3 ways in which Argentina could have solved KSA's tactical problem:

1. Overlapping runs
2. Inverted fullbacks
3. CBs driving into midfield

#ARGKSA #FIFAWorldCup Where's the midfield?

Playing in a 4-2-4 with a flat back-4, and wingers requiring to hold the width against KSA's high line, Argentina were outnumbered in the centre with only Paredes and De Paul.

If one of the forwards came short to receive, he was man-marked aggressively.

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: 👇

Villarreal's 4-4-2 tactics versus Juventus:

• Using Pedraza more attackingly than defensively
• Moreno and Lo Celso playing between the lines
• Foyth staying back for security to construct as a back-three

#VillarrealJuve #VILJUV #ChampionsLeague Villarreal held a compact structure to deny spaces in the centre while keeping the block high to win back possession higher up

Football ABCs - Three fundamentals that I came up with while coaching the U14 academy:

A - Anticipate
B - Body
C - Control

Easy to remember and enforce until it becomes second nature for every player.

#fundamentals #coaching A for Anticipate.

It relies on the brain's ability to perceive similar patterns of play and situations through experience while correctly adapting to new circumstances that may arise. The skill of predicting what is going to happen gets better through experience.

Interesting perspective by Toni Kroos on the quality of football in different tiers of the pyramid: 'In the long period of pro career, I believe everyone plays where they belong.' (source: Einfach Mal Luppen Podcast) 'The top tier is easier than the lower leagues for some players because the quality of football is much higher, provided they keep up with the intensity and tempo.'

There's a problem with the traditional model of viewing a game of football as four distinct phases of open play - Attack, Defence and Transitions - and set pieces. Instead of looking at a team as a set of 11 players, we view it as one being. I elaborate on some details around it: The traditional model of breaking down the game into four phases, primarily two - one with the ball, and one without the ball - and the two transitions between them, assumes that the team behaves as a whole in any instant independant of it's individual players.

🧵How Barca's switch to 3-4-3 solved the problem of the 4-3-3 against Alaves:

The 1st half was lacklustre and Alaves' disciplined defence controlled spaces both centrally and in wide areas effectively without the ball. How did Xavi's formation switch win the game?

#AlavesBarca Mendilibar's sides are known for their pressing, and Alaves put up a defensive masterclass in the first half. They set up in a compact 4-4-1-1 shape denying space between the lines with wide midfielders tucking in narrow and the defensive line holding a midblock.
#AlavesBarca

The dynamic nature of space on the pitch
[THREAD]

How are spaces interpreted during the game? How different is it to the way coaches and analysts depict it on a tactic board? How far does science interpret it the same way as players. I explore these topics in my latest article: Success in executing the game model or plan also demands that the whole team interpret the same spaces in the same way. If you want to convey your ideas using the lexicon of space in football, you must understand their natureto achieve similar consistency in their interpretation.

🧵How Xavi can use Pep's 2011-12 Barca as reference:

Xavi might be a Cruyffian purist (unlike his predecessors) with the 3-4-3 but his current squad needs time. Digging up some old tapes when Pep tried the 3-4-3 too in his last season at @FCBarcelona and is worthy of a few notes Pep's 3-4-3 used Busquets as the single pivot, but Xavi would often drop alongside to buildup. With the CF dropping alongside the two attacking mids who played between the lines, and the wingers high and wide, the structure was at most times a 3-2-3-2

Recently, I decided to dump the popular five vertical lane division of the pitch to a four lane divison comprising of two outside channels and two inside channels. My reason was this made more intuitive sense for me to interpret patterns of play and was more relevant for coaching For a brief period while writing for TFA, I had resorted to this 4 lane model and I preferred viewing the specific zones this way but reverted back to emphasize the half spaces (like everyone else) and for sake of standardisation of tactical analysis

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