the opposition lines. Using the pace of our fbs, and front three to create space as we push forward. We look to vary our play, we can go long from the back or Neuer to mix the play up.
We have a cm duo who can both drop deep to offer an option and collect the ball from defence. Likewise a fluid front three, who can switch positions or drop deep to collect the ball from midfield. This fluidity will help the players to get away from their markers, catch the opposition out and create space. As we move forward we get quick one twos in the opposition half. With this fluid front three, Thiago supports using his pace and creativity to link the play.
------------------ Neuer ---------------
-----------------------------------------------
Carvajal —- Varane -- Laporte -- Mendy
----------------------------------------------
-------------- Rodri -- Neves -----------
------------------ Thiago ------------------
-- J.Felix ---------------------- Hazard --
------------------- Jesus ------------------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Guendouzi, Sensi, Coutinho, Osimhen, Ronaldo
Defending high
Laporte the man marker next to Varane who is free to use his pace to sweep up. When we lose the ball the closest player presses the ball, the second closest presses the obvious passing channel. As they’re doing this the fbs get back, Rodri then pushes to midfield once back and everyone gets into a narrow rigid formation behind the ball in position to press high up the park. Stop them breaking and press them high up the park.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
As Chelsea advance into higher areas of the park and into our half, our shape will resemble a 4-1-3-1-1. Felix drops deep next to the other two cms pressing the ball, Rodri sweeping up danger behind them and in front of the defence. Hazard simply sits on their deepest midfielder, simple for him just man marks him out the game and doesn't give him anything to think about.
Felix and the two cms (Neves and Thiago) are the trio pressing the ball, and look to force Chelsea backwards. With Hazard man marking their dm, Jesus looks to split the space between their cbs. This gives us numbers back in defence leaving no space for Chelsea to play, as we have 5 players in midfield playing defensive roles. If they go wide to an attacking fb, then one of the cms/Felix presses him, leaving two other cms to press the space. Rodri at this point remains zonal in front of the cb on that side of play.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Sensi for Neves. Thiago moves deeper. Fresh energy, as we bring on Sensi an all action cm to keep the tempo high.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Coutinho for Felix. Fresh legs in attack.
If winning after 80 mins bring on Guendouzi for Thiago. Power to see out the game.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Coutinho for Neves. Thiago moves deeper. Coutinho AM.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Ronaldo for Jeus. Using his strong link up play and inteligence against tired cbs.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Grimaldo for Felix. Move Hazard right. More natural width on the left to get more crosses for Ronaldo.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Ronaldo for Felix. 4-3-1-2. Go more direct, Ronaldo's strong link up and hold up play next to Jesus with Hazard in a free role.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Sensi for Neves. All action cm to come on and step the tempo up.
If losing after 80 mins bring on Coutinho for Rodri. Thiago to the dm role. Coutinho loves a last minute banger.
Comment deleted by Site Moderator
Bournemouth Tactics: Week 9
Captain: Benítez
Vice Captain: Guimarães
Team:
--------------------Benítez
Emerson--Romero—Felipe---Lodi
------------------Guimarães
-----------Bentancur--Zaracho
Mendez----------------------Oyarzabal
--------------------Gomez
SUBS: Musso, Júnior, Gabriel, Murilo, Éderson, Vargas, Gabigol
We want to play a neat crisp passing game at high tempo using our obvious pace to punish the opponent. Our formation will be a 4-3-3 that will allow our full backs to join in the attack when necessary and also offer us the flexibility to fall back into a more standard 4-4-2 when under pressure. We need to boss the midfield from the start and control the game with our own tempo. When in possession use the ball well and try and bring our wide men in to play. When chasing the ball press the opponent with urgency and all over the park. Don’t take too many risks and hold onto the ball. With our creativity and pace we will be able to open teams up. Wait for the chances to arise and take them when they come.
Goalkeeper: Benítez is a big mobile keeper and very agile. A great shot stopper, he will communicate with the back 4 and be commanding with the high ball. He will not take any risks. He is a great distributor with both hand and foot and we will look to this as a way to launch quick attacks.
Defence: Our 2 full backs are there firstly to defend and make sure they stay on the right side of their opponents whether they be out wide or cutting inside. When we are on the attack they will be allowed to use their power and pace to provide the overlap on the flanks. They both have the power and the lungs to work the touchline for 90 minutes. They will make the pitch wide and always offer themselves as an option in attack. Our 2 centre halves are big 6 feet plus ball playing defenders. Both good in the air and equally as good with the ball at their feet. They will be asked to do the simple things well. Be aggressive but controlled in the tackle and never lose your man when defending dead ball situations. They will be able to bring the ball out of defence but if in doubt take absolutely no chances and clear it. Both big men will be a real aerial threat at set pieces.
Midfield: Guimarães will be the midfield general. A physical pacey midfielder he will be there to boss this area for us. Breaking up play and filling in as an extra defender if one of our back 4 has ventured forward. He will be there to protect the defence and do a lot of the unseen dirty work in the centre of the park. He is essential to our game plan and while sitting deep will still offer a lot with his great passing ability. He also has a thunderbolt right foot. Bentancur and Zaracho will play just in front of Guimarães. Bentancur will be a more box to box type. He will be involved all over and will offer as much in defence as in attack. Zaracho will be the midfield magician. Clever, elusive and tricky we will look to him for creating the midfield openings with his eye for a pass. We will look at their enthusiasm and relentless pressing of the opposition as a way to hopefully get a bit of a grip on the midfield and at the very least not make it plain sailing for the opposition.
Wingers/Centre Forward: When in possession both Mendez and Oyarzabal will be expected to go for the direct approach and use their power and speed to take on the opposition defence and beat them and bring Zaracho, Bentancur and Gomez in to play. They can vary their attacks by going wide or cutting inside as they see fit. Both players can play all across the middle so don’t be surprised to see them swapping wings. At times Bentancur may sit a bit deeper allowing Zaracho to slot in between both wingers, just behind the CF. As well as an attacking force both wingers will also have to put a defensive shift when called upon and act as back up for their respective full backs.
Gomez starts as the CF. He won’t be short of support or ammunition with the attacking talent behind him. Great big old fashioned centre forward. We will look for him to hold up and bring others in to play if it doesn’t seem to be on for him. An eye for a pass and not afraid to have a go from distance. We will look to get bodies in the box when attacking so he should always have an outlet. He is also great in the air and will provide an option from set pieces. When the shot is on he will take it but we also want to put himself about in the box and think that his power pace will be a real handful for defences. He will also be alert to any scraps in and around the goal. He has the ability to produce something sublime and create a chance out of nothing.
Free Kicks/Corners: Zaracho, Oyarzabal or Mendez with Romero, Felipe, Guimarães and Gomez to offer an aerial threat. Zaracho and Oyarzabal (with his thunderbolt left foot) may try their luck with several free kicks from distance.
Penalties: Gomez
Substitutions: (if winning on 80 minutes) Gabriel for Felipe, Gabigol for Gomez and Éderson for Bentancur, 3 like for like substitutions.
If losing (on 80 minutes) Vargas for Bentancur and Gabigol for Mendez. Shift to a 4-1-3-2 attack. Gabigol and Vargas offering fresh legs, pace and a bit of the unknown in attack.
---------------Guimarães
Vargas---Zaracho----Oyarzabal
--------Gomez---Gabigol
Red Card Subs:
Keeper: Musso for Benítez and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
FB: Júnior as direct replacement (LB/RB) and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
CB: Gabriel as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
CM: Murilo as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
LW/RW/AM: Move Zaracho to LW/RW: 4-4-1
CF: Gabigol as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
------------------------- Areola ---------------------------
Mukiele ------- N.Sule ------- J.Evans ------- Marcelo
------------------------- Zakaria --------------------------
----------------- Tolisso ------- Arthur ------------------
Gnabry ------------------------------------------- Barnes
---------------------- Lewandowski ----------------------
Ramsdale, Stones, WIlliams, Pjanic, Bruno, Ferran, Malen
Look to try and control possession high up the field, push them back by playing a high line(the front three)pass and move into positions that can hurt them, when we defend we do so as a team with two banks of four with Zakaria in between the two lines, our midfield & Lewandowski harassing their backline and really pressurise them into quick , misplaced passes for us to pick up, in their face performance, especially Arthur & Tolisso as we try to nullify their midfield and stop them creating chances for the forwards.
Mukiele and Marcelo have freedom to attack, but only one at a time, one will stay back creating a back 3 when we attack, bomb down the line supporting the wingers on the outside, which will allow the winger to cut inside and support Lewandowski. They look to play one twos with the midfield which will get him beyond there fullback and whip in dangerous crosses. Both tough defenders and intelligent so know when to tackle and when just to try and shimmy out wide. When defending and on the cautious side and remain vigilant at all times in the line of four, keep it tight.. Sule will mark the CF, use his strength and speed to keep the CF away from the danger area. Evans alongside is the spare defender and helps out where needed, both powerful defenders, Both will dominate in the air and both good on the ball, so when in possession they can carry the ball out from defence and look to send our forwards away. Stay tight as a four and let nothing through. Both cbs up for corners, fullbacks stay back and a midfielder just sitting in front of them. When we are in possession the ball will come from the back, so these guys must look for movement ahead of them so they can pick there pass, both CBs are comfortable with ball at feet and will take the ball out of defence to allow them to come on to us before he passes, this will create space as hew will force them to break away from the players they are marking..
Zakaria's primary role in front of the defence is to win possession and then start an attacking phase. Within this he needs to cover spaces in between the midfield and defence where the opposition’s number 10 will likely to be operating whilst also being aware when the full-backs had pushed forward.Take care of of the No 10/SS is also a main focus, he isn't an out an out DM but he has a lot of grit and determination to his game so stick to him like glue and stop him becoming a threat Once he is in possession of the ball nice simple balls to those around him.
Arthur is our box-to-box midfielder and has responsibility throughout the pitch. He is expected to score goals and create chances for team mates, whilst also helping in the defensive third. One requirement of this role are high fitness levels due to the amount of running they are expected to do. The box-to-box midfielder is more likely to be found on the side of the pitch where the full-back that is less efficient in the attacking third plays to provide balance on both flanks, he also has a mean shot from distance and isn't afraid to have a go. Tolisso's I want further up the pitch today as his main responsibility is to both create chances for the three attackers in front of him and indeed score the goals himself. Pushing forward as a AM he will often find himself the furthest forward of the three midfielders and sometimes even in the number 9 role if the correct situation arises. The advantage having Tolisso there is he has pace & tenacity to get right un amongst them, he needs to be able to play a pass that penetrates the opposition’s defense or dictates the direction of the attack These three should work well together and between them have everything a midfield needs. He will try and get in beyond there DM and support Lewandowski and look for any scraps coming his way.
Wingers are going to cause problems out wide, with the support they will have, they will look to push the fullbacks back and get into the danger area, Barnes I want to drive on the outside and play as a natural winger not an inside forward unless supported by Marcelo. both sides will definitely pose a threat with quick one twos. If they play with 3 at the back try and expose the space in behind the wingbacks by using Arthur/Tolisso to play around and behind them with the ball going in triangles quickly until the break is on. If fulbacks drive passed wingers they can cut inside looking to make a nuisance of themselves centrally again using the CMs to get into danger areas. Both wingers have a fantastic forward to aim for in Lewandowksi so if they get to the bye line then get the crosses in for him to attack.Lewandowski will get plenty chances, however he must put away there side who will be solid at the back, I want to bully the slower/weaker/less experienced of the two/three with the aid of Tolisso and the wingers and sometimes the fullbacks. Get into positions that he can go for goal or at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Again, target the slower/weaker of the cbs, split them apart to create space, we are quick, so our forwards must hit them with pace to drag them all over the place. Lets be honest, he is a goal machine and will stick it in the back of the net when he has a sniff of goal, he can score from various angles/ranges with hopefully a few crosses coming in he can get up and above defenders for. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Gnabry and Barnes will be making runs so be watchful of them just to lay it off to the side if he cant go for goal himself. But especially look for the midfielders centrally driving forward as they time their runs perfectly so a little touch back to him allows him to go for goal.
We must defend as a team tho, from the front, so wingers track back and cover the fullbacks,I want the midfield to be compact to allow very little space, even just to stop them supporting the wingers, we must drive into them and pressurize them into mistakes
Captain - J.Evans
Pens - Lewandowksi
Free Kicks - Barnes
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Malen for Arthur, we go 4-4-2
75 Mins - Pjanic for Tolisso , try and open them up with his passing
82 Mins - Ferran for Barnes, switch with Gnabry to try and get at tiring fullbacks
Winning -
75 Mins - Pjanic for Arthur, straight swap, look to control the midfield more
85 Mins - Malen for Lewandowski, run the clock down, get at defenders
Drawing -
65 Mins - Bruno for Arthur, more forward driven
75 Mins - Ferran for Barnes, switch with Gnabry, Pjanic for Tolisso, look to open them up
Red Card
Areola - Ramsdale for Arthur
Marcelo - B.Williams for Arthur
Any other derender - Stones for Arthur
Zakaria - Arthur takes the DM role
Gnabry - Tolisso go wider
Barnes - Gnabry to LM, Tolisso to RM
Lewandowski - Malen for Arthur
Always a flat 4-4-1
Red Card game is City v Portsmouth, not Bournemouth
------------------------- Oblak --------------------------
Walker ------ Mancini ------ Lenglet ------ Lucas.H
--------------- Fabinho ------ Tielemans -------------
------------------------- Pogba -------------------------
--- Mbappe ------------------------------- Neymar ---
----------------------- Lacazette ----------------------
Lafont, Kehrer, Llorente, Zaniolo, Chiesa, Martial, Dembele
Our game is based solely on possession football, quick on the break and really pressurise the opposition with an in your face performance from the front, we want to hit them quickly so we need to press them quickly to get the ball, when we defend, the back 4 must stay solid with Fabinho & Tielemans ahead of them just in front harassing the man with the ball before they get to our back 4 and our midfield will be in and around the half way line, Lacazette slightly higher up, this will congest the midfield and allow us to dictate play, defend from the front, stop them coming forward from the back, however, if they do push forward onto us and we get the ball they will be on the back foot and will really struggle with our front 3/4 with Fullbacks who are always ready to pounce and hit them with pace.
Mancini picks up the CF, Lenglet spare picks up the AM if he gets away from our midfield, keep the forward(s) away from the danger area, get onto them quickly, take the ball away from them and play it out of defence, look to get it out wide quickly, Both are comfortable on the ball so can bring it out when in no danger and look for the pass longer to the forwards to hit them with pace, both must attack high balls to get the ball away from the opposition big men. Fullbacks keep the wingers quiet, stop their attacks Keep them away from shooting areas and stop them becoming dangerous in any position by standing tall against them and keeping them on there 'bad' foot. When they attack, only one at a time, they drive down the line in support of the wingers drive on the outside making an extra man. If either get caught up field I want Fabinho/Tielemans to drift to the side and this allows the fullbacks to make their way to midfield to cover. Mancini and Lenglet to go up for corners, with the fullbacks and Fabinho sitting back.
