Players Of The Week 23/24 November

Phillip Wollscheid                 Hertha Berlin 0-1 LEVERKUSEN

Hertha Berlin had 63% of possession, 12 attempts but with only two on target. Leverkusen's excellent defensive organization and counter attacking ability secured all three points for them at the Olympiastadion. Crucial to Leverkusen was Phillip Wollscheid. The towering 6'5 inch German centre back made an astonishing 20 clearances throughout the game including 12 headers, keeping Berlin at bay.

Antonio Cassano                  Napoli 0-1 PARMA

Like the above mentioned game, the home side (In this case Napoli) had 63% of possession but still lost by a solitary goal. Parma had to play for majority of the game without the ball so when they had it they had to keep it. Antonio Cassano was crucial to this. He was an excellent outball for Parma, receiving the ball on 52 occasions and making 36 successful passes bringing others into the game. He was also fouled 5 times winning his side free-kicks, bringing them higher up the pitch. In addition to this he managed to create 4 chances for his side and scored the all important winner, inflicting Napoli's first league defeat under Rafa Benitez.

Jon Flanagan                      Everton 3-3 LIVERPOOL

Liverpool's stand out performer in the derby at the weekend. Unlucky to be beaten in the air for Everton's third but this in no way reflected badly on his overall performance. Normally a right back, Flanagan coped very well on Liverpool's left up against a very good winger in Kevin Mirallas. He made 9 tackles throughout the game which was the highest of any player, and also made 4 interceptions. Not long back from serious injury, Flanagan will surely now experience a run in the team following the news that  Luis Enrique will be out for up to 10 weeks.


Arturo Vidal                     Livorno 0-2 JUVENTUS

Juventus manager Conte has had a little bit of a midfield conundrum this season. He plays 3 midfielders across the middle usually Pirlo anchoring behind the more advanced pair. Marchisio's injury at the start of the season put Pogba into the starting XI and the Frenchman has done superbly to retain his place. Now that Marchisio is fit again Conte has to relegate one of his 4 midfield stars to the bench or play Marchisio wider where he is less effective on the game. At the weekend however he went with the Chilean Arturo Vidal in the centre of a three man defence. In short, he was excellent. When in possession of the ball Vidal would become the Libero. Moving out of defence and conducting play. He completed a staggering 100  out of 106 attempted passes and was one of the reasons Juventus where in complete control of the game. Livorno managed just 30% possession and had one attempt on target. Defensively he also done a good job making 5 tackles, 4 interceptions and 3 clearances.

Jesus Navas                      MANCHESTER CITY 6-0 Tottenham

Last season in the Premiership Jan Vertongen was the best centre back. He was played at left back on Sunday and even though that is not his most comfortable position, nobody could have imagine how poorly he would have played. This was down to the efforts of Jesus Navas. He opened the scoring with a lovely finish after 14 seconds and finished the game getting the 6th in the last minute. His first start since the 4-1 mauling of United in September Navas tortured Spurs, he managed to get 2 for himself, and set up Aguero for the 3rd.

Will a real English Number 10 please stand up?

Guest Blog (@NultyDave

Before the last round of internationals, Jack Wilshire was praised and vilified in equal measure for comments he made regarding who should be eligible to play for England, the Arsenal midfielder taking to Twitter to explain his comments. However, he also gave a view on what an English identity was and his view of how England plays, “We have to remember what we are. We are English. We tackle hard, are tough on the pitch and are hard to beat. We have great characters. You think of Spain and you think technical but you think of England and you think they are brave and they tackle hard. We have to remember that.”

Xabi Alonso famously commented that he didn’t view tackling as a skill but as a last resort and saw it worrying that many people found tackling to be a skill to be proud of. In many match day programmes, youth and reserve team players get interviewed and list tackling as one of their strengths.

In today’s internationals and Champions League matches the emphasis on technical ability overshadows all others. It’s no surprise that the teams that win the Champions League are gifted with the best technical players. Last year’s final between the German heavy weights of Bayern Munich and Borrussia Dortmund served up a final of fascinating technique with plenty of players operating at the peak of their powers.

