Chelsea used a 3-5-2 structure with two high number eights in N’Golo Kanté and Hudson-Odoi. Hakim Ziyech acted as a number 10, often moving away from Christian Pulisic, who stayed high as the main centre-forward... 🧐🧵
In the first half, Hudson-Odoi and Chilwell rotated well, with Ziyech moving over to provide support on the left. Here, he proved more difficult for Juventus to pick up because their midfield line often narrowed to prevent direct access into Ziyech between the lines... 🧐🧵
Ziyech then made more movements out to Chelsea’s right, and the home side found space to attack in the left inside channel, with Rüdiger frequently stepping out of defence to progress around the visitors’ central midfield three... 🧐🧵
With Chelsea constantly breaking into the final third, Rüdiger’s high position almost made him a second pivot alongside Jorginho. Juventus then defended extremely deep, leaving only one player high in the attack... 🧐🧵
Allegri moved Rabiot inside from their out-of-possession midfield four to create a temporary midfield three. This allowed one of the two central midfielders to drop and support the centre-backs during deeper build-up, and also to help combat Chelsea’s higher pressing... 🧐🧵
Bonucci often helped Juventus break into midfield from a central positions. With Rabiot coming in off the left, one of the centre-forwards dropped in to add another player to the midfield unit. As a result, Chelsea were forced back into a mid-block, and Ziyech withdrew... 🧐🧵
A change to 4-2-3-1 ensured a permanent three in the Juventus midfield. However, Chelsea responded by pressing high, with single pivot Jorginho jumping out to press more. Whenever Ziyech pressed aggressively alongside Pulisic, Juve struggled to penetrate centrally... 🧐🧵
Juventus made a string of changes, with Arthur introduced in the double pivot, and Dybala as a number 10 underneath Kean as the centre-forward. Juventus’ full-backs still provided the attacking width, attempting to build around Chelsea’s converted 5-3-2 defensive block... 🧐🧵
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City's 4-3-3 was designed to create central overloads, with false 9 Silva dropping deep and Sterling and Mahrez maintaining their width. Walker and Cancelo could then go forward to create 2v1s out wide in the knowledge that PSG’s wide forwards, were unlikely to track back... 🧐🧵
City implemented a high and aggressive press. The idea to show PSG inside was most likely to reduce the chances of them getting Mbappé or Neymar into one-on-one races in the channels in behind the City defence... 🧐🧵
A double pivot is a withdrawn central-midfield or defensive-midfield pairing. They are positioned in front of the central defenders, inside the full-backs, and behind the attacking midfielders. The duo is most commonly used in a 4-2-3-1, operating behind a 10... 👥🧵
In the 1980s, Brazil played in a 4-2-2-2, with Falcão and Cerezo in front of the defence and behind Zico and Socrates. This evolved, into something resembling a 4-2-3-1. One of the centre-forwards dropped back, and the attacking midfielders moved wider to form a three... 👥🧵
The new Norwich head coach has worked consistently for more than a decade since starting out as a manager in January 2011, having moved from Walsall to Brentford, then to Aston Villa and now on to Norwich... 🧐🔰
In addition to the odd brief experiment with a back three, Brentford used a proactive, attacking 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 in the early days of Smith’s tenure. With this shape, they were the fourth highest scorers in the Championship in 2016/17... 🧐🧵
Dean Smith also mostly used a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 at Aston Villa. While Brentford often created through the centre of the pitch, Smith’s Villa put more crosses into the box, having attacked around the outside of their opponents... 🧐🧵
Manchester United staged an impressive comeback from two goals down to move top of Group B and ease some of the pressure that had been building on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer... 🧐🧵
Manchester United initially found it easier to progress possession towards the right, where, owing to Atalanta’s out-of-possession 5-3-2, Aaron Wan-Bissaka came under less pressure when receiving the ball... 🧐🧵
When Atalanta adjusted to start pressing Fernandes - Demiral, from the centre of their back 3, usually did so – Fred withdrew into deeper territory to draw his marker and Shaw pulled wider on the left to tempt his opposing wing-back towards him and played balls in behind... 🧐🧵
Diego Simeone organised his team into an adventurous 3-5-2 formation in which their width was provided by their wing-backs Kieran Trippier and Yannick Carrasco, and Thomas Lemar and Rodrigo de Paul provided support ahead of Koke, their defensive midfielder... 🧐🧵
On the occasions Atlético could switch play from the right and around Liverpool’s 4-3-3 with sufficient speed they succeeded in finding Félix in the inside channel, where his ability to spin and combine in limited spaces helped move possession back into midfield 🧐🧵
Chelsea fell to defeat at Juventus after a fine defensive display from the Italians. Juve took the lead just 11 seconds into the second half through Federico Chiesa – a goal Thomas Tuchel later desrcibed as “cheap”... 🧐🧵
Bentancur dropped alongside Locatelli to form a double pivot. Bernardeschi then dropped into midfield, while Cuadrado moved into a narrow position. Chiesa then moved across the front line, attacking centrally to threaten the space in behind Chelsea’s back three 🧐🧵
Juventus initially defended with a 4-1-4-1. The hosts’ two number eights – Rabiot and Bentancur – pushed forwards to press Chelsea’s double pivot, with wingers Chiesa and Cuadrado pressing from out to in 🧐🧵