Fabinho our deepest midfielder sitting just in front of the CB's he will shadow there AM and not allow him to control the game, must be aware of all that is around him, be in the right place at the right time and look to cover for defensive players moving forward, he has to impose himself early on the AM to make him wary of holding onto the ball too long, once on the ball look around, head up and pick the pass that will get us moving forward quickly always making himself for a return ball from a deeper angle as he spreads it from side to side then eventually forward he is always looking for the ball to start again if need be, can be out to the fullbacks or indeed a longer ball to the front three to take the opposition out of it as they are still high up the pitch. Tielemans will help stop the run of play quicker to make our defenders jobs a lot easier, protect our defence as best as possible, in possession get it to the front 3 but also look for fullbacks and Pogba as they move into space, keep it simple, he has a very good range of pass. Either pass and move(triangles) into space or look for a piercing through ball to our front three to drive onto.Can move forward to assist and look for balls coming out so he can either, shoot or whip straight back in.Pogba is essential to our style of play, he is the link between defence and attack, I want him higher up the pitch today so as we break quickly he will look to set up our front three and at times be in an advanced No.10 role and look for the Tielemans/Fabinho/CB pass. When in possession always s head up looking for the movement of our front three to play them in, he will follow his pass and make up the numbers up front. When he doesn't drop deep i.e when the defenders go long, he will look to form a front four as they move around and look to tear the defence apart. All of our midfield three must press the opposition and get to grips with this game very early on.
Our wingers are extremely quick, when we don't have the ball they drop back a bit to make up the numbers as they attack, push into the faces of the opposition to force them into mistakes and hopefully in the end they lose the ball, when they do lose the ball we charge at them and we do it quickly, either a long ball over defenders, go through the cms or out to one of our attacking fullbacks.however, the movement up front between Mbappe and Neymar will cause them problems drifting in an out, thus allowing Pogba to pick his moment to move into space either as a 10 or out wide. If he does push wide this will allow Mbappe/Neymar to go in central as we will have an attacking fullback up and supporting. Quick passing in triangles that will get us in and beyond their defenders and eventually to Lacazette who can beat any defender with power and pace and the other wingers who will look to get into space to get a shot off, if there defence is on top then we can always go direct at times and fire early crosses especially from deep from the fullbacks into Lacazette who will sit on the last foot so he can spring them and have a shoot or sight mentality, can move central, we must always make sure he is well supported, if he cant get the shot away he will be looking to bring others into the game by dropping slightly back to get numbers for the attack he is a very tireless worker, who also helps defend from the from by harassing there back line/DM.
Captain - Fabinho
Penalties - Neymar
Free Kicks - Neymar (when going for goal)
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Chiesa for Pogba, he goes to RW with Mbappe going up top in a 4-4-2
73 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette straight swap
82 Mins - Martial for Walker, we go 3 at the back with Martial going to the left and neymar LCF in an attacking 3-4-3
Winning -
70 Mins - Llorente for Pogba, he goes to DM beside Fabinho with Tielemans just a bit ahead of them
80 Mins - Martial for Lacazette, he runs things down v tiring defenders
Drawing -
70 Mins - Zaniolo for Pogba, Chiesa for Lacazette, Chiesa to RW, Mbappe up top
80 Mins - Martial for Walker, he goes LW, Neymar up top 3412
Liverpool v NORWICH CITY
--------------------------Pickford
Aarons---------Dunk------------Söyüncü----------Lewis
------------------Berge-----------Sanches
-------Wilson----------Brooks--------------James
-------------------------Dolberg
Free Kicks – Wilson
Subs: Guaita, Justin, Godfrey, Koopmeiners, Bowen, Cantwell, Pukki
Our defensive unit consists of Lewis Dunk and Caglar Söyüncü paired up at centre-back, Max Aarons at right-back and Jamal Lewis at left-back, with Sander Berge and Renato Sanches as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.
This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Berge and Sanches we have a perfect pairing to initiate attacks by distributing the ball in an intelligent fashion, to be key players in circulation and to prevent dangerous opposition attacks, being disciplined in positioning and limiting space in between the lines.
The strength of our double pivot is that Sanches can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Berge can maintain a good position to react if the initial press is bypassed. Our double pivot will offer huge defensive stability and will ensure that a structured shape is maintained.
Having two defensive midfielders centrally prevents others being dragged out of position to press.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Sanches’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.
With Sanches running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Sander Berge.
A holding midfielder through and through, Berge is not just your “win the ball and pass it on to the closest player” – there is a real creative mind in his locker, but it’s his ability to be the shield of the back four and then be creative once he gets the ball that makes Berge such a talent.
The attacking unit consists of Harry Wilson, David Brooks and Daniel James as our band of three attacking midfielders with Kasper Dolberg as our lone central striker.
Our 4-2-3-1 is set up to have that wonderful ‘springy' quality - it absorbs pressure without breaking and then snaps back with surprising force.
In defence our 4-2-3-1 covers space very effectively, with the band of three attacking midfielders and centre forward able to press the opposition high up the pitch while the two defensive midfielders ensure that there is no space left in front of the defence. Then the back four can either play a high line, compressing the space even further, or drop deeper as preferred.
Once we have won the ball back, often by Berge or Sanches, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.
Aarons and Lewis can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Berge and Sanches can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Harry Wilson and Daniel James, who are fast speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. David Brooks our attacking central midfielder’s low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Brooks is blessed with an instant first touch and can dribble with the ball at such a close proximity to his feet that it makes him almost impossible to tackle this creative passer who will look to play Wilson, James and Dolberg in via fast passing combinations.
Up front Dolberg’s biggest strength is his ability to move between the lines, which will make him extremely difficult to mark. Dropping into midfield will allow space for Wilson and James to advance and make runs from out to in. From these positions, they can make attempts on goal. Also, Dolberg has the ability to switch positions with our wide players, allowing them the freedom to move inside.
Dolberg’s speed on and off the ball is an attribute that will cause our opposition lots of problems. His movement deep into midfield will give him the opportunity to receive the ball without being marked and drive with the ball towards the goal.
Subs on 75 mins
Cantwell on for James, Pukki on for Dolberg
Double substitution - Lots of energy in the last 15 minutes to look to trouble the opposition for a late goal regardless of the score line
Attacking high press 3-5-2
A home to Wovles we go with an attacking side, that is firstly solid at the back but more importantly gives us a team to dominate possession. We go with a side with a high work rate, full of energy to press from the front. The defence starts with the front two.
Our formation allows us to dominate possession but also go with two up top. The front two set the tempo for the game with their all action styles. Both have the ability to drop deep and join in the attacks. Bernardo the AM, similarly plays with high intensity. We have three cms able to pick a pass, and with the ability to dictate the tempo of the game and control possession. Neves plays as the deepest cm, Thiago with the inteligence to fill in when needed. Two deep playmakers, with 3 cbs means we can go without a true dm.
The width is provided by the wing backs, and by an over lapping cb. Stealing a Sheffield United tactic, we allow one cb to get forward at a time. Blind/Pavard seeking to overlap the attacking wbs. This will see us always have two cbs and a deep midfielder in front when we attack offering cover.
We will direct our attacks down the wings. Both wing backs will have freedom to attack, bombing down the wings and crossing for the front two. The overlapping cbs, wbs and with front two will give us an overload in attacking situations. .
We defend in a narrow formation, limiting the space for Wolves to play in. The wingback on the opposite side of play will drop back into defence forming a back four. The wb on the side of play helps the cb on the side of play defend against the attacking winger and fb.
The defence and midfield press as a unit, ensuring there is no space between the lines for Wolves attacking mids. When defending, Neves plays zonally in front of the cbs and will pick up the most attacking cm in the area, likely KdB or Silva. Thiago will play ball side of Neves and always press the passing lanes. Thiago will pick up the 2nd most attacking cm if they break forward. Silva presses alongside Bernardo. Jesus looks to exploit the space out wide by their attacking fb and Lauitaro splits the space between their cbs.
When we win the ball we attack at pace. Use the wing backs bombing forward linking with the wide forwards to create.
------------------ Neuer ------------------
----------------------------------------------
------- Pavard -- Varane -- Blind ------
----------------------------------------------
Carvajal ---- Neves -- Thiago.A ---- Mendy
----------------- Bernardo.S ---------------
------------------------------------------------
------------ Jesus ----- Lautaro.M -------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Rodri, Ndombele, Coutinho, Son Heung-min, Ronaldo
Defence
When we lose the ball high up the park we always look to win it back straight away, don’t give Wolves a chance to counter. The closest 2/3 players press. Allowing others to get back into position behind the ball. Neuer also guards against hopeful long balls over the top in his sweeper keeper role.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
When Wolves get past the initial press higher up the park, we drop deeper into a narrower tighter formation narrowing to the side of play, ensuring there are no gaps in the formation set out above. Our defence have fantastic pace up against their forwards, bide their time, not diving in.
Attack
We counter quickly when we win the ball aiming our attacks down the wings. If the counter is not on we look to get the wing backs and wide forwards doubling up on their fbs.
The back 3 are all comfortable on the ball and look to play out, helping us move the ball quickly having a strong base. Neuer's accurate long balls will also help as we seek to counter quickly exposing space left by Wolves in attack.
Subs.
If winning after 68 mins bring on Grimaldo for Mendy. Fresh legs and pace in an important position.
If winning after 72 bring on Rodri for Neves. Fresh legs in midfield.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Son for Jesus.
If drawing or losing after 70 mins bring on Ronaldo and Coutinho for Jesus and Lautaro. 3-4-2-1.
If drawing or losing after 75 mins bring on Son for Neves. Bernardo moves deeper, Coutinho in front. Attacking 3-5-2.
---------------------- A.Lunin ---------------------
Cancelo ---- De Ligt ------ Umtiti ---- F.Mendy
------------ Busquets ------ A.Rabiot ------------
---------------------- J.Felix -----------------------
Sancho ------------------------------- Hudson-Odoi
---------------------- Aguero -----------------------
Subs:
Whiteman, Godin, Vidal, Eriksen, Bale, Asensio, Icardi
Captain: Busquets
Free Kicks: Felix
Penalties: Aguero
Corners: Sancho
Moving the ball at speed will be the focus of our play as we go with an attacking 4-2-3-1 formation today as we aim for 3 points. We go with three exciting youngsters behind Aguero. Offering a perfect blend of pace, trickery and unpredictability that will cause plenty of problems for the opposition defence. We feel that this front four combined pose threats from all angles with plenty of goals in our lineup. We will look to dictate the play and take the game to the opposition. When they’re in possession we sit deep, our dual DM’s marshalling middle of the park, breaking down the opposition and setting up us on the counter. We feel that we have the perfect set up to open them up on the counter with terrific pace out wide which will cause problems all afternoon for their fullbacks.
Whilst the opposition have some dangerous players we will look to significantly limit their impact by retaining possession, we will force them to track back or risk leaving their defence exposed when we push forward in numbers. We aim to make things uncomfortable for them and feel that limiting their ability to have the ball in attacking areas will severely limit any threat posed. When they are in possession our wingers drop in as we play a compact 4-5-1 formation.
Defence:
We go with a strong defensive unit, packed with quality and experience we look to nullify the threat posed by the oppositions attack. We will look to be dominant and physically impose ourselves early on. If the opposition play one up top then Umtiti will mark. Quick, strong and aggressive we feel he has all the tools to deal with any opponent. De Ligt will sweep up and cover in behind, a fantastic reader at the back he will look to drop off and act as secondary cover to deal with any balls in behind. We feel it’s inevitable they’ll go with a pact striker and whilst Umtiti is quick, having De Ligt drop in behind him will help nullify the threat they pose. The Dutchman sweeping up from the back and immediately looking to get us on the counter with his fantastic vision and passing.
Our fullbacks will stick tight to the wide men, safe in the knowledge that they have supporting cover in behind with Busquets also drifting across from DM to offer additional support. When in possession both Cancelo and Mendy have license to push forward with both having great quality in the final third. We look to draw the opposition onto us by sitting deep when they are in possession, limiting the space in behind and drawing them further up the field creating space for us to hit them on the counter.
Midfield:
Busquets will be our holding player in the middle. A top class DM we rely on his fantastic reading of the game to break up the opposition play, winning back possession and setting us up on the counter as we look to get the ball into our creative players as quickly as possible. He’ll pick up their most advanced AM and cut out their supply line. He’s also a fantastic passer which will be key in winning the midfield battle and ball retention. Alongside him we have the classy Rabiot. A great passer and defensively strong he forms the perfect double pivot in front of our defence. He and Busquets will control that area of the field and look to physically impose themselves on the opposition, winning back possession and getting the ball into our attacking players as quickly as possible.
Completing our midfield we have the exciting Joao Felix. He plays in the AM role and has free roam to push forward as a SS when in possession . A player with superb vision he will look to get on the ball as much as possible, running at the opposition with his silky dribbling, drawing them in and committing a defender before sliding the ball through to Aguero or one of our wingers. He’s also a great goal scorer, perfectly capable of arriving late in the opposition box to finish and we encourage to make these runs and go for goal, safe in the knowledge he has two defensively strong CM’s behind him.
Forward:
We mix things up in attack, going with the pace and trickery of Sancho and CHO out wide with predator Aguero through the middle. We look to utilise the pace of our wide players, specifically looking for them on the counter as we break at speed and look to tear through the opposition. Sancho has the option to go down the line or come inside, with the youngster an assist machine and with the clever runs from Aguero we expect him to thrive. We want CHO to stay out wide, use his pace down the line and cut back for Aguero to slot home and in doing so creating space in the middle of the park for Felix to exploit. Felix will also look to drift out wide at times, pulling the opposition DM with him and creating space for Sancho and CHO to cut inside and go direct for goal.
Aguero plays through the middle. The brief is simple for the Argentine, get into the box and do what you do best. With the pace we have out wide and the late runs of Felix into the box Aguero could well find himself in one on one match ups in which he’s deadly. Play on the shoulder of the last man and as always be on your toes in the box, ready to pounce and finish anything that comes your way.
Subs;
If winning:
70 mins: CHO off, Vidal on. 4-5-1 with an extra man in the middle.
80 mins: Felix off, Godin on. Shut up shop time as we bring on an additional CB, switching to 5-4-1 as we look to see the game out.
If drawing:
60 mins: Rabiot off, Eriksen on. Extra creativity.
70 mins: CHO off, Asensio on. Extra goal threat with a potential match winner.