Even when Chelsea were victors, with a style many saw as defensive, there was no denying the number of technical players within that Chelsea team.

But with today’s emphasis on technique and technical players, the emergence of the Number 10 as the key player in many teams’ formations has become more prominent.  Does England need to unearth such a player in order to become competitive at International level?

Look around the top teams in the Premier League, the vast majority of teams are utilising a 4-2-3-1 formation.  The player behind the striker, the number 10, the free role, in between the lines, the playmaker – whatever you want to call it, needs to be a certain type of player. A player who dictates the tempo and links the midfield with the attack. Coutinho, Kagawa, Ozil, Oscar, Mata, Eriksen the list goes on and these are the ones that play in the Premier League. Does England possess such a player? Maybe it is against the English mentality to play this way.

When Wilshire described tackling hard, fighting and battling on a pitch it could be seen in a negative light. Here is, perhaps, the nearest thing England has to the type of player that seems in abundance for other nations talking not of ball retention, possession and technique but of running harder, faster and tackling everything as hard as possible.

Greg Dyke, the FA Chairman, recently revealed his plans for moving England on; he does not believe the World Cup can be won next year. He wants an overhaul of coaching methods so maybe England can produce a player that can unlock the tightest defence, receive the ball under pressure, thread passes through and have the touch and vision to dictate the attacking tempo of the whole team.

The nearest England have produced in recent years is Wayne Rooney but his style is nothing like the players mentioned earlier. He is a typical “English” forward, all action, hard running, dynamic and aggressive. There is no denying he is world class on his day but he perhaps lacks the class and finesse of what other teams want a number 10 to be.

In South America, the number 10 (Maradona anyone?) is revered like no other position. In Argentina the position is known as enganche, the hook who links the team together.

Many players have been brought to the Premier League, who have played this position on the continent, only to be banished out to the wing. The systems used by managers in the hustle and bustle of the English league fail to incorporate a formation that suitably finds a role for a traditional playmaker. Modric at Spurs was pushed out wide before becoming a more orthodox central midfielder, Coutinho has played wide left, Kagawa at Manchester United is another example.

So if English teams fail to utilise these players in this position, how will an English version ever evolve?

When the country wants England to compete at the very highest level, it is time to develop players who can play this role or even just introduce a style at club level that uses a player in this way. If just one, one world class player, emerges who could play the playmaker role and be integrated into a team that works hard, is brave and all the other typical English traits then just maybe Greg Dyke’s target of victory in 2020 doesn’t seem so ridiculous after all.

Statistical 4-2-3-1

Something new here on the ThreeManDefence blog. We decided to sit down and have a look at all the important attributes that can be measured for each position in a typical 4-2-3-1. Then we decided to take the most important and in accordance with the statistics provided by whoscored.com put together a team that reflects the statistics. (The statistics only take into account the top 5 leagues in Europe, Champions League stats not included.) To make a balance we varied the type of players in the team, one winger would be a dribbler the other a crosser, the player in the hole would be judged on creation for others, and the midfield duo would be a passer/tackler combination.

We used the following criteria:
Goalkeeper (Average Rating)

Right Back (Tackles Per Game)
Centre Back (Clearances Per Game)
Centre Back (Clearances Per Game)
Left Back (Tackles Per Game)

Centre Midfielder (Tackles Per Game)
Centre Midfielder (Pass Succession %)

Right Winger (Successful Crosses Per Game)
Attacking Midfielder (Assists/Key Passes)
Left Winger (Successful Dribbles)

Striker (Goals/Shots Per Goal)



Goalkeeper:
Kossi Agassa - Stade Reims    Average Rating: 7.9

Small club Reims are overachieving this season and find themselves 5th in Ligue 1. 35 year old Togo goalkeeper Agassa has played all 13 games for them this season and been the stand out performer. He has 6 clean sheets, 4 man of the match awards and an average rating of 7.9 on whoscored.com rating him the highest goalkeeper by a considerable distance.

