Thread by @roshanrao_

Barca's defensive dominance against Napoli:
[visual THREAD]

Barca looked far superior out of possession in comparison to their previous big games yesterday, particularly in the first half because of:
• High press
• Counter-pressing
• High defensive line

#NapoliBarca #NAPBAR

In this short thread, I've highlighted multiple instances where their pressing worked to perfection in winning the ball back, closing all the outlets for Napoli to build up and compressing the space required to defend in the middle. Let's examine how it worked: 👇

Counter-press case 1:

• Pass played to Frenkie about to result in loss of possession in zone b5
• Alba, Pedri and Busi positioned close to be able to press and cut passing lanes
• Overload created by numerical superiority, Alba intercepts, possession won back in b4
#Barca

High press case 1:

Napoli attempt to play out of the back, but Barca press high up aggressively. Although there is overall superiority for Napoli (6v5), the passing angles are restricted because of cover shadows forcing them to go long. Busi presses all the way outside the box

High defensive line case 1:

Barca played very brave with the line almost 45-50m from their goal. Although it costed them once with the Ter Stegen penalty, the reward was being able to control the space in the middle with their counter-press to deny Napoli space to attack

Counter-press case 2:

• Demme receives a pass beating the first line of press
• Frenkie and Busi press towards him instead of staying back behind their markers. Their cover shadows close passing lanes
• Traore also presses from behind isolating Demme forcing a turnover

High press case 2:

• As Di Lorenzo receives the pass, Toress presses with Ruiz in his cover shadow, Auba splits the CBs closing the option to go around
• Busi presses Ruiz from behind and Traore shifts to cover Zielinkski
• Possession won in a5 by Busi through 3v1 superiority

High line case 2:

• Barca press man-oriented in a4, b4, a5 and b5 which forces the RB Di Lorenzo to pass back
• Aubameyang splits the field with his angled run forcing the CB to go long as the only option
• Pique holds the line 2m from the halfway line keeping Osimhen off

High press case 3:

• Napoli now have numerical superiority in a5 but no positional superiority since all players are in front of Barca's press
• In an attempt to switch sides, pass is played back to the CB
• The backpass triggers Barca's high press with Auba splitting the CBs

High press case 3 (contd..):

• Barca create a 4v4 overload in a5 while the players behind close their markers and hold a high line
• Busi intercepts the pass from Koulibaly and Frenkie wins possession in a5
• Ferran and Pedri can now attack the space in b5 to transition

Counter-press case 3:

• Barca press from all directions keeping distances short, Dest has jumped up to close the marker on his side
• In the zone of mutual help, they create a 5v2 numerical superiority
• Traore wins the ball and Barca are in a good position to transition

All these instances were just from the first half. The high defensive line was high-risk high-reward strategy. At the cost of a penalty they were able to restrict and control the spaces further up the field. Can't say it's a fullproof strategy but it's surely the Barca identity.

References:

Paco Seriul-lo's zones of positional play:

My pitch division reference:

Feel free to add any relevant analysis clips from the game below or RT the ideas.