80 mins: Aguero off, Icardi on. Fresh legs and the perfect poacher against a tiring defence.
If losing:
60 mins: Busquets off, Eriksen on.
70 mins: Rabiot and Umtiti off, Asensio and Icardi on. All out attack.
Comment deleted by Site Moderator
PORTSMOUTH vs man city
---------------------------------------De Gea-----------------------------------
------------------Militao---------Koulibaly---------Ramos------------
---------------------------Fabian---------Verratti-------------------------
AWB------------------------------------------------------------------------Atal
-------------------------------------Goretzka-------------------------------------
------------------------Jovic-----------------Werner----------------------
Subs - Butland, Ndidi, Rice, Sessegnon, Bailey, Kluivert, Leao
CAPTAIN - RAMOS
CK'S - ATAL
FK'S - DYBALA
PENALTIES - WERNER
When we don't have possession of the ball in our half I want the whole team except the strikers to get in our half and defend. Play a deep defensive line so that oppo can't use their pacy forwards to beat the offside trap. When we win possession of the ball I want the players to keep hold of possession and try and work some space. We have good ball players in Fabian and Verratti in the centre and they will help keep us ticking.
Defence
De Gea in net, command your box and don't do anything flashy. The defence is well balanced, with all 3 CB's having the pace and power to play the 3atb formation with ease. Koulibaly will focus on the oppo striker and will look to stick close to him and to watch out for his attacking runs. Use your superior strength to get the better of him. Militao and Ramos will look to stop the oppo LW/RW from creating chances as they will be helping our wingbacks double up on them. When either Militao or Ramos go to help the wingbacks I want Verratti to just sit a little more deep as to give Koulibaly some extra cover should someone from the opposition midfield make a late run into the box. Wingbacks will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Watch out for oppo wingers and stop them cutting in onto their stronger foot.
Centre Mids
Fabian + Verratti
Verratti will be the more defensive of the two as I want him to focus on helping out in covering for our wingbacks when they are out of position. Main job is to get the ball from deep and look to open up the oppo with your superb range of passing. Use your low centre of gravity to get away from oppo challenges and play quick simple passes with your teammates to work some space in the middle. Also when the oppo AM has the ball close him down asap don't give him time on the ball. Fabian will play a b2b role. Make runs forward and play pass and move passes with teammates and help the attack whenever you can. They both will be the engines that keep us ticking in the middle.
Wing backs
AWB + Atal
AWB and Atal will look to help both in attack and defence. When the oppo has the ball come back into the defence to make a rock solid back 5. Make forays forward when we have the ball in the oppos side of the pitch but track back when we don't. Get some low crosses into the box as my strikers are good at playing in between the lines.
Attack Mid
Goretzka
Goretzka will be playing as the AM today. I want him to use his great dribbling ability and passing to create chances for our 2 strikers up front. Look out for the runs of our attackers and make late runs into the box whenever you can. Shoot from range if you see an opportunity.
Strikers
Jovic + Werner
I want both the strikers to use their pace and play off of the oppo shoulders and try and beat the offside trap. Be aware of lofted through balls and time your runs as best as you can. When in the box use your quickness and agility to get into good positions away from oppo defenders. Play quick one two's with each other to penetrate the oppo defence.
IF WINNING BY 65 MINS
Take off Jovic and put on Rice in DM to give the defence even more protection. Formation will be 361 and AWB and Atal will make less attacking runs now. Ndidi on for Goretzka aswell on 80mins if still leading.
IF LOSING BY 65 MINS
Take off Verratti and put on Leao in strike. Leao will play in the middle of Werner and Jovic who will become a front 3. Play close to each other and put a tonne of pressure in the oppo defence. Defend high up and try and score a goal.
IF DRAWING BY 65MINS
Leao on for Jovic
Bailey on for Goretzka
Ndidi on for Fabian
Fresh legs.
RED CARD SCENARIO
For all off the sending off scenarios we will change the formation to 3411.
If GK is sent off take off Jovic and put on Butland. Formation will be 3411.
If any of my back 3 get sent off take off Jovic and put on Rice in CB.
If any of my WB's get sent off take off Jovic and put on Sessegnon at WB.
If my attack mid gets sent off take off Jovic and put on Bailey in AM.
If any of my 2 strikers get sent off don't change anything.
SOTON vs Newcastle
------------------------------------------Gunn-----------------------
Odriozola---------Upamecano-----------Dias-----------Vinagre
----------------------------Aouar-------------McTominay--------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres----------------------------------------------------------------Rashford
--------------------------------------Odegaard------------------------------------
--------------------------------------Richarlison-------------------------------------
Subs - Meslier, Kabak, Torreira, Lo Celso, Pulisic, Kean, Piatek
CAPTAIN - DIAS
CK'S - ØDEGAARD
FK'S - ØDEGAARD
PENALTIES - RASHFORD
I want us to hold a deep defensive line to start of with so the oppo don't get an early goal. Keep things simple in the beginning and only pressure the oppo when they get in our half. When we have the ball I want the team to play pass and move football. Don't stay static, try and get in behind the oppo defence as there is a lot of pace in our attacking players. As the game goes on, when we don't have the ball I want the team to defend from the front line and pressure the oppo and try and win possession back. Do this in fits and bursts as it is a tiring tactic.
Defence
GK to be confident in box. Don't take risks. Punch the ball away if the shot is too powerful. Command your area. The defence is well balanced. Upamecano and Dias bring a lot of strength and pace to the defence. Dias will marshal the defence and Upamecano will look to use his pace to close the oppo strikers down. Stay vocal with each other and cover for each other if oppo gets past one of you. Full backs will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Torreira will be covering for them when they go attacking.
Defence Mids
McTominay + Aouar
McTominay will be the anchor in the middle. Stay back in front of the defence and protect the defence with your life. If the oppo play an AM then stick close to him and mark him if possible. When our fullbacks are attacking then your main priority will be to cover for them. When in possession pass the ball out to the wings but don't try any risky passes.
Aouar will look to pick the ball up from deep and use his pace and energy to dribble the ball out. Make runs forward and help our attacking players whenever you can. Play quick passes forward and use your agility to outmanoeuvre the oppo players. When not in possession of the ball I want him to sit alongside McTominay in the middle and protect the defence.
Wingers
Neres + Rashford
These 2 will be the focal point of my attack. I want to give them the freedom to express themselves in attack. Rashford will be looking to cut in from the left and Neres will be looking to cut in from the right. I want you both to try and beat the oppo fullbacks with your pace and dribbling ability but don't try too hard as if you see them doubling up on you you can either pass back or into the centre of the pitch to one of our CM's. I want you both to be aware of our fullbacks and play pass and move 1 2's with them to try and penetrate the oppo back line. Odriozola and Vinagre are no slouches attacking wise so use them! If you can cut in onto your stronger foot, don't be afraid to shoot from range as you both have the ability to score from long range. If there is no space to do so then take the ball to the byline and whip in crosses for Kean to get his head on. Help our FB's in defensive duties if the oppo winger is trying to take them on. Track back and double up on him or mark the run of the opposition FB if they try to make an overlapping run. When we are defending corners I want both of them to stay near the halfway line so we can hit the oppo on the counter attack.
Attack Mid
Ødegaard
Ødegaard will be playing just behind Richarlison and will look to help him out in attack. Be ready for passes into your feet and shoot if you see an opportunity. Mix up your attacking runs to throw off the oppo DM. I want him to dribble with the ball and play 1 2's with the rest of the team. Shoot if you see an opening.
Striker
Richarlison
Richarlison is a striker that has the deadly combination of pace and power. He will look to use his strength to get the better of the oppo defence. Be vary of crosses into the box as you are decent in the air, and if you are through on goal, use your expert finishing to score. Time your runs off the shoulders of the oppo CB's and use your pace to get away from them.
Subs if LOSING BY 65MINS
Put on Piatek for Aouar and Lo Celso for Ødegaard to bring some more attacking impetus on. Play a high line and try and get a goal. Change formation to 41212.
-----------------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Upamecano-------------Dias---------Vinagre
--------------------------------------McTominay---------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres---------------------------------------------------------------Rashford
-----------------------------------------Lo Celso-------------------------------
--------------------------------Piatek-----------Richarlison-------------------
Subs if WINNING BY 80MINS
Take off Ødegaard and put on Kabak in CB. Play defensive with everyone in our own half defending for their lives, waiting to hit the oppo on the counter attack. Pulisic on for Neres and Torreira for Aouar to add a bit more defensive energy into the midfield.
----------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Dias------Dayot------Kabak--------Vinagre
-------------------------Torreira--------McTom---------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------Pulisic----------------------------------------------Rashford-------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------Richarlison---------------------------------------
Subs if DRAWING BY 65MINS
Pulisic on for Neres
Lo Celso on for Ødegaard
Piatek on for Richarlison
Fresh legs to bring on.
Attacking 4-3-3
We aim to dominate the midfield and control the game playing a copy of Pep's City formation. With great pace at the back, we play a reasonably high line, using our two pacey wingers to stretch the game and pin back the opposition full backs, creating the space for our get our central to dominate possession of the ball.
We have four of City's key midfielders from last season, while Danilo and Mahrez also add a former City partnership on the right.
Going forward we look to use the ability of our central trio in tight spaces to get behind the midfield, and then play one of our attacking trio through on goal. We will look to spread the ball wide, get our wingers on the last men in defence. They stay wide on the touchline in the first two thirds of the park. In the final third they have freedom to stay wide or to look to get inside their man and through on goal.
One full back bombs forward at a time, combining with the winger to double up on the opposition full back.
Defensively we drop into a narrow 4-1-4-1 formation. The two wide men get back in to help us defend in a narrow shape. Fernandinho the midfielder dropping deeper behind the midfield four, sweeping up any danger in between the lines as the free man. The four midfielders in front of him look to press the ball, as the whole side narrows to the side of play. Closing out any space.
Tomori is the central forward that man marks their forward, he has the pace and power to mark their most advanced forward. Rudiger reading the play and mopping up is the sweeper of the two. Both importantly are strong on the ball.
----------------- Arrizabalaga
Danilo ----- Rudiger ----- Tomori ---- Theo.H
------------------ Fernandinho
----------- Gundogan---- Allan
Mahrez -------------------------------- Di Maria
-------------------- Benzema
Subs: Henderson, Hakimi, Allan, Elmas, T.Lemar, A.Harit, Abraham
Our defensive unit consists of Rudiger and Tomori paired up at centre-back, Danilo at right-back and Hernandez at left-back, with Fernandinho as our defensive midfielder screening them.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Fernandinho's role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow the bank of four defenders and midfielders to maintain their position, ensuring the zonal structure shape is maintained with no space for the opposition to work in.
Attack
We will control the tempo of our attacking play. Looking to play quickly when we feel we can counter, or slow the play when the opposition are back in a solid structure.
One of Danilo or Theo can surge up the wings in the knowledge that there are three other defenders to cover. As they come up the wings, both Mahrez and di Maria who are excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box.
Our two central midfielders are excellent in tight spaces and will look to link up with the wingers, playing quick one twos to set them off into space, or taking the time to play daring through balls that will cut the opposition open.
Cutrone will occupy the opposition’s centre backs, holding up possession and looking to turn the defender and shoot. He’ll be strong in the air and look out for his teammates trying to pick him out from deep. He'll get in the box, and always provide an option for the wide players. The winger opposite play always looks to get into the box adding an extra option for the wide player looking to cross or create in the middle.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Elmas for Gundogan. Fresh energy.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Abraham for Benzema and Harit for di Maria. Fresh power up top to hold up the ball and link play, and fresh pace on the wing.
If drawing
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh power.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Harit for Gundogan.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Harit for Allan.
If losing after 65 mins bring on Hakimi for Danilo.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Abraham for Gundogan. 4-2-2-2. More direct.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
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Tactics
Page 6 of 77
7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
posted on 17/11/19
NORWICH v Tottenham
---------------------------Guaita
Aarons---Söyüncü-------------Ake---------Lewis
---------Koopmeiners--------Sanches
Wilson----------------Brooks-------------Cantwell
------------------------Dolberg
Free Kicks – Wilson
Subs: Handanovic, Godfrey, Cahill, Berge, Billing, Bowen, Pukki
Our defensive unit consists of Caglar Söyüncü and Nathan Ake paired up at centre-back, Max Aarons at right-back and Jamal Lewis at left-back, with Teun Koopmeiners and Renato Sanches as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.
This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Koopmeiners and Sanches we have a perfect pairing to initiate attacks by distributing the ball in an intelligent fashion, to be key players in circulation and to prevent dangerous opposition attacks, being disciplined in positioning and limiting space in between the lines.
The strength of our double pivot is that Sanches can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Koopmeiners can maintain a good position to react if the initial press is bypassed. Our double pivot will offer huge defensive stability and will ensure that a structured shape is maintained.
Having two defensive midfielders centrally prevents others being dragged out of position to press.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Sanches’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.
With Sanches running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Teun Koopmeiners.
A holding midfielder through and through, Koopmeiners is not just your “win the ball and pass it on to the closest player” – there is a real creative mind in his locker, but it’s his ability to be the shield of the back four and then be creative once he gets the ball that makes Koopmeiners such a talent.
The attacking unit consists of Harry Wilson, David Brooks and Todd Cantwell as our band of three attacking midfielders with Kasper Dolberg as our lone central striker.
Our 4-2-3-1 is set up to have that wonderful ‘springy' quality - it absorbs pressure without breaking and then snaps back with surprising force.
In defence our 4-2-3-1 covers space very effectively, with the band of three attacking midfielders and centre forward able to press the opposition high up the pitch while the two defensive midfielders ensure that there is no space left in front of the defence. Then the back four can either play a high line, compressing the space even further, or drop deeper as preferred.
Once we have won the ball back, often by Koopmeiners or Sanches, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.
Aarons and Lewis can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Koopmeiners and Sanches can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Harry Wilson and Todd Cantwell, who are fast speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. David Brooks our attacking central midfielder’s low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Brooks is blessed with an instant first touch and can dribble with the ball at such a close proximity to his feet that it makes him almost impossible to tackle this creative passer who will look to play Wilson, Cantwell and Dolberg in via fast passing combinations.
Up front Dolberg’s biggest strength is his ability to move between the lines, which will make him extremely difficult to mark. Dropping into midfield will allow space for Wilson and Cantwell to advance and make runs from out to in. From these positions, they can make attempts on goal. Also, Dolberg has the ability to switch positions with our wide players, allowing them the freedom to move inside.
Dolberg’s speed on and off the ball is an attribute that will cause our opposition lots of problems. His movement deep into midfield will give him the opportunity to receive the ball without being marked and drive with the ball towards the goal.