Right Back

Giandomenico Mesto - Napoli   Tackles Per Game 5.1

One of the stars of Napoli's resurgence under Benitez, Mesto manages to patrol the flanks both as an attacking threat and defensively. At home on the left as he is on the right, the 31 year old full back has averaged an impressive 5.1 tackles per game to claim the right back spot.

Centre Back
Nemanja Vidic - Manchester United   Clearances Per Game 11.5

An injury free Vidic has been one of the few stand out performers so far of the Moyes era. The no-nonsense Serb has been a real rock at the heart of the United defence and nothing showcases this more than the staggering 11.5 clearances he makes on average to protect the United goal. He is top across the top five leagues on clearances and takes one centre back slot.

Vitorino Hilton - Montpellier   Clearances Per Game 10.9

Rolling back the years the 36 Brazilian captain of Montpellier captures the second centre back slot following an impressive 2013-14 campaign. His average clearances per game stats are the second highest in Europe with 10.9, and with his fellow defensive partner Daniel Congre at 10.3 per game it shows how well the Montpellier centre backs are currently doing.

Left Back

Filipe Luis - Atletico Madrid    Tackles Per Game 4.9

Atletico's strong start to the season has been helped by the excellent Brazilian Filipe Luis. The Atletico left back puts in on average 4.9 tackles a game and like all good full backs still manages to get forward to help his side out. His 4.9 average is the highest for a left back.

Centre Midfield (Tackler)

Lucas Leiva - Liverpool   Tackles Per Game 5.6

The third Brazilian in our team, Lucas is the anchor which allows Liverpool's creative players to flourish. His non-stop running and combative style sees him marshall the Liverpool midfield making on average 5.6 tackles per game and his interception stats aren't bad either, (2.9). He is the top tackler throughout Europe and takes one centre midfield slot.

Centre Midfield (Passer)

Sergio Busquets - Barcelona  Pass Succession 94.1%

Barcelona's holder and not usually renowned for his passing, Busquets keeps things ticking over in the Barcelona engine room with a very high pass completion of 94.1%. Francesco Matuzalem of Genoa was very unlucky not to feature, actually 0.2% higher than Busquets. However Busquets has played more games this season and makes a considerably larger amount of passes than Matuzalem (73.1 compared to 48.4) so it gave a more accurate picture to include the Barcelona ace. 

Right Winger (Crosser)

James Ward-Prowse - Southampton   Successful Crosses Per Game 3

A surprise entrant, the Southampton teen and England under 21 cap Ward-Prowse has been pushed out to the right this season, and as a result of this has become a bit of a regular right-wing provider. His energy levels and his ability to cross are a bit reminiscent of David Beckham in his young days and the Southampton kid undoubtedly has a big future ahead of him. 

Left Winger (Dribbler)

Franck  Ribery - Fc Bayern Munich   Successful Dribbles Per Game 6.1

The forerunner for the Ballon D'Or award, Ribery has had an unbelievable last 12 months at Bayern. He is the highest rated player by average rating this season on whoscored.com and part of this is due to his amazing dribbling ability. Ribery torments defences time and time again and with his unbelievably quick feet and fantastic turn of pace, its no surprise to see him take the left winger spot.

Attacking Midfielder

Francesco Totti - AS Roma  Assists 6, Key Passes Per Game 3.5

Picking the attacking midfielder was little more complicated. Fabregas and Koke both had more assists than the Italian, both with 7. However Totti overall plays a lot more key passes per game. A key pass is defined as a pass before the shot. With one less assist but a lot more key passes it is fair to suggest that if Roma's finishing was a tad more clinical then Totti would be a lot higher up on assists. All round still a world-class player although honorable mentions do go out to both Fabregas and Koke.

Striker

Diego Costa - Atletico Madrid  Goals 13, Shots Per Goal 3.3

Just like above it was complicated picking the striker for the team. Cristiano Ronaldo leads the scoring charts with an incredible 16 in 13 and Costa just trails him with 13 in 13. However Ronaldo takes 7.9 shots per goal compared to Costa's much lower 3.3. No doubting that Ronaldo is a great goalscorer but a striker he is not. If you are looking for the most clinical finisher in Europe look no further than the Brazilian born Spaniard Diego Costa. With a world-cup approaching and with Spain in possession of such a lethal finisher then one has to wonder if Brazil's loss may just be Spain's gain.

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One To Watch: Bayer Leverkusen

With only 4 teams lower than them in terms of possession, they are averaging 46% per game, yet find themselves third, and tied on points with Dortmund. Sami Hyypia’s Leverkusen side are proving that possession is not key as they fire their way up the Bundesliga table.

Leverkusen are a little bit of an enigma. Low possession sides tend to make lots of tackles and interceptions in order to break up the opposition play, but Leverkusen have made the second lowest average amount of tackles per game. Only Bayern the kings of possession have made less.  They aren’t particularly big on interceptions either.  Hyypia’s young side however are grabbing all kinds of the right headlines. They pushed Dortmund far last year in the race for second and this year has gave no indications that anything is going to change in that respect.

Up front Leverkusen are lethal. Having sold key asset Schurrle to Chelsea, Leverkusen replaced him with former Hamburg man Son Heung-Min. At 21, the Korean left the Hamburg side that developed him with a very impressive 20 goals in 73 appearances. Not bad at all for a 21 year old. At 6’0 he helps with the Leverkusen aerial threat and with two strong feet he is a constant threat on the left, either down the flank or cutting inside.  In terms of Bundesliga Heung-Min has 4 in 9 from the left and has even chipped in twice with assists.

On the other side Leverkusen have another former Hamburg man, the Germany cap Sidney Sam. Sam has been at Leverkusen for three seasons now and has over 25 goals for them, but this season undoubtedly has been his best. Sam is one of the best performers not just in the Bundesliga this season, but across Europe. According  to whoscored.com his 8.01 rating has him 11^th across Europe, wedged nicely in between Aaron Ramsey and Robert Lewandowski.  Sam is joined with the goal machine Kiessling on 7 as Leverkusen’s top scorer and has weighed in with 5 assists. This does not give Jogi Lowe a selection headache as much as a selection migraine ahead of the 2014 World Cup.

Playing a 4-3-3 formation, Leverkusen play with 3 shutters centrally, usually Lars Bender, Simon Rolfes and Gonzalo Castro. These three protect their back 4 and then Hyypia trusts his dynamic trio up front to win his side games. Only 6 Bundesliga goals have been scored not coming from one of the front 3 this season, 2 of which came from back up-striker Robbie Kruse, indicating that majority of Leverkusen’s goals come from those up the business end of the pitch. It is a formula which is working very well for Hyypia and at the time of writing this Leverkusen have won 14 of their last 17 Bundesliga games.

In terms of Champions League football things aren’t going to bad either. 2 wins and a draw from 4 leaves them only a point behind Manchester United with United having the difficult task of having to travel to the BayArena next. Things are looking positive for Leverkusen, and many eyes will be fixed firmly on Hyypia’s side, to see how far they can push domestically and perhaps a Champions League run might not be too far out of the picture.

Why United need wingers as Moyes steadies the ship

David Moyes has now steadied the Old Trafford ship after some troublesome waters thanks to the Premiership fixture list. Since that defeat to West Brom, United are unbeaten in 9. Although the performances have not been glamorous majority of the time, they have been somewhat effective. Many people speculated as to how United would change under Moyes and if truth be told looking at the statistics, not that much has changed in terms of style.

Last season United struggled in wide areas, for the first time under Ferguson the strength of United was not out in the flanks. Moyes did not make any recruitment in the wide areas so this has been a regular pattern of play for United. Rooney and Van Persie are the focal points of the team, both the main sparks and the main threat for United.