Subs on 75 mins
Billing on for Sanches, Pukki on for Dolberg
Double substitution - Lots of energy in the last 15 minutes to look to trouble the opposition for a late goal regardless of the score line
posted on 17/11/19
High tempo total football 4-3-3
Away to Pool we go with an attacking team full of pace, playing with a high tempo in defence and attack. They have a strong attack, but so do we and we feel we have a strong defence to allow us to take the game to them and have the midfield to dominate.
We have a cm duo that are all strong defensively, giving freedom to our attacking players to get the best out of them. We have a front three full of pace, looking to stretch the opposition and create space for our midfielders to exploit.
In the midfield trio we have the powerful Rodri next to the energetic Neves and Thiago. Neves our deep playmaker in the centre with Thiago having more freedom to attack. In defence Rodri drops behind the other two cms who press the play as the trio narrow, similarly in attack Rodri stays deepest but the trio do not play so narrow. We have a defence full of pace and great energy in front so play a reasonably high line, helping us press Pool in high area, and aiding distribution out from the back line.
We look to play our usual high tempo attacking game and take the game to Pool, seeking to exploit space behind their midfield. We have a strong side defensively and in attack, our team is built to give Felix, Hazard and Thiago the space and freedom to find the ball in space in attacking positions to hurt Pool. Neves creating from deeper, getting the ball to the front four in the right positions.
Laporte the man marker next to Varane who is free to use his pace to sweep up. In midfield, the trio narrow in front with the cm opposite play dropping behind, allowing the other two to press with cover. Felix drops deep to add protection in front of the fb and next to the two pressing cms. Closing down the space, narrowing to the side of play. Win the ball back from Pool quickly before they can get anywhere.
Quick passing and moving to find space in between the opposition lines. Using the pace of our wide cms, wide forwards and fbs (one bombs forward at a time) to create space as we push forward.
Key to our attack is quick passing play, not looking to force the play but moving the ball quickly. Pass and move. Tire the opposition out physically and mentally with our high tempo possession play. We look to vary our play, we can go long from the back or Schmeichel to mix the play up.
We have a cm duo who can both drop deep to offer an option and collect the ball from defence. Likewise a fluid front three, who can switch positions or drop deep to collect the ball from midfield. This fluidity will help the players to get away from their markers, catch the opposition out and create space. As we move forward we get quick one twos in the opposition half. With this fluid front three, Thiago supports using his pace and creativity to link the play.
------------------ Neuer ---------------
-----------------------------------------------
Pavard —- Varane -- Laporte -- Mendy
----------------------------------------------
-------------- Rodri -- Neves -----------
------------------ Thiago ------------------
J.Felix ---------------------------- Hazard
----------------- Ronaldo ------------------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Guendouzi, Sensi, Sane, Jesus, Lautaro
Defending high
When we lose the ball the closest player presses the ball, the second closest presses the obvious passing channel. As they’re doing this everyone gets into a narrow rigid formation behind the ball in position to press high up the park. Stop them breaking and press them high up the park.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
As Pool advance into higher areas of the park and into our half, our shape will resemble a 4-1-3-2. Felix drops deep and Rodri drops behind the other two cms pressing the space behind the two cms pressing the ball, sweeping up danger behind them and in front of the defence.
Hazard and Ronaldo in the space in between the opposition defence and midfield, and either side of their dm. This will make it difficult for their to dm to circulate possession back to their defence.
Felix and the two cms (Neves and Thiago) are the trio pressing the ball, and look to force Pool backwards. With the two forwards left forward this is where we look to press the opposition into mistakes and win the ball in high areas. With pace to join the attack quickly and overload Pool.
When Pool get past the initial press higher up the park, we drop deeper into a narrower tighter formation narrowing to the side of play, ensuring there are no gaps in the formation. Our fb’s have fantastic pace up against their wide forwards, bide their time, not diving in.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Jesus for Ronaldo. As Pool will push for a goal, give us fresh pace up top.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Guendouzi and Sane for Neves and Felix.
Fresh legs in cm keeping us on top, and pace to burn in attack.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Sane for Neves. Felix to AM. Thiago cm. Sane Rw.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Jesus for Felix. Playing off Ronaldo.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Sensi for Mendy. 352. Pavard 3rd cb.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Sane for Neves. Sane RW, Thiago cm. Felix Am.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Jesus and Sensi for Mendy and Felix. Thiago next to Neves and Sensi in cm. 352.
posted on 17/11/19
SUBS FOR RED
Subs if red. We bring on Jesus for Ronaldo up top after 65 mins - fresh legs and more pace and work rate needed.
If GK - Schmeichel on for Felix - 4-3-1-1
If rb/cb - bring on Bellerin for Felix (Pavard to cb if cb)
If lb bring on Grimaldo for Felix
If Thiago/Neves bring on Sensi for Felix.
If Rodri bring on Guendouzi for Felix
If Felix - no direct sub.
If Hazard - 4-3-1-1, no direct sub.
If Ronaldo bring on Jesus for Felix.
posted on 17/11/19
Attacking 4-3-3
At home, we aim to dominate the midfield and control the game playing a copy of Pep's City formation. With great pace at the back, we play a reasonably high line, using our two pacey wingers to stretch the game and pin back the opposition full backs, creating the space for our get our central to dominate possession of the ball.
We have four of City's key midfielders from last season, while Danilo and Mahrez also add a former City partnership on the right.
Going forward we look to use the ability of our central trio in tight spaces to get behind the Southampton midfield, and then play one of our attacking trio through on goal. We will look to spread the ball wide, get our wingers on the last men in defence. They stay wide on the touchline in the first two thirds of the park. In the final third they have freedom to stay wide or to look to get inside their man and through on goal.
One full back bombs forward at a time, combining with the winger to double up on the opposition full back.
Defensively we drop into a narrow 4-1-4-1 formation. The two wide men get back in to help us defend in a narrow shape. Fernandinho the midfielder dropping deeper behind the midfield four, sweeping up any danger in between the lines as the free man. The four midfielders in front of him look to press the ball, as the whole side narrows to the side of play. Closing out any space.
Rudiger is the central forward that man marks their forward, he has the pace and power to mark their most advanced forward. Romagnoli one of the best in the game for reading the play and mopping up is the sweeper of the two. Both importantly are strong on the ball.
----------------- Arrizabalaga
Danilo ----- Rudiger ----- Tomori ---- Theo.H
------------------ Fernandinho
----------- Gundogan---- D.Silva
Mahrez -------------------------------- T.Lemar
-------------------- Cutrone
Subs: Henderson, Hakimi, Allan, Elmas, Adelaide, Benzema, Abraham
Our defensive unit consists of Rudiger and Romagnoli paired up at centre-back, Danilo at right-back and Hernandez at left-back, with Fernandinho as our defensive midfielder screening them.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Fernandinho's role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow the bank of four defenders and midfielders to maintain their position, ensuring the zonal structure shape is maintained with no space for the opposition to work in.
Attack
We will control the tempo of our attacking play. Looking to play quickly when we feel we can counter, or slow the play when the opposition are back in a solid structure.
One of Danilo or Theo can surge up the wings in the knowledge that there are three other defenders to cover. As they come up the wings, both Mahrez and di Maria who are excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box.
Our two central midfielders are excellent in tight spaces and will look to link up with the wingers, playing quick one twos to set them off into space, or taking the time to play daring through balls that will cut the opposition open.
Cutrone will occupy the opposition’s centre backs, holding up possession and looking to turn the defender and shoot. He’ll be strong in the air and look out for his teammates trying to pick him out from deep. He'll get in the box, and always provide an option for the wide players. The winger opposite play always looks to get into the box adding an extra option for the wide player looking to cross or create in the middle.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh energy and power.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Abraham for Cutrone and Lemar for di Maria. Fresh power up top to hold up the ball and link play, and fresh pace on the wing.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Benzema for Cutrone.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh power.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Adelaide for Gundogan.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Abraham for Cutrone.
If losing after 65 mins bring on Benzema for Lemar. 4-3-1-2. Mahrez behind the front two. Fbs more attacking.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Hakimi for Danilo.
posted on 17/11/19
Comment deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 17/11/19
PORTSMOUTH vs Bournemouth
---------------------------------------De Gea-----------------------------------
------------------Militao---------Koulibaly---------Ramos------------
---------------------------Fabian---------Verratti-------------------------
Atal------------------------------------------------------------------------Gaya
---------------------------------------Dybala-------------------------------------
------------------------Alcacer-----------------Werner----------------------
Subs - Butland, Ndidi, Rice, Draxler, Bailey, Kluivert, Leao
CAPTAIN - RAMOS
CK'S - ATAL
FK'S - DYBALA
PENALTIES - WERNER
When we don't have possession of the ball in our half I want the whole team except the strikers to get in our half and defend. Play a deep defensive line so that oppo can't use their pacy forwards to beat the offside trap. When we win possession of the ball I want the players to keep hold of possession and try and work some space. We have good ball players in Fabian and Verratti in the centre and they will help keep us ticking.
Defence
De Gea in net, command your box and don't do anything flashy. The defence is well balanced, with all 3 CB's having the pace and power to play the 3atb formation with ease. Koulibaly will focus on the oppo striker and will look to stick close to him and to watch out for his attacking runs. Use your superior strength to get the better of him. Militao and Ramos will look to stop the oppo LW/RW from creating chances as they will be helping our wingbacks double up on them. When either Militao or Ramos go to help the wingbacks I want Verratti to just sit a little more deep as to give Koulibaly some extra cover should someone from the opposition midfield make a late run into the box. Wingbacks will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Watch out for oppo wingers and stop them cutting in onto their stronger foot.
Centre Mids
Fabian + Verratti
Verratti will be the more defensive of the two as I want him to focus on helping out in covering for our wingbacks when they are out of position. Main job is to get the ball from deep and look to open up the oppo with your superb range of passing. Use your low centre of gravity to get away from oppo challenges and play quick simple passes with your teammates to work some space in the middle. Also when the oppo AM has the ball close him down asap don't give him time on the ball. Fabian will play a b2b role. Make runs forward and play pass and move passes with teammates and help the attack whenever you can. They both will be the engines that keep us ticking in the middle.
Wing backs
Atal + Gaya
Gaya and Atal will look to help both in attack and defence. When the oppo has the ball come back into the defence to make a rock solid back 5. Make forays forward when we have the ball in the oppos side of the pitch but track back when we don't. Get some low crosses into the box as my strikers are good at playing in between the lines.
Attack Mid
Dybala
Dybala will be playing as the AM today. I want him to use his great dribbling ability and passing to create chances for our 2 strikers up front. Look out for the runs of our attackers and make late runs into the box whenever you can. Shoot from range if you see an opportunity.
Strikers
Alcacer + Werner
I want both the strikers to use their pace and play off of the oppo shoulders and try and beat the offside trap. Be aware of lofted through balls and time your runs as best as you can. When in the box use your quickness and agility to get into good positions away from oppo defenders. Play quick one two's with each other to penetrate the oppo defence.
IF WINNING BY 65 MINS
Take off Alcacer and put on Rice in DM to give the defence even more protection. Formation will be 361 and Gaya and Atal will make less attacking runs now. Ndidi on for Dybala aswell on 80mins if still leading.
IF LOSING BY 65 MINS
Take off Verratti and put on Leao in strike. Leao will play in the middle of Werner and Alcacer who will become a front 3. Play close to each other and put a tonne of pressure in the oppo defence. Defend high up and try and score a goal.
IF DRAWING BY 65MINS
Leao on for Alcacer
Draxler on for Dybala
Ndidi on for Fabian
Fresh legs.
posted on 17/11/19
SOTON vs Chelsea
------------------------------------------Meslier-----------------------
Odriozola---------Upamecano-----------Dias-----------Chilwell
---------------------------Torreira----------Tielemans-----------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres--------------------------------------------------------------Pulisic
-----------------------------------J Rodriguez------------------------------------
----------------------------------------Kean-------------------------------------
Subs - Kabak, M Sarr, McTominay, Lo Celso, Under, Zaniolo, Piatek
CAPTAIN - TIELEMANS
CK'S - JAMES
FK'S - JAMES
PENALTIES - KEAN
I want us to hold a deep defensive line to start of with so the oppo don't get an early goal. Keep things simple in the beginning and only pressure the oppo when they get in our half. When we have the ball I want the team to play pass and move football. Don't stay static, try and get in behind the oppo defence as there is a lot of pace in our attacking players. As the game goes on, when we don't have the ball I want the team to defend from the front line and pressure the oppo and try and win possession back. Do this in fits and bursts as it is a tiring tactic.
Defence
GK to be confident in box. Don't take risks. Punch the ball away if the shot is too powerful. Command your area. The defence is well balanced. Upamecano and Dias bring a lot of strength and pace to the defence. Dias will marshal the defence and Upamecano will look to use his pace to close the oppo strikers down. Stay vocal with each other and cover for each other if oppo gets past one of you. Full backs will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Torreira will be covering for them when they go attacking.
Defence Mids
Torreira + Tielemans
Torreira will be the anchor in the middle. Stay back in front of the defence and protect the defence with your life. If the oppo play an AM then stick close to him and mark him if possible. When our fullbacks are attacking then your main priority will be to cover for them. When in possession pass the ball out to the wings or play a through ball from deep to our wingers. He will also be the bridge to connect the defence and midfield. I want him to get the ball from deep and look for the runs of players around him.
Tielemans will look to pick the ball up from deep and use his pace and energy to dribble the ball out. Make runs forward and help our attacking players whenever you can. Play quick passes forward and use your strength to outmuscle the oppo players. When not in possession of the ball I want him to sit alongside Nkunku in the middle and protect the defence.
Wingers
Neres + Pulisic
These 2 will be the focal point of my attack. I want to give them the freedom to express themselves in attack. Pulisic will be looking to cut in from the left and Neres will be looking to cut in from the right. I want you both to try and beat the oppo fullbacks with your pace and dribbling ability but don't try too hard as if you see them doubling up on you you can either pass back or into the centre of the pitch to one of our CM's. I want you both to be aware of our fullbacks and play pass and move 1 2's with them to try and penetrate the oppo back line. Odriozola and Chilwell are no slouches attacking wise so use them! If you can cut in onto your stronger foot, don't be afraid to shoot from range as you both have the ability to score from long range. If there is no space to do so then take the ball to the byline and whip in crosses for Kean to get his head on. Help our FB's in defensive duties if the oppo winger is trying to take them on. Track back and double up on him or mark the run of the opposition FB if they try to make an overlapping run. When we are defending corners I want both of them to stay near the halfway line so we can hit the oppo on the counter attack.
Attack Mid
James Rodríguez
Rodríguez will be playing just behind Kean and will look to help him out in attack. Be ready for passes into your feet and shoot if you see an opportunity. Mix up your attacking runs to throw off the oppo DM. I want him to dribble with the ball and play 1 2's with the rest of the team. Shoot if you see an opening.