Whatever happened between Moyes and Rooney it is clear to see that Rooney is galvanized. He and Van Persie have had almost identical patterns this season. Both have played 10 games in the league with 1 appearance coming from the bench. Van Persie with 7 goals has 2 more than Rooney, but Rooney has 2 more assists than Van Persie. According to whoscored.com the five best domestic performers for United have been Evra, Rooney, Van Persie, Januzaj and Vidic.

One thing that immediately strikes you is the absence of midfielders from the top 5. This again was a pattern last season under Ferguson. Manchester United’s midfield strength now comes from their ability to hold onto possession. This allows United to see out narrow leads through defence by ball possession.  Michael Carrick has no assists so far, but last season was his best in a United jersey. He has developed into a very clever player, breaking up the game through interceptions thanks to his clever positional sense. This season he is averaging 4 interceptions per game which is the second highest in the league. Carrick also is second this season in the average passes league, hitting on average 77 per game, 5 behind Yaya Toure. With Carrick now out for a few weeks Manchester United have a slight problem, and they may by relying on Darren Fletcher returning ahead of schedule or else Fellaini finally settling. In Cleverly United have a clever (pardon the pun) passer who is capable of retaining possession for his side through shorter less ambitious passes. With a pass completion of 89.7% he is United’s most accurate passer this season.

What next for United? With each game they win confidence grows for United. The win against Arsenal threw them straight back into the title race and with the experience held by the United squad you wouldn’t bet against them being contenders. Undoubtedly Moyes will be given time to build his team, if he is to continue with the 4-4-2 come 4-4-1-1 formation he favours then he will have to identify targets to improve United’s creativity out wide. United are too reliant on Van Persie and Rooney creating their own chances and working together without much more forward support. In a few of the big games this season the likes of Kagawa, Young, Valencia and Nani have been ineffective and this has handicapped United. Many fans grumble about the lack of creative quality centrally but it is actually working well for United, with two disciplined players they are getting control of games. They have had half a percent less average possession than Arsenal this season and more than Liverpool, so midfield control of games as well as that match winning strike force is by far Moyes’ greatest strength.  Consistency, confidence and smart recruitment out wide should provide a good platform for the future at Old Trafford.

Roma start the season strongly with Totti the usual suspect

A.S Roma are somewhat an enigma this season.  They have started with a 100% record after 7 games. They finished last season strongly and where originally tipped to start the season strongly especially after the introduction of former Lille manager Rudi Garcia as the new man in charge. However the start of this season saw an exodus of key players. Stekelenburg joined Fulham, PSG swooped for Marquinhos, Barcelona chose to buy back Bojan, previous top scorer Osvaldo left for the south of England with Southampton and Spurs bought the outrageously talented Lamela. Many people believed that this exodus of talent would set Roma backwards, all but two of their key assets where shown the door.

However the total value of the sales brought in just over €100 million for the Italians, this was a real testament to the reactive nature of Roma in player recruitment and this money was invested very shrewdly by Garcia in the replacements he brought in.

Italian cap Morgan De Sanctis replaced the Fulham bound Stekelenburg, Maicon was brought in after an unsuccessful spell at City on a free, Adem Ljajic came in from Fiorentina in a real coup for Roma,  replacing Lamela.  Another coup was landing PSV star man Kevin Strootman, reportedly beating Manchester United to his signature. Defensively the excellent Marquinhos was replaced by Mehdi Benatia from Udinese and Tin Jedvaj  was brought in from Croatian cracks Dinamo Zagreb. The other two big signings where Destro from Genoa and Gervinho from Arsenal.

Roma still made a profit on player sales of around €30million, and some might say looked stronger after selling all their key players and replacing them than before. Judging by the strong start to the season this already looks to be true.

Looking at this undoubted plethora of talent it would be very disrespectful to claim that Roma are a two man team, but when speaking about Roma it is undeniable that two players stand out above the rest. Danielle De Rossi & Francesco Totti. De Rossi is the highest paid player in Italy and seems to have put his troubles that affected him last season behind him and moved back in to the Roma starting eleven after falling out of favour when his form dipped. The pair are few of the last one team players which has recently become a rarity in football. Totti as he proved at the weekend in the win over Inter seems to be mercurial. Roma could exist for another 100 years and not have a player like him again. He is Roma’s greatest ever player and even now at 37 remains a key player for the side.