Striker
Kean
Kean is a striker that has the deadly combination of pace and power. He will look to use his strength to get the better of the oppo defence. Be vary of crosses into the box as you are decent in the air, and if you are through on goal, use your expert finishing to score. Time your runs off the shoulders of the oppo CB's and use your pace to get away from them.
Subs if LOSING BY 65MINS
Put on Piatek for Torreira and Zaniolo for James to bring some more attacking impetus on. Play a high line and try and get a goal. Change formation to 41212.
-----------------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Upamecano-------------Dias---------Chilwell
--------------------------------------Tielemans------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres---------------------------------------------------------------Pulisic
-----------------------------------------Zaniolo-------------------------------
--------------------------------Piatek-----------Kean------------------------
Subs if WINNING BY 80MINS
Take off James and put on Kabak in CB. Play defensive with everyone in our own half defending for their lives, waiting to hit the oppo on the counter attack. Under on for Neres and McTominay for Tielemans to add a bit more defensive energy into the midfield.
----------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Dias------Dayot------Kabak--------Chilwell
-------------------------Torreira--------McTom---------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------Under----------------------------------------------Pulisic-------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------Kean---------------------------------------
Subs if DRAWING BY 65MINS
Under on for Neres
Zaniolo on for James
Piatek on for Kean
Fresh legs to bring on.
posted on 18/11/19
NEWCASTLE 4-3-3
___________Alisson
Trent____Matip___Hummels___Rose
____________Kante
________Henderson___Gini
Salah______Firmino________Mane
SUBS: Alder, Ox, Mount, Milner, Jorginho, Suarez, Lozano
Captain: Reus
Penalties: Mo Salah
Corners: Reus
Freekicks: Reus
The formation deployed today is so that we regain as much possession as possible higher up the pitch. We expect to have a fair portion of the ball so patience is key. Today we have pace all across the pitch to deal with their fearsome front three. We also expect the four behind the striker to drift around a bit, getting into positions where their natural play can cause damage. The striker up front presses when we don’t have the ball and the entire team will support him cut passing lanes to help win the ball higher up. The quality of our players will allow us to break through the oppositions press. When we have the ball we will want to attract the press and use the spaces that they open up to attack.
Full backs will get forward when the opportunity arises. Our full backs are good at feeding our forward line with their ability on the ball and we aim to utilize that with their ability to get up the pitch and tactical arareness. We also need our full backs to widen the pitch for us. Our centre halves are good on the ball, and a long punt every now and then to utilize our pace out wide is encouraged. Our right back will also tuck in to help solidify the team.
The DM will use his energy to overpower their midfield and be in charge of driving our midfield forward. Our midfield will be flexible, if one of their midfielders steps forward, one of ours will move into the space they vacated. The DM will be the link between our defence, midfield, and forwards and because of the way he plays, he will draw the opponents forward towards him to attack the ball, pulling their team’s lines apart. This will create more spaces between the lines for our midfield and forward lines to move into. The right centre mid will be the more attacking one in his box to box role, closing down space and cutting passing lanes with his incredible energy and also driving the team forward. Playing alongside the DM will give him less areas of the pitch to cover, and shorter distance needed to win the ball back to start the next attack. Both centre mids will float between the lines during the attacking phase just behind our forwards. The left centre mid will add a bit of finesse, with his ability on the ball and eye for threading balls through to our forwards.
By having our wide forwards up front when we have the ball it will effectively create space out wide. We would expect our full backs to sometimes go infield to collect the ball from the keeper, while one of the midfielders goes wide so when he receives the ball he will have time to look up and pick passes as the opposition midfield will be reluctant to press which will leave a man free in midfield. This can be done by a midfielder too, dropping deep to create a free man in the first line with time on the ball, ping it straight to the striker who can lay it off to the other onrushing midfielder.
If short passing options aren’t available the passing range and accuracy of our keeper will safely transfer the ball forwards via our full backs, wherever they are on the pitch. The keeper can also dink the ball into space for the striker or wide forward to control taking out 6 or 7 opposition players in the process.
The striker’s main role will be to create space for the wide forwards. He will drop deep into a ten to drag defenders out and create space for our wide forwards to run into. This will tie into our quick short passing which is aimed at dragging their players out of position and create space between their lines. Our team will always recycle the ball to keep possession and to keep the ball moving.
When we don’t have the ball we will expect our four behind the striker to drop into a 4-5-1 in support of our midfield. We will also create triangles to trap the opposition players that have the ball, cutting the passing lanes and others putting pressure on players that might receive the ball. We stop the oppositions rhythm and force them into mistakes with our pressure. To stop their counter attacks after we lose the ball, three players will swarm the ball carrier before he can get his head up to play. If they beat the immediate press when the team’s main goal is to push their play wide where they can do the least damage. Our midfielders are an integral part to our play, when we win the ball back we will create space and time for them with our team shape. There will be times when we are under the cosh and will have the option of deploying a bowl shaped 5 at the back, with the right centre mid dropping in to make closing down the opponents very effective.
Subs
70 mins: Ox comes on for Henderson, our legs will start to tire, so will theirs, Ox will add box to box ability and energy late in the game.
75 mins: Suarez comes on for Firmino, a different style of forward play for the opposition to think about.
If winning 80 mins: Milner comes on for Gini to close out the game.
If losing/drawing 80 mins: Lozano comes on for Jorginho and play 2 up front.
posted on 18/11/19
LIVERPOOL
___________ter Stegen
Weiser____Davinson___de Ligt___Zinchenko
__________Partey
________Kovacic___Dele
Sancho______Kane________Sterling
SUBS: Pope, Can, Kessie, Son, Rebic, Sarr, Mertens
Captain: Harry Kane
Penalties: Harry Kane
Corners: Sancho
Freekicks: Sterling
Crossing Freekick: Sterling
The formation deployed today is so that we gain as much control as possible higher up he pitch. We expect to have more of the ball so patience is key. We also expect the four behind the striker to drift around a bit, getting into positions where their natural play can cause damage. The striker up front presses when we don’t have the ball and the entire team will support him cut passing lanes to help win the ball higher up. The quality of our players will allow us to break through the oppositions press. When we have the ball we will want to attract the press and use the spaces that they open up to attack.
Full backs will get forward when the opportunity arises. Our full backs are good at feeding our forward line with their ability on the ball and we aim to utilize that with their ability to get up the pitch and tactical arareness. We also need our full backs to widen the pitch for us. Our centre halves are good on the ball, and a long punt every now and then to utilize our pace out wide is encouraged. Our right back will also tuck in to help solidify the team.
The regista will drop in to form a back three so that the centre backs can split wide to push the full backs general position higher up in line with the midfielders (and wide forwards engage their back line along with the striker). In doing so we create a four man midfield to overpower their midfield. This will allow our midfield to be flexible, if one of their midfielders steps forward, one of ours will move into the space they vacated. The regista will be the link between our defence and midfield and because of the way he plays, he will draw the opponents forward towards him to attack the ball, pulling their team’s lines apart. This will create more spaces between the lines for our midfield and forward lines to move into. The right centre mid will be the more defensive one in his box to box role, closing down space and cutting passing lanes with his incredible interception ability. Playing alongside the regista will give him less areas of the pitch to cover, and shorter distance needed to win the ball back to start the next attack. Both centre mids will float between the lines during the attacking phase just behind our forwards.
By having our wide forwards up front when we have the ball it will effectively create space out wide. We would expect our full backs to sometimes go infield to collect the ball from the keeper, while one of the midfielders goes wide so when he receives the ball he will have time to look up and pick passes as the opposition midfield will be reluctant to press which will leave a man free in midfield. This can be done by a midfielder too, dropping deep to create a free man in the first line with time on the ball, ping it straight to the striker who can lay it off to the other onrushing midfielder.
If short passing options aren’t available the passing range and accuracy of our keeper will safely transfer the ball forwards via our full backs, wherever they are on the pitch. The keeper can also dink the ball into space for the striker or wide forward to control taking out 6 or 7 opposition players in the process.
The striker’s main role will be to create space for the wide forwards. He will drop deep into a ten to drag defenders out and create space for our wide forwards to run into. This will tie into our quick short passing which is aimed at dragging their players out of position and create space between their lines. Our team will always recycle the ball back to the regista to keep possession and to keep the ball moving.
When we don’t have the ball we will expect our four behind the striker to drop into a 4-5-1 in support of our regista and right centre mid. We will also create triangles to trap the opposition players that have the ball, cutting the passing lanes and others putting pressure on players that might receive the ball. We stop the oppositions rhythm and force them into mistakes with our pressure. To stop their counter attacks after we lose the ball, three players will swarm the ball carrier before he can get his head up to play. If they beat the immediate press when the team’s main goal is to push their play wide where they can do the least damage. Our midfielders are an integral part to our play, when we win the ball back we will create space and time for them with our team shape. There will be times when we are under the cosh and will have the option of deploying a bowl shaped 5 at the back, with the right centre mid dropping in to make closing down the opponents very effective.
Subs
70 mins: Kessie comes on for Dele, our legs will start to tire, so will theirs, Kessie will add box to box ability and energy late in the game.
75 mins: Mertens comes on for Sancho, a different style of forward play for the opposition to think about.
If winning 80 mins: Can comes on for Kovacic to close out the game.
If losing/drawing 80 mins: Son comes on for Rakitic and play 2 up front.
posted on 18/11/19
Red go 4-4-1
Pope if keeper sent off
Can if back four
Kessie if midfield 3
Son if front line
posted on 20/11/19
Liverpool/Newcastle both lose slots
posted on 30/11/19
------------------------- Oblak --------------------------
Walker ------ van Dijk ------ Lenglet ------ Lucas.H
---------------- Fabinho ----- de Jong -----------------
Mbappe -------------- Grealish -------------- Neymar
----------------------- Lacazette ------------------------
Lafont, Llorente, Tielemans, Zaniolo, Chiesa, Greenwood, Dembele
Our game is based solely on possession football, quick on the break and really pressurise the opposition with an in your face performance from the front, we want to hit them quickly so we need to press them quickly to get the ball, when we defend, the back 4 must stay solid with Fabinho and de Jong ahead of them just in front harassing the man with the ball before they get to our back 4 and our midfield will be in and around the half way line, Lacazette slightly higher up, this will congest the midfield and allow us to dictate play, defend from the front, stop them coming forward from the back, however, if they do push forward onto us and we get the ball they will be on the back foot and will really struggle with our front 3/4 with Fullbacks who are always ready to pounce and hit them with pace.
van Dijk picks up the CF not much gets passed him, Lenglet spare picks up the AM if he gets away from our midfield, keep the forward(s) away from the danger area, get onto them quickly, take the ball away from them and play it out of defence, look to get it out wide quickly, Both are comfortable on the ball so can bring it out when in no danger and look for the pass longer to the forwards to hit them with pace, both must attack high balls to get the ball away from the opposition big men. Fullbacks keep the wingers quiet, stop their attacks Keep them away from shooting areas and stop them becoming dangerous in any position by standing tall against them and keeping them on there 'bad' foot. When they attack, only one at a time, they drive down the line in support of the wingers drive on the outside making an extra man. If either get caught up field I want Fabinho & de Jong to drift to the side and this allows the fullbacks to make their way to midfield to cover. van Dijk and Lenglet to go up for corners, with the fullbacks and Fabinho sitting back.
Fabinho our deepest midfielder sitting just in front of the CB's he will shadow there AM and not allow him to control the game, must be aware of all that is around him, be in the right place at the right time and look to cover for defensive players moving forward, he has to impose himself early on the AM to make him wary of holding onto the ball too long, once on the ball look around, head up and pick the pass that will get us moving forward quickly always making himself for a return ball from a deeper angle as he spreads it from side to side then eventually forward he is always looking for the ball to start again if need be, can be out to the fullbacks or indeed a longer ball to the front three to take the opposition out of it as they are still high up the pitch. de Jong will help stop the run of play quicker to make our defenders jobs a lot easier, protect our defence as best as possible, in possession get it to the front 3 but also look for fullbacks and Grealish as they move into space, keep it simple, he has a very good range of pass. Either pass and move(triangles) into space or look for a piercing through ball to our front three to drive onto.Can move forward to assist and look for balls coming out so he can either, shoot or whip straight back in. Grealish is essential to our style of play, he is the link between defence and attack, as we break quickly he will look to set up our front three and at times be in an advanced No.10 role and look for the de jong/Fabinho/CB pass. He will drop back at times to pick it up and will look to his dribbling capabilities to get him around players, sometimes taking a foul as he is a tricky player to mark. When in possession always head up looking for the movement of our front three to play them in, he will follow his pass and make up the numbers up front. When he doesn't drop deep i.e when the defenders go long, he will look to form a front four as they move around and look to tear the defence apart. All of our midfield three must press the opposition and get to grips with this game very early on.
Our wingers are extremely quick, when we don't have the ball they drop back a bit to make up the numbers as they attack, push into the faces of the opposition to force them into mistakes and hopefully in the end they lose the ball, when they do lose the ball we charge at them and we do it quickly, either a long ball over defenders our defenders are superb long ball passers, go through the cms or out to one of our attacking fullbacks.however, the movement up front between Mbappe and Neymar will cause them problems drifting in an out, thus allowing Grealish to pick his moment to move into space either as a 10 or out wide. If he does push wide this will allow Mbappe/Neymar to go in central as we will have an attacking fullback up and supporting. Quick passing in triangles that will get us in and beyond their defenders and eventually to Lacazette who can beat any defender with power and pace and the other wingers who will look to get into space to get a shot off, if there defence is on top then we can always go direct at times and fire early crosses especially from deep from the fullbacks into Lacazette who will sit on the last foot so he can spring them and have a shoot or sight mentality, can move central, we must always make sure he is well supported, if he cant get the shot away he will be looking to bring others into the game by dropping slightly back to get numbers for the attack he is a very tireless worker, who also helps defend from the from by harassing there back line/DM.
Captain - van Dijk
Penalties - Neymar
Free Kicks - Neymar (when going for goal)
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Greenwood for Grealish, he goes to No.10 and play just off Lacazette
75 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette, Greenwood beside 4-4-2
80 Mins - Tielemans for de Jong, try and open them up
Winning -
70 Mins - Tielemans for Grealish, will play as a No.8 just ahead of Fabinho and de jong and he will harass the Lesta players, also his passing is superb
80 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette
86 Mins - Llorente for de Jong, strong player for final 5
Drawing -
70 Mins - Zaniolo for Grealish, Dembele for Lacazette, change of personnel up top
75 Mins - Tielemans for de Jong
posted on 30/11/19
High tempo total football 4-3-3
In the cup we go with an attacking team full of pace, playing with a high tempo in defence and attack. Key to our gameplan is the midfield trio and Hazard and Felix working as a five to dominate possession. The back four and full backs are also key to our possession retention, as both full backs get bomb forward in attack. Rodri has a defensive role when we attack and are in possession, as he fills in as a third centre back and Neves sits in front as a deep playmaker. Thiago in advance midfield role.
The fbs therefore provide the width in attack, stretching the play, allowing Hazard and Felix to come inside to work with Thiago and overload the Chelsea defence. Neves, Thiago, Hazard and Felix working the ball in central areas to control possession and the tempo of the game, always having the fbs outside them offering an option to attack down the wings.
As we look to control possession, we play quick pass and move football at a high tempo seeking to find holes in the Chelsea defence. As we work the ball wide one of Felix/Hazard works with the attacking fb to try and double up on the Chelsea fbs.
That leaves Jesus and Hazard central to get in the box, the opposite fb coming in at the back post and Thiago outside the box. Jesus gets the nod for his pace and high energy. He dictates the pace of our play from the front. The energetic Felix also adds high tempo as we accept that this isn't Hazard's game, he has more freedom.
Whern we lose the ball initially Rodri is in a centre back position to guard against counter attacks. As the fbs get back, he moves forwared behind the other two cms who press the play as the trio narrow. We have a defence full of pace and great energy in front so play a reasonably high line, helping us press Chelsea in high area, and aiding distribution out from the back line. Neuer plays as a sweeper keeper, so if they do play long we outmuscle them in the air or have him to sweep up.
We look to play our usual high tempo attacking game and take the game to Chelsea, seeking to exploit their defence with high numbers in attack. We have a strong side defensively and in attack, our team is built to give Felix, Hazard and Thiago the space and freedom to find the ball in space in attacking positions. Neves creating from deeper, getting the ball to the front four and fbs in the right positions.
Quick passing and moving to find space in between the opposition lines. Using the pace of our fbs, and front three to create space as we push forward. We look to vary our play, we can go long from the back or Neuer to mix the play up.
We have a cm duo who can both drop deep to offer an option and collect the ball from defence. Likewise a fluid front three, who can switch positions or drop deep to collect the ball from midfield. This fluidity will help the players to get away from their markers, catch the opposition out and create space. As we move forward we get quick one twos in the opposition half. With this fluid front three, Thiago supports using his pace and creativity to link the play.
------------------ Neuer ---------------
-----------------------------------------------
Carvajal —- Varane -- Laporte -- Mendy
----------------------------------------------
-------------- Rodri -- Neves -----------
------------------ Thiago ------------------
-- J.Felix ---------------------- Hazard --
------------------- Jesus ------------------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Guendouzi, Sensi, Coutinho, Osimhen, Ronaldo
Defending high
Laporte the man marker next to Varane who is free to use his pace to sweep up. When we lose the ball the closest player presses the ball, the second closest presses the obvious passing channel. As they’re doing this the fbs get back, Rodri then pushes to midfield once back and everyone gets into a narrow rigid formation behind the ball in position to press high up the park. Stop them breaking and press them high up the park.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
As Chelsea advance into higher areas of the park and into our half, our shape will resemble a 4-1-3-1-1. Felix drops deep next to the other two cms pressing the ball, Rodri sweeping up danger behind them and in front of the defence. Hazard simply sits on their deepest midfielder, simple for him just man marks him out the game and doesn't give him anything to think about.
Felix and the two cms (Neves and Thiago) are the trio pressing the ball, and look to force Chelsea backwards. With Hazard man marking their dm, Jesus looks to split the space between their cbs. This gives us numbers back in defence leaving no space for Chelsea to play, as we have 5 players in midfield playing defensive roles. If they go wide to an attacking fb, then one of the cms/Felix presses him, leaving two other cms to press the space. Rodri at this point remains zonal in front of the cb on that side of play.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Sensi for Neves. Thiago moves deeper. Fresh energy, as we bring on Sensi an all action cm to keep the tempo high.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Coutinho for Felix. Fresh legs in attack.
If winning after 80 mins bring on Guendouzi for Thiago. Power to see out the game.
If drawing after 70 mins bring on Coutinho for Neves. Thiago moves deeper. Coutinho AM.
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Ronaldo for Jeus. Using his strong link up play and inteligence against tired cbs.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Grimaldo for Felix. Move Hazard right. More natural width on the left to get more crosses for Ronaldo.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Ronaldo for Felix. 4-3-1-2. Go more direct, Ronaldo's strong link up and hold up play next to Jesus with Hazard in a free role.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Sensi for Neves. All action cm to come on and step the tempo up.
If losing after 80 mins bring on Coutinho for Rodri. Thiago to the dm role. Coutinho loves a last minute banger.
posted on 1/12/19
Comment deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 4/12/19
Bournemouth Tactics: Week 9
Captain: Benítez
Vice Captain: Guimarães
Team:
--------------------Benítez
Emerson--Romero—Felipe---Lodi
------------------Guimarães
-----------Bentancur--Zaracho
Mendez----------------------Oyarzabal
--------------------Gomez
SUBS: Musso, Júnior, Gabriel, Murilo, Éderson, Vargas, Gabigol
We want to play a neat crisp passing game at high tempo using our obvious pace to punish the opponent. Our formation will be a 4-3-3 that will allow our full backs to join in the attack when necessary and also offer us the flexibility to fall back into a more standard 4-4-2 when under pressure. We need to boss the midfield from the start and control the game with our own tempo. When in possession use the ball well and try and bring our wide men in to play. When chasing the ball press the opponent with urgency and all over the park. Don’t take too many risks and hold onto the ball. With our creativity and pace we will be able to open teams up. Wait for the chances to arise and take them when they come.
Goalkeeper: Benítez is a big mobile keeper and very agile. A great shot stopper, he will communicate with the back 4 and be commanding with the high ball. He will not take any risks. He is a great distributor with both hand and foot and we will look to this as a way to launch quick attacks.
Defence: Our 2 full backs are there firstly to defend and make sure they stay on the right side of their opponents whether they be out wide or cutting inside. When we are on the attack they will be allowed to use their power and pace to provide the overlap on the flanks. They both have the power and the lungs to work the touchline for 90 minutes. They will make the pitch wide and always offer themselves as an option in attack. Our 2 centre halves are big 6 feet plus ball playing defenders. Both good in the air and equally as good with the ball at their feet. They will be asked to do the simple things well. Be aggressive but controlled in the tackle and never lose your man when defending dead ball situations. They will be able to bring the ball out of defence but if in doubt take absolutely no chances and clear it. Both big men will be a real aerial threat at set pieces.
Midfield: Guimarães will be the midfield general. A physical pacey midfielder he will be there to boss this area for us. Breaking up play and filling in as an extra defender if one of our back 4 has ventured forward. He will be there to protect the defence and do a lot of the unseen dirty work in the centre of the park. He is essential to our game plan and while sitting deep will still offer a lot with his great passing ability. He also has a thunderbolt right foot. Bentancur and Zaracho will play just in front of Guimarães. Bentancur will be a more box to box type. He will be involved all over and will offer as much in defence as in attack. Zaracho will be the midfield magician. Clever, elusive and tricky we will look to him for creating the midfield openings with his eye for a pass. We will look at their enthusiasm and relentless pressing of the opposition as a way to hopefully get a bit of a grip on the midfield and at the very least not make it plain sailing for the opposition.
Wingers/Centre Forward: When in possession both Mendez and Oyarzabal will be expected to go for the direct approach and use their power and speed to take on the opposition defence and beat them and bring Zaracho, Bentancur and Gomez in to play. They can vary their attacks by going wide or cutting inside as they see fit. Both players can play all across the middle so don’t be surprised to see them swapping wings. At times Bentancur may sit a bit deeper allowing Zaracho to slot in between both wingers, just behind the CF. As well as an attacking force both wingers will also have to put a defensive shift when called upon and act as back up for their respective full backs.
Gomez starts as the CF. He won’t be short of support or ammunition with the attacking talent behind him. Great big old fashioned centre forward. We will look for him to hold up and bring others in to play if it doesn’t seem to be on for him. An eye for a pass and not afraid to have a go from distance. We will look to get bodies in the box when attacking so he should always have an outlet. He is also great in the air and will provide an option from set pieces. When the shot is on he will take it but we also want to put himself about in the box and think that his power pace will be a real handful for defences. He will also be alert to any scraps in and around the goal. He has the ability to produce something sublime and create a chance out of nothing.
Free Kicks/Corners: Zaracho, Oyarzabal or Mendez with Romero, Felipe, Guimarães and Gomez to offer an aerial threat. Zaracho and Oyarzabal (with his thunderbolt left foot) may try their luck with several free kicks from distance.
Penalties: Gomez
Substitutions: (if winning on 80 minutes) Gabriel for Felipe, Gabigol for Gomez and Éderson for Bentancur, 3 like for like substitutions.
If losing (on 80 minutes) Vargas for Bentancur and Gabigol for Mendez. Shift to a 4-1-3-2 attack. Gabigol and Vargas offering fresh legs, pace and a bit of the unknown in attack.
---------------Guimarães
Vargas---Zaracho----Oyarzabal
--------Gomez---Gabigol
Red Card Subs:
Keeper: Musso for Benítez and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
FB: Júnior as direct replacement (LB/RB) and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
CB: Gabriel as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
CM: Murilo as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
LW/RW/AM: Move Zaracho to LW/RW: 4-4-1
CF: Gabigol as direct replacement and take off Bentancur: 4-4-1
posted on 5/12/19
------------------------- Areola ---------------------------
Mukiele ------- N.Sule ------- J.Evans ------- Marcelo
------------------------- Zakaria --------------------------
----------------- Tolisso ------- Arthur ------------------
Gnabry ------------------------------------------- Barnes
---------------------- Lewandowski ----------------------
Ramsdale, Stones, WIlliams, Pjanic, Bruno, Ferran, Malen
Look to try and control possession high up the field, push them back by playing a high line(the front three)pass and move into positions that can hurt them, when we defend we do so as a team with two banks of four with Zakaria in between the two lines, our midfield & Lewandowski harassing their backline and really pressurise them into quick , misplaced passes for us to pick up, in their face performance, especially Arthur & Tolisso as we try to nullify their midfield and stop them creating chances for the forwards.
Mukiele and Marcelo have freedom to attack, but only one at a time, one will stay back creating a back 3 when we attack, bomb down the line supporting the wingers on the outside, which will allow the winger to cut inside and support Lewandowski. They look to play one twos with the midfield which will get him beyond there fullback and whip in dangerous crosses. Both tough defenders and intelligent so know when to tackle and when just to try and shimmy out wide. When defending and on the cautious side and remain vigilant at all times in the line of four, keep it tight.. Sule will mark the CF, use his strength and speed to keep the CF away from the danger area. Evans alongside is the spare defender and helps out where needed, both powerful defenders, Both will dominate in the air and both good on the ball, so when in possession they can carry the ball out from defence and look to send our forwards away. Stay tight as a four and let nothing through. Both cbs up for corners, fullbacks stay back and a midfielder just sitting in front of them. When we are in possession the ball will come from the back, so these guys must look for movement ahead of them so they can pick there pass, both CBs are comfortable with ball at feet and will take the ball out of defence to allow them to come on to us before he passes, this will create space as hew will force them to break away from the players they are marking..
Zakaria's primary role in front of the defence is to win possession and then start an attacking phase. Within this he needs to cover spaces in between the midfield and defence where the opposition’s number 10 will likely to be operating whilst also being aware when the full-backs had pushed forward.Take care of of the No 10/SS is also a main focus, he isn't an out an out DM but he has a lot of grit and determination to his game so stick to him like glue and stop him becoming a threat Once he is in possession of the ball nice simple balls to those around him.
Arthur is our box-to-box midfielder and has responsibility throughout the pitch. He is expected to score goals and create chances for team mates, whilst also helping in the defensive third. One requirement of this role are high fitness levels due to the amount of running they are expected to do. The box-to-box midfielder is more likely to be found on the side of the pitch where the full-back that is less efficient in the attacking third plays to provide balance on both flanks, he also has a mean shot from distance and isn't afraid to have a go. Tolisso's I want further up the pitch today as his main responsibility is to both create chances for the three attackers in front of him and indeed score the goals himself. Pushing forward as a AM he will often find himself the furthest forward of the three midfielders and sometimes even in the number 9 role if the correct situation arises. The advantage having Tolisso there is he has pace & tenacity to get right un amongst them, he needs to be able to play a pass that penetrates the opposition’s defense or dictates the direction of the attack These three should work well together and between them have everything a midfield needs. He will try and get in beyond there DM and support Lewandowski and look for any scraps coming his way.
Wingers are going to cause problems out wide, with the support they will have, they will look to push the fullbacks back and get into the danger area, Barnes I want to drive on the outside and play as a natural winger not an inside forward unless supported by Marcelo. both sides will definitely pose a threat with quick one twos. If they play with 3 at the back try and expose the space in behind the wingbacks by using Arthur/Tolisso to play around and behind them with the ball going in triangles quickly until the break is on. If fulbacks drive passed wingers they can cut inside looking to make a nuisance of themselves centrally again using the CMs to get into danger areas. Both wingers have a fantastic forward to aim for in Lewandowksi so if they get to the bye line then get the crosses in for him to attack.Lewandowski will get plenty chances, however he must put away there side who will be solid at the back, I want to bully the slower/weaker/less experienced of the two/three with the aid of Tolisso and the wingers and sometimes the fullbacks. Get into positions that he can go for goal or at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Again, target the slower/weaker of the cbs, split them apart to create space, we are quick, so our forwards must hit them with pace to drag them all over the place. Lets be honest, he is a goal machine and will stick it in the back of the net when he has a sniff of goal, he can score from various angles/ranges with hopefully a few crosses coming in he can get up and above defenders for. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Gnabry and Barnes will be making runs so be watchful of them just to lay it off to the side if he cant go for goal himself. But especially look for the midfielders centrally driving forward as they time their runs perfectly so a little touch back to him allows him to go for goal.