Despite being Italian football’s second top scorer, Totti has never been comfortable as the main focal point in the Roma attack. His strength is as a second striker, coming back to link the play, playing in between the lines. People talk about the superb ability of Lionel Messi and the creation of the new type of striker, the false nine but what many people do not realise is that at Roma especially under Luciano Spalleti, Totti was one of the first strikers to be a false nine long before the role even had that name. Italian football has always favoured the trequarista and the poacher combination.  At international level Totti was always partnered with a poacher type player, be that either Inazghi or Toni. This is reflected in the fact he only managed 9 international goals for the Azzurri. At Roma however Totti has become both the trequarista and the poacher.

His movement at the weekend against Inter was key to disrupting the Inter defence. They were unsure if they should follow him (exposing their back line) or stay put (allowing him space to run the game). Even when they got tight Totti’s superior skill and ball control meant that they could not even get close and he often brought team mates into play (as shown below.)

Inter 0-3 Roma Highlights

Also shown are two of Totti’s chalkboards from the Inter game. Totti’s variance of position is displayed in the positions he got into both to pass the ball and to receive the ball. What is amazing about him is that for all the bringing into play he does for others, he does not diminish himself as a goal threat, finishing the game with a brace in a 3-0 rout.  Even at 37 he manages to both be Roma’s key playmaker and also their key finisher.

In Britain Totti has never received the praise he has elsewhere on the continent. This might be down to the fact that at his last three international tournaments he never fully lived up to the hype. In 2002 in Korea he was dismissed as Italy crashed out, and in 2004 he was banned for a spitting incident. As Italy won in 2006 Totti was only half fit, playing with metal plates in his ankle. He finished with only one goal (from the spot) but still managed to finish with the most assists of the tournament and played in every game making him a World Cup winner.

Totti’s decision to end his international career prematurely means he has missed further chances to showcase his enormous talents on the world stage. This matters not to the Roma faithful who correctly hold him in massive regards. Totti has confirmed he will retire in 2016 at the age of 39 so time is running out for fans to see the Italian in action. He and De Rossi represent the dying embers of the breed of footballers who served one club, he is an endangered species in world football, but is still proving at the age of 37, that he is a dangerous species for opposition defences.

                                                                                                                                                                            

How Sergio Busquets is flourishing under a new manager

Due to the unfortunate circumstances that occurred, Barcelona where forced into another new managerial change. It has been a turbulent year or so in the Barcelona managers office, the circumstances however where far beyond their own control. Tata Martino has come in and Barcelona will be hoping for a period of stability. It was unfortunate for them that last season saw the first without Guardiola, his assistant Tito Vilanova took over. This was the first period of change, and when tragedy struck and Vilanova took a leave of absence to help recover from cancer, a new period of change ensued which temporarily thrust Jordi Roura into the hot seat. Vilanova of course made his return but the bad news that his cancer had returned forced him to step down entirely, Tata Martino came to the front.

Martino only had one new signing, which was made before his arrival. The talented Brazillian Neymar joined the ranks and the new boss seems pretty pleased with his inherited squad, choosing not to add anymore new faces. The style hasn’t totally been changed, but there have been some major adjustments. Spectators where almost shocked to see Victor Valdes take a long kick this season, rather than roll the ball out so Barcelona could build from the back. The team pressing from Barcelona which was the key feature of the Guardiola era subsided slightly under Vilanova and now even more under Tata Martino.

The less pressing of Barcelona as a team and as a whole unit has in return highlighted the quality possessed by Sergio Busquets. He has been given more responsibility in the middle of the park to win the ball back for his side. In previous regimes he was renowned for his ability to step into defence allowing the full backs to bomb on, but under Martino we have seen a more combative Busquets. The Spaniard covers more ground than ever before, aggressively seeking the ball in more areas of the pitch than in previous years.

As shown below, last season in the Mestalla against Valencia Busquets operated mostly centrally, and either in his own half or just slightly above the half way line when Barcelona where in possession. This season however in the same fixture not one of his tackles came centrally, instead they happened out wide and high up the pitch.

Martino has given Busquets license to prowl that midfield and the early indications are that he is very comfortable doing so. This season, may just see Busquets going from Barcelona’s most underrated player, to one of the top midfield combatants in Europe.

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The Evolution of the 4-2-3-1 and how Germany is spearheading it

One of the lasting remnants from the Sir Alex Ferguson legacy in football is the 4-4-2. Ferguson favoured the formation in the face of many teams around him switching. Football in general has evolved from the 4-4-2 which dominated throughout the 90’s. The 4-2-3-1 has been around for a long time, especially in variations such as the 4-5-1 and the 4-4-1-1. The formation allows for a degree of flexibility and change both in and out of possession and also depending on the characteristics of the personnel playing it.

Like most systems the 4-2-3-1 has had to re-invent itself. Over the years the way in which it is utilised has been re-formed depending on its user and depending on how oppositions have adapted to it. This year and particularly in previous seasons successful sides have followed the same particular blueprint for success in midfield. Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and many others have all followed the same template for a midfield trio.

                                                Tackler                                                  Passer

                                                                               

                                                                                Playmaker                          

The blueprint allows for small changes. Barcelona for example prefer for the triangle to be flipped and for the tackler to provide a pivot behind the passer and playmaker. This has been seen over the years with Sergio Busquetts role behind the passer Xavi and the playmaker Iniesta. In most cases this is the generally used midfield blueprint for success. Variations have taken place however in the characteristics of the personnel filling these roles. Chelsea value large physically imposing tacklers (Essien, Mikel) whereas there is now a market for smart ball winning midfielders with very impressive workrates. Recently Germany has been producing these types at a premium. Sami Khederia, the Bender twins (Lars & Sven), and Roman Neustader are amongst these types.

Germany in recent years has also revolutionised the role of the Number 10 or the playmaker in the 4-2-3-1 system. What is scary for international opponents of Germany is that Germany have 3+ possibilities of world class players that they can play in this role and yet every player offers a threat in a different way. The role of the number 10 has moved on. Typically British football has always been so 4-4-2 minded that it has lacked genuine number 10’s being produced and perhaps now this is a major contributor to our national teams struggling.

In the past few years in the Premiership only Steven Gerrard has stood out as a player who can play in this number 10 role. In the Benitez side that came close to challenging United for the title, the Englishman struck a great understanding with Fernando Torres which allowed him to play this role so well. It in turn led to Gerrard’s best season in English football in terms of goals scored. Gerrard was given license to go beyond Torres and drive into opposition boxes as well as create from behind. Benitez favoured a tight, industrial, counter-attacking version of the 4-2-3-1 and this led us to see the best of Steven Gerrard.

Manchester United 1-4 Liverpool line up

The current German trio of players operate the role slightly differently. Less movement goes on beyond the striker, instead clever space orientated play goes on in the hole. The obvious advantage of the number 10 in the hole is the difficulty in the opposition to pick up these players. Does the defence come out to close down the number 10? Or does a defensive minded member of the midfield drop to keep an eye on them?

Now at Arsenal, Mesut Ozil established himself at Real Madrid as arguably the best in the world in the hole. Nicknamed the assist master, Ozil’s clever play and movement from the hole allowed players like Cristiano Ronaldo to really flourish.

This is the Real Madrid line up as they travelled to Mallorca on the 28^th of October 2012. They came back with a 5-0 win.

Ozil started centrally for Madrid but he does not tend to stay there. He is given almost a free role as he comes searching for the ball. The amount of wandering Ozil does into different positions is shown below by the positions he is in when he receives the ball. He does not seem to favour one flank over the other or make predictable movements. His movements are equally distributed over both flanks and receives a lot of passes deep. His movements to vacate the central area of the pitch are very useful as it allows Ronaldo to come centrally into the open space or else cut in from the left onto his favoured left foot.