We must defend as a team tho, from the front, so wingers track back and cover the fullbacks,I want the midfield to be compact to allow very little space, even just to stop them supporting the wingers, we must drive into them and pressurize them into mistakes
Captain - J.Evans
Pens - Lewandowksi
Free Kicks - Barnes
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Malen for Arthur, we go 4-4-2
75 Mins - Pjanic for Tolisso , try and open them up with his passing
82 Mins - Ferran for Barnes, switch with Gnabry to try and get at tiring fullbacks
Winning -
75 Mins - Pjanic for Arthur, straight swap, look to control the midfield more
85 Mins - Malen for Lewandowski, run the clock down, get at defenders
Drawing -
65 Mins - Bruno for Arthur, more forward driven
75 Mins - Ferran for Barnes, switch with Gnabry, Pjanic for Tolisso, look to open them up
Red Card
Areola - Ramsdale for Arthur
Marcelo - B.Williams for Arthur
Any other derender - Stones for Arthur
Zakaria - Arthur takes the DM role
Gnabry - Tolisso go wider
Barnes - Gnabry to LM, Tolisso to RM
Lewandowski - Malen for Arthur
Always a flat 4-4-1
posted on 5/12/19
Red Card game is City v Portsmouth, not Bournemouth
posted on 7/12/19
------------------------- Oblak --------------------------
Walker ------ Mancini ------ Lenglet ------ Lucas.H
--------------- Fabinho ------ Tielemans -------------
------------------------- Pogba -------------------------
--- Mbappe ------------------------------- Neymar ---
----------------------- Lacazette ----------------------
Lafont, Kehrer, Llorente, Zaniolo, Chiesa, Martial, Dembele
Our game is based solely on possession football, quick on the break and really pressurise the opposition with an in your face performance from the front, we want to hit them quickly so we need to press them quickly to get the ball, when we defend, the back 4 must stay solid with Fabinho & Tielemans ahead of them just in front harassing the man with the ball before they get to our back 4 and our midfield will be in and around the half way line, Lacazette slightly higher up, this will congest the midfield and allow us to dictate play, defend from the front, stop them coming forward from the back, however, if they do push forward onto us and we get the ball they will be on the back foot and will really struggle with our front 3/4 with Fullbacks who are always ready to pounce and hit them with pace.
Mancini picks up the CF, Lenglet spare picks up the AM if he gets away from our midfield, keep the forward(s) away from the danger area, get onto them quickly, take the ball away from them and play it out of defence, look to get it out wide quickly, Both are comfortable on the ball so can bring it out when in no danger and look for the pass longer to the forwards to hit them with pace, both must attack high balls to get the ball away from the opposition big men. Fullbacks keep the wingers quiet, stop their attacks Keep them away from shooting areas and stop them becoming dangerous in any position by standing tall against them and keeping them on there 'bad' foot. When they attack, only one at a time, they drive down the line in support of the wingers drive on the outside making an extra man. If either get caught up field I want Fabinho/Tielemans to drift to the side and this allows the fullbacks to make their way to midfield to cover. Mancini and Lenglet to go up for corners, with the fullbacks and Fabinho sitting back.
Fabinho our deepest midfielder sitting just in front of the CB's he will shadow there AM and not allow him to control the game, must be aware of all that is around him, be in the right place at the right time and look to cover for defensive players moving forward, he has to impose himself early on the AM to make him wary of holding onto the ball too long, once on the ball look around, head up and pick the pass that will get us moving forward quickly always making himself for a return ball from a deeper angle as he spreads it from side to side then eventually forward he is always looking for the ball to start again if need be, can be out to the fullbacks or indeed a longer ball to the front three to take the opposition out of it as they are still high up the pitch. Tielemans will help stop the run of play quicker to make our defenders jobs a lot easier, protect our defence as best as possible, in possession get it to the front 3 but also look for fullbacks and Pogba as they move into space, keep it simple, he has a very good range of pass. Either pass and move(triangles) into space or look for a piercing through ball to our front three to drive onto.Can move forward to assist and look for balls coming out so he can either, shoot or whip straight back in.Pogba is essential to our style of play, he is the link between defence and attack, I want him higher up the pitch today so as we break quickly he will look to set up our front three and at times be in an advanced No.10 role and look for the Tielemans/Fabinho/CB pass. When in possession always s head up looking for the movement of our front three to play them in, he will follow his pass and make up the numbers up front. When he doesn't drop deep i.e when the defenders go long, he will look to form a front four as they move around and look to tear the defence apart. All of our midfield three must press the opposition and get to grips with this game very early on.
Our wingers are extremely quick, when we don't have the ball they drop back a bit to make up the numbers as they attack, push into the faces of the opposition to force them into mistakes and hopefully in the end they lose the ball, when they do lose the ball we charge at them and we do it quickly, either a long ball over defenders, go through the cms or out to one of our attacking fullbacks.however, the movement up front between Mbappe and Neymar will cause them problems drifting in an out, thus allowing Pogba to pick his moment to move into space either as a 10 or out wide. If he does push wide this will allow Mbappe/Neymar to go in central as we will have an attacking fullback up and supporting. Quick passing in triangles that will get us in and beyond their defenders and eventually to Lacazette who can beat any defender with power and pace and the other wingers who will look to get into space to get a shot off, if there defence is on top then we can always go direct at times and fire early crosses especially from deep from the fullbacks into Lacazette who will sit on the last foot so he can spring them and have a shoot or sight mentality, can move central, we must always make sure he is well supported, if he cant get the shot away he will be looking to bring others into the game by dropping slightly back to get numbers for the attack he is a very tireless worker, who also helps defend from the from by harassing there back line/DM.
Captain - Fabinho
Penalties - Neymar
Free Kicks - Neymar (when going for goal)
Corners - Wingers
Losing -
65 Mins - Chiesa for Pogba, he goes to RW with Mbappe going up top in a 4-4-2
73 Mins - Dembele for Lacazette straight swap
82 Mins - Martial for Walker, we go 3 at the back with Martial going to the left and neymar LCF in an attacking 3-4-3
Winning -
70 Mins - Llorente for Pogba, he goes to DM beside Fabinho with Tielemans just a bit ahead of them
80 Mins - Martial for Lacazette, he runs things down v tiring defenders
Drawing -
70 Mins - Zaniolo for Pogba, Chiesa for Lacazette, Chiesa to RW, Mbappe up top
80 Mins - Martial for Walker, he goes LW, Neymar up top 3412
posted on 7/12/19
Liverpool v NORWICH CITY
--------------------------Pickford
Aarons---------Dunk------------Söyüncü----------Lewis
------------------Berge-----------Sanches
-------Wilson----------Brooks--------------James
-------------------------Dolberg
Free Kicks – Wilson
Subs: Guaita, Justin, Godfrey, Koopmeiners, Bowen, Cantwell, Pukki
Our defensive unit consists of Lewis Dunk and Caglar Söyüncü paired up at centre-back, Max Aarons at right-back and Jamal Lewis at left-back, with Sander Berge and Renato Sanches as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.
This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Berge and Sanches we have a perfect pairing to initiate attacks by distributing the ball in an intelligent fashion, to be key players in circulation and to prevent dangerous opposition attacks, being disciplined in positioning and limiting space in between the lines.
The strength of our double pivot is that Sanches can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Berge can maintain a good position to react if the initial press is bypassed. Our double pivot will offer huge defensive stability and will ensure that a structured shape is maintained.
Having two defensive midfielders centrally prevents others being dragged out of position to press.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Sanches’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.
With Sanches running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Sander Berge.
A holding midfielder through and through, Berge is not just your “win the ball and pass it on to the closest player” – there is a real creative mind in his locker, but it’s his ability to be the shield of the back four and then be creative once he gets the ball that makes Berge such a talent.
The attacking unit consists of Harry Wilson, David Brooks and Daniel James as our band of three attacking midfielders with Kasper Dolberg as our lone central striker.
Our 4-2-3-1 is set up to have that wonderful ‘springy' quality - it absorbs pressure without breaking and then snaps back with surprising force.
In defence our 4-2-3-1 covers space very effectively, with the band of three attacking midfielders and centre forward able to press the opposition high up the pitch while the two defensive midfielders ensure that there is no space left in front of the defence. Then the back four can either play a high line, compressing the space even further, or drop deeper as preferred.
Once we have won the ball back, often by Berge or Sanches, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.
Aarons and Lewis can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Berge and Sanches can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Harry Wilson and Daniel James, who are fast speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. David Brooks our attacking central midfielder’s low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Brooks is blessed with an instant first touch and can dribble with the ball at such a close proximity to his feet that it makes him almost impossible to tackle this creative passer who will look to play Wilson, James and Dolberg in via fast passing combinations.
Up front Dolberg’s biggest strength is his ability to move between the lines, which will make him extremely difficult to mark. Dropping into midfield will allow space for Wilson and James to advance and make runs from out to in. From these positions, they can make attempts on goal. Also, Dolberg has the ability to switch positions with our wide players, allowing them the freedom to move inside.
Dolberg’s speed on and off the ball is an attribute that will cause our opposition lots of problems. His movement deep into midfield will give him the opportunity to receive the ball without being marked and drive with the ball towards the goal.
Subs on 75 mins
Cantwell on for James, Pukki on for Dolberg
Double substitution - Lots of energy in the last 15 minutes to look to trouble the opposition for a late goal regardless of the score line
posted on 8/12/19
Attacking high press 3-5-2
A home to Wovles we go with an attacking side, that is firstly solid at the back but more importantly gives us a team to dominate possession. We go with a side with a high work rate, full of energy to press from the front. The defence starts with the front two.
Our formation allows us to dominate possession but also go with two up top. The front two set the tempo for the game with their all action styles. Both have the ability to drop deep and join in the attacks. Bernardo the AM, similarly plays with high intensity. We have three cms able to pick a pass, and with the ability to dictate the tempo of the game and control possession. Neves plays as the deepest cm, Thiago with the inteligence to fill in when needed. Two deep playmakers, with 3 cbs means we can go without a true dm.
The width is provided by the wing backs, and by an over lapping cb. Stealing a Sheffield United tactic, we allow one cb to get forward at a time. Blind/Pavard seeking to overlap the attacking wbs. This will see us always have two cbs and a deep midfielder in front when we attack offering cover.
We will direct our attacks down the wings. Both wing backs will have freedom to attack, bombing down the wings and crossing for the front two. The overlapping cbs, wbs and with front two will give us an overload in attacking situations. .
We defend in a narrow formation, limiting the space for Wolves to play in. The wingback on the opposite side of play will drop back into defence forming a back four. The wb on the side of play helps the cb on the side of play defend against the attacking winger and fb.
The defence and midfield press as a unit, ensuring there is no space between the lines for Wolves attacking mids. When defending, Neves plays zonally in front of the cbs and will pick up the most attacking cm in the area, likely KdB or Silva. Thiago will play ball side of Neves and always press the passing lanes. Thiago will pick up the 2nd most attacking cm if they break forward. Silva presses alongside Bernardo. Jesus looks to exploit the space out wide by their attacking fb and Lauitaro splits the space between their cbs.
When we win the ball we attack at pace. Use the wing backs bombing forward linking with the wide forwards to create.
------------------ Neuer ------------------
----------------------------------------------
------- Pavard -- Varane -- Blind ------
----------------------------------------------
Carvajal ---- Neves -- Thiago.A ---- Mendy
----------------- Bernardo.S ---------------
------------------------------------------------
------------ Jesus ----- Lautaro.M -------
Subs. Schmeichel, Grimaldo, Rodri, Ndombele, Coutinho, Son Heung-min, Ronaldo
Defence
When we lose the ball high up the park we always look to win it back straight away, don’t give Wolves a chance to counter. The closest 2/3 players press. Allowing others to get back into position behind the ball. Neuer also guards against hopeful long balls over the top in his sweeper keeper role.
In a narrow, rigid formation, we will look to press the space, not allowing them options. Keep them from advancing to positions where they can’t hurt us, by trying to win the ball back very quickly. Then break quickly in these high positions when we do win the ball.
When Wolves get past the initial press higher up the park, we drop deeper into a narrower tighter formation narrowing to the side of play, ensuring there are no gaps in the formation set out above. Our defence have fantastic pace up against their forwards, bide their time, not diving in.
Attack
We counter quickly when we win the ball aiming our attacks down the wings. If the counter is not on we look to get the wing backs and wide forwards doubling up on their fbs.
The back 3 are all comfortable on the ball and look to play out, helping us move the ball quickly having a strong base. Neuer's accurate long balls will also help as we seek to counter quickly exposing space left by Wolves in attack.
Subs.
If winning after 68 mins bring on Grimaldo for Mendy. Fresh legs and pace in an important position.
If winning after 72 bring on Rodri for Neves. Fresh legs in midfield.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Son for Jesus.
If drawing or losing after 70 mins bring on Ronaldo and Coutinho for Jesus and Lautaro. 3-4-2-1.
If drawing or losing after 75 mins bring on Son for Neves. Bernardo moves deeper, Coutinho in front. Attacking 3-5-2.
posted on 8/12/19
---------------------- A.Lunin ---------------------
Cancelo ---- De Ligt ------ Umtiti ---- F.Mendy
------------ Busquets ------ A.Rabiot ------------
---------------------- J.Felix -----------------------
Sancho ------------------------------- Hudson-Odoi
---------------------- Aguero -----------------------
Subs:
Whiteman, Godin, Vidal, Eriksen, Bale, Asensio, Icardi
Captain: Busquets
Free Kicks: Felix
Penalties: Aguero
Corners: Sancho
Moving the ball at speed will be the focus of our play as we go with an attacking 4-2-3-1 formation today as we aim for 3 points. We go with three exciting youngsters behind Aguero. Offering a perfect blend of pace, trickery and unpredictability that will cause plenty of problems for the opposition defence. We feel that this front four combined pose threats from all angles with plenty of goals in our lineup. We will look to dictate the play and take the game to the opposition. When they’re in possession we sit deep, our dual DM’s marshalling middle of the park, breaking down the opposition and setting up us on the counter. We feel that we have the perfect set up to open them up on the counter with terrific pace out wide which will cause problems all afternoon for their fullbacks.
Whilst the opposition have some dangerous players we will look to significantly limit their impact by retaining possession, we will force them to track back or risk leaving their defence exposed when we push forward in numbers. We aim to make things uncomfortable for them and feel that limiting their ability to have the ball in attacking areas will severely limit any threat posed. When they are in possession our wingers drop in as we play a compact 4-5-1 formation.
Defence:
We go with a strong defensive unit, packed with quality and experience we look to nullify the threat posed by the oppositions attack. We will look to be dominant and physically impose ourselves early on. If the opposition play one up top then Umtiti will mark. Quick, strong and aggressive we feel he has all the tools to deal with any opponent. De Ligt will sweep up and cover in behind, a fantastic reader at the back he will look to drop off and act as secondary cover to deal with any balls in behind. We feel it’s inevitable they’ll go with a pact striker and whilst Umtiti is quick, having De Ligt drop in behind him will help nullify the threat they pose. The Dutchman sweeping up from the back and immediately looking to get us on the counter with his fantastic vision and passing.
Our fullbacks will stick tight to the wide men, safe in the knowledge that they have supporting cover in behind with Busquets also drifting across from DM to offer additional support. When in possession both Cancelo and Mendy have license to push forward with both having great quality in the final third. We look to draw the opposition onto us by sitting deep when they are in possession, limiting the space in behind and drawing them further up the field creating space for us to hit them on the counter.
Midfield:
Busquets will be our holding player in the middle. A top class DM we rely on his fantastic reading of the game to break up the opposition play, winning back possession and setting us up on the counter as we look to get the ball into our creative players as quickly as possible. He’ll pick up their most advanced AM and cut out their supply line. He’s also a fantastic passer which will be key in winning the midfield battle and ball retention. Alongside him we have the classy Rabiot. A great passer and defensively strong he forms the perfect double pivot in front of our defence. He and Busquets will control that area of the field and look to physically impose themselves on the opposition, winning back possession and getting the ball into our attacking players as quickly as possible.
Completing our midfield we have the exciting Joao Felix. He plays in the AM role and has free roam to push forward as a SS when in possession . A player with superb vision he will look to get on the ball as much as possible, running at the opposition with his silky dribbling, drawing them in and committing a defender before sliding the ball through to Aguero or one of our wingers. He’s also a great goal scorer, perfectly capable of arriving late in the opposition box to finish and we encourage to make these runs and go for goal, safe in the knowledge he has two defensively strong CM’s behind him.
Forward:
We mix things up in attack, going with the pace and trickery of Sancho and CHO out wide with predator Aguero through the middle. We look to utilise the pace of our wide players, specifically looking for them on the counter as we break at speed and look to tear through the opposition. Sancho has the option to go down the line or come inside, with the youngster an assist machine and with the clever runs from Aguero we expect him to thrive. We want CHO to stay out wide, use his pace down the line and cut back for Aguero to slot home and in doing so creating space in the middle of the park for Felix to exploit. Felix will also look to drift out wide at times, pulling the opposition DM with him and creating space for Sancho and CHO to cut inside and go direct for goal.
Aguero plays through the middle. The brief is simple for the Argentine, get into the box and do what you do best. With the pace we have out wide and the late runs of Felix into the box Aguero could well find himself in one on one match ups in which he’s deadly. Play on the shoulder of the last man and as always be on your toes in the box, ready to pounce and finish anything that comes your way.
Subs;
If winning:
70 mins: CHO off, Vidal on. 4-5-1 with an extra man in the middle.
80 mins: Felix off, Godin on. Shut up shop time as we bring on an additional CB, switching to 5-4-1 as we look to see the game out.
If drawing:
60 mins: Rabiot off, Eriksen on. Extra creativity.
70 mins: CHO off, Asensio on. Extra goal threat with a potential match winner.
80 mins: Aguero off, Icardi on. Fresh legs and the perfect poacher against a tiring defence.
If losing:
60 mins: Busquets off, Eriksen on.
70 mins: Rabiot and Umtiti off, Asensio and Icardi on. All out attack.
posted on 8/12/19
Comment deleted by Site Moderator
posted on 9/12/19
PORTSMOUTH vs man city
---------------------------------------De Gea-----------------------------------
------------------Militao---------Koulibaly---------Ramos------------
---------------------------Fabian---------Verratti-------------------------
AWB------------------------------------------------------------------------Atal
-------------------------------------Goretzka-------------------------------------
------------------------Jovic-----------------Werner----------------------
Subs - Butland, Ndidi, Rice, Sessegnon, Bailey, Kluivert, Leao
CAPTAIN - RAMOS
CK'S - ATAL
FK'S - DYBALA
PENALTIES - WERNER
When we don't have possession of the ball in our half I want the whole team except the strikers to get in our half and defend. Play a deep defensive line so that oppo can't use their pacy forwards to beat the offside trap. When we win possession of the ball I want the players to keep hold of possession and try and work some space. We have good ball players in Fabian and Verratti in the centre and they will help keep us ticking.
Defence
De Gea in net, command your box and don't do anything flashy. The defence is well balanced, with all 3 CB's having the pace and power to play the 3atb formation with ease. Koulibaly will focus on the oppo striker and will look to stick close to him and to watch out for his attacking runs. Use your superior strength to get the better of him. Militao and Ramos will look to stop the oppo LW/RW from creating chances as they will be helping our wingbacks double up on them. When either Militao or Ramos go to help the wingbacks I want Verratti to just sit a little more deep as to give Koulibaly some extra cover should someone from the opposition midfield make a late run into the box. Wingbacks will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Watch out for oppo wingers and stop them cutting in onto their stronger foot.
Centre Mids
Fabian + Verratti
Verratti will be the more defensive of the two as I want him to focus on helping out in covering for our wingbacks when they are out of position. Main job is to get the ball from deep and look to open up the oppo with your superb range of passing. Use your low centre of gravity to get away from oppo challenges and play quick simple passes with your teammates to work some space in the middle. Also when the oppo AM has the ball close him down asap don't give him time on the ball. Fabian will play a b2b role. Make runs forward and play pass and move passes with teammates and help the attack whenever you can. They both will be the engines that keep us ticking in the middle.
Wing backs
AWB + Atal
AWB and Atal will look to help both in attack and defence. When the oppo has the ball come back into the defence to make a rock solid back 5. Make forays forward when we have the ball in the oppos side of the pitch but track back when we don't. Get some low crosses into the box as my strikers are good at playing in between the lines.
Attack Mid
Goretzka
Goretzka will be playing as the AM today. I want him to use his great dribbling ability and passing to create chances for our 2 strikers up front. Look out for the runs of our attackers and make late runs into the box whenever you can. Shoot from range if you see an opportunity.
Strikers
Jovic + Werner
I want both the strikers to use their pace and play off of the oppo shoulders and try and beat the offside trap. Be aware of lofted through balls and time your runs as best as you can. When in the box use your quickness and agility to get into good positions away from oppo defenders. Play quick one two's with each other to penetrate the oppo defence.
IF WINNING BY 65 MINS
Take off Jovic and put on Rice in DM to give the defence even more protection. Formation will be 361 and AWB and Atal will make less attacking runs now. Ndidi on for Goretzka aswell on 80mins if still leading.
IF LOSING BY 65 MINS
Take off Verratti and put on Leao in strike. Leao will play in the middle of Werner and Jovic who will become a front 3. Play close to each other and put a tonne of pressure in the oppo defence. Defend high up and try and score a goal.
IF DRAWING BY 65MINS
Leao on for Jovic
Bailey on for Goretzka
Ndidi on for Fabian
Fresh legs.
RED CARD SCENARIO
For all off the sending off scenarios we will change the formation to 3411.
If GK is sent off take off Jovic and put on Butland. Formation will be 3411.
If any of my back 3 get sent off take off Jovic and put on Rice in CB.
If any of my WB's get sent off take off Jovic and put on Sessegnon at WB.
If my attack mid gets sent off take off Jovic and put on Bailey in AM.
If any of my 2 strikers get sent off don't change anything.
posted on 9/12/19
SOTON vs Newcastle
------------------------------------------Gunn-----------------------
Odriozola---------Upamecano-----------Dias-----------Vinagre
----------------------------Aouar-------------McTominay--------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres----------------------------------------------------------------Rashford
--------------------------------------Odegaard------------------------------------
--------------------------------------Richarlison-------------------------------------
Subs - Meslier, Kabak, Torreira, Lo Celso, Pulisic, Kean, Piatek
CAPTAIN - DIAS
CK'S - ØDEGAARD
FK'S - ØDEGAARD
PENALTIES - RASHFORD
I want us to hold a deep defensive line to start of with so the oppo don't get an early goal. Keep things simple in the beginning and only pressure the oppo when they get in our half. When we have the ball I want the team to play pass and move football. Don't stay static, try and get in behind the oppo defence as there is a lot of pace in our attacking players. As the game goes on, when we don't have the ball I want the team to defend from the front line and pressure the oppo and try and win possession back. Do this in fits and bursts as it is a tiring tactic.
Defence
GK to be confident in box. Don't take risks. Punch the ball away if the shot is too powerful. Command your area. The defence is well balanced. Upamecano and Dias bring a lot of strength and pace to the defence. Dias will marshal the defence and Upamecano will look to use his pace to close the oppo strikers down. Stay vocal with each other and cover for each other if oppo gets past one of you. Full backs will start of with a conservative mind set and not attack too much but as the game goes on I want them to make overlapping runs and get some crosses in to the box. Torreira will be covering for them when they go attacking.
Defence Mids
McTominay + Aouar
McTominay will be the anchor in the middle. Stay back in front of the defence and protect the defence with your life. If the oppo play an AM then stick close to him and mark him if possible. When our fullbacks are attacking then your main priority will be to cover for them. When in possession pass the ball out to the wings but don't try any risky passes.
Aouar will look to pick the ball up from deep and use his pace and energy to dribble the ball out. Make runs forward and help our attacking players whenever you can. Play quick passes forward and use your agility to outmanoeuvre the oppo players. When not in possession of the ball I want him to sit alongside McTominay in the middle and protect the defence.
Wingers
Neres + Rashford
These 2 will be the focal point of my attack. I want to give them the freedom to express themselves in attack. Rashford will be looking to cut in from the left and Neres will be looking to cut in from the right. I want you both to try and beat the oppo fullbacks with your pace and dribbling ability but don't try too hard as if you see them doubling up on you you can either pass back or into the centre of the pitch to one of our CM's. I want you both to be aware of our fullbacks and play pass and move 1 2's with them to try and penetrate the oppo back line. Odriozola and Vinagre are no slouches attacking wise so use them! If you can cut in onto your stronger foot, don't be afraid to shoot from range as you both have the ability to score from long range. If there is no space to do so then take the ball to the byline and whip in crosses for Kean to get his head on. Help our FB's in defensive duties if the oppo winger is trying to take them on. Track back and double up on him or mark the run of the opposition FB if they try to make an overlapping run. When we are defending corners I want both of them to stay near the halfway line so we can hit the oppo on the counter attack.
Attack Mid
Ødegaard
Ødegaard will be playing just behind Richarlison and will look to help him out in attack. Be ready for passes into your feet and shoot if you see an opportunity. Mix up your attacking runs to throw off the oppo DM. I want him to dribble with the ball and play 1 2's with the rest of the team. Shoot if you see an opening.
Striker
Richarlison
Richarlison is a striker that has the deadly combination of pace and power. He will look to use his strength to get the better of the oppo defence. Be vary of crosses into the box as you are decent in the air, and if you are through on goal, use your expert finishing to score. Time your runs off the shoulders of the oppo CB's and use your pace to get away from them.
Subs if LOSING BY 65MINS
Put on Piatek for Aouar and Lo Celso for Ødegaard to bring some more attacking impetus on. Play a high line and try and get a goal. Change formation to 41212.
-----------------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Upamecano-------------Dias---------Vinagre
--------------------------------------McTominay---------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neres---------------------------------------------------------------Rashford
-----------------------------------------Lo Celso-------------------------------
--------------------------------Piatek-----------Richarlison-------------------
Subs if WINNING BY 80MINS
Take off Ødegaard and put on Kabak in CB. Play defensive with everyone in our own half defending for their lives, waiting to hit the oppo on the counter attack. Pulisic on for Neres and Torreira for Aouar to add a bit more defensive energy into the midfield.
----------------------------------Meslier--------------------------------
Odriozola-------Dias------Dayot------Kabak--------Vinagre
-------------------------Torreira--------McTom---------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------Pulisic----------------------------------------------Rashford-------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------Richarlison---------------------------------------
Subs if DRAWING BY 65MINS
Pulisic on for Neres
Lo Celso on for Ødegaard
Piatek on for Richarlison
Fresh legs to bring on.
posted on 10/12/19
Attacking 4-3-3
We aim to dominate the midfield and control the game playing a copy of Pep's City formation. With great pace at the back, we play a reasonably high line, using our two pacey wingers to stretch the game and pin back the opposition full backs, creating the space for our get our central to dominate possession of the ball.
We have four of City's key midfielders from last season, while Danilo and Mahrez also add a former City partnership on the right.
Going forward we look to use the ability of our central trio in tight spaces to get behind the midfield, and then play one of our attacking trio through on goal. We will look to spread the ball wide, get our wingers on the last men in defence. They stay wide on the touchline in the first two thirds of the park. In the final third they have freedom to stay wide or to look to get inside their man and through on goal.
One full back bombs forward at a time, combining with the winger to double up on the opposition full back.
Defensively we drop into a narrow 4-1-4-1 formation. The two wide men get back in to help us defend in a narrow shape. Fernandinho the midfielder dropping deeper behind the midfield four, sweeping up any danger in between the lines as the free man. The four midfielders in front of him look to press the ball, as the whole side narrows to the side of play. Closing out any space.
Tomori is the central forward that man marks their forward, he has the pace and power to mark their most advanced forward. Rudiger reading the play and mopping up is the sweeper of the two. Both importantly are strong on the ball.
----------------- Arrizabalaga
Danilo ----- Rudiger ----- Tomori ---- Theo.H
------------------ Fernandinho
----------- Gundogan---- Allan
Mahrez -------------------------------- Di Maria
-------------------- Benzema
Subs: Henderson, Hakimi, Allan, Elmas, T.Lemar, A.Harit, Abraham
Our defensive unit consists of Rudiger and Tomori paired up at centre-back, Danilo at right-back and Hernandez at left-back, with Fernandinho as our defensive midfielder screening them.
Helping the defenders maintain solid positioning is a key part of Fernandinho's role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow the bank of four defenders and midfielders to maintain their position, ensuring the zonal structure shape is maintained with no space for the opposition to work in.
Attack
We will control the tempo of our attacking play. Looking to play quickly when we feel we can counter, or slow the play when the opposition are back in a solid structure.
One of Danilo or Theo can surge up the wings in the knowledge that there are three other defenders to cover. As they come up the wings, both Mahrez and di Maria who are excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box.
Our two central midfielders are excellent in tight spaces and will look to link up with the wingers, playing quick one twos to set them off into space, or taking the time to play daring through balls that will cut the opposition open.
Cutrone will occupy the opposition’s centre backs, holding up possession and looking to turn the defender and shoot. He’ll be strong in the air and look out for his teammates trying to pick him out from deep. He'll get in the box, and always provide an option for the wide players. The winger opposite play always looks to get into the box adding an extra option for the wide player looking to cross or create in the middle.
Subs.
If winning after 70 mins bring on Elmas for Gundogan. Fresh energy.
If winning after 75 mins bring on Abraham for Benzema and Harit for di Maria. Fresh power up top to hold up the ball and link play, and fresh pace on the wing.
If drawing
If drawing after 75 mins bring on Allan for Fernandinho. Fresh power.
If drawing after 80 mins bring on Harit for Gundogan.
If losing after 60 mins bring on Harit for Allan.
If losing after 65 mins bring on Hakimi for Danilo.
If losing after 70 mins bring on Abraham for Gundogan. 4-2-2-2. More direct.
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