 The vast amount of movement Ozil made at Madrid gave defenders a real conundrum. They could either choose to follow him and risk being dragged out of position, allowing the likes of Ronaldo more time and space. The other option was to hold their positions leaving Ozil unmarked and as a result of this he would often receive the ball in dangerous areas where he could hurt teams, gaining his assist master reputation.

The current kings of Europe Bayern Munich have an altogether different number 10. Whereas Ozil is about movement and assists Toni Kroos is the master of the pass in the role. He is developing a fine reputation as perhaps the most tidy player in Europe when played in the hole. He combines with the likes of Schweinsteiger and the two Bayern wing backs to make sure Bayern keep possession. We analysed another 5-0 victory, this time for Bayern vs Hannover on the 24^th of November 2012.

Kroos starts in the hole but his movement is away from goal. The shaded area around him illustrates the zone in which he mostly operates from.  The German plays with his back to goal more often than not, ensuring that Bayern retain and recycle possession. One of the key elements to Bayern’s play is the wide men. They possess real quality out wide with Ribery, Muller and Robben on the wings and Lahm and Alaba backing them up. Below is Kroos’ passing chalkboard from that game.

 Notice the left channel and the amount of attempted passes through that channel between the opposition centre back and full back? This type of pass is for a wide man like Ribery or an overlapper like Alaba and in the end provided very fruitful for Kroos gaining him an assist and setting up a number of shots. Kroos operates a lot deeper than other number 10’s and is more instrumental in the build up play.

5-0’ seem to be the pattern and the final analysis comes from last season’s match between Borussia’s Dortmund and Monchengladbach. Keep an eye on the shaded area around Gotze.

Dortmund start with the now Bayern man Mario Gotze in the hole for them. Dortmund have a real goal threat in Lewandowski but he is missing for this game so an extra something is needed up front. Below is the passes received by Gotze during the game. Correlate the received passes with the shaded area on the Dortmund line up. Gotze totally vacates this area during the game. He does not take up a central position at all. Gotze’s strength in the game is coming from a central area to the flank, a role that wasn’t too dissimilar to Wesley Sneidjer in the Inter Milan team in 2010.

 This is very dangerous for the opposition as Gotze is then able to combine with Marco Reus and Kuba on the flanks. Reus finishes the game with 2 goals. Doubling up on the wing backs, coupled with the dangerous pace and trickery Gotze and Reus possess can cause defences a whole host of problems.

The scary part about this German side is that Lewis Holtby, Max Kruse, Julien Draxler and a few others have still to be majorly tested at international level, yet the signs are present that these players can be just as talented as the three mentioned above. Germany have a plethora of talent and nobody sums up the transformation of the 4-2-3-1 as well as the Germans. 

The Best Still To Come From Dortmund

With the Champions League season about to get under way, a look at last seasons runners up, who we might not have seen the best of yet.

Its amazing to think that Dortmund finished last season trophy-less. They failed to defend their German crown being replaced by Bayern as kings of Germany and were also piped to the European crown by the Bavarians. Despite this, Dortmund enjoyed an amazing surge in popularity and recognition that was long overdue, having impressed no-end two seasons in a row prior to last year. Only now however after failure is Klopp receiving the plaudits he deserves for building such a talent ridden squad on a budget  smaller than many other European rivals.

There is an air of optimism surrounding Dortmund, last season they came so close, but instead of having finality about it, (all good things must come to an end.) There is instead a new breath of fresh air for Dortmund. A real feeling that last season was just the beginning of something successful. Not many clubs could lose in the Champions League final, lose their league crown and lose their best player yet come out the other side appearing stronger.

One key element of this is the fact that Klopp has built a young squad, rather than a team whose best days are behind them. Dortmund are yet to reach their potential best. Of the side that started the Champions League final only the Goalkeeper Weidenfeller was over the age of 30. They lost their key player in Mario Gotze, but this is nothing new to Klopp. In the last 3 seasons he has lost his best player every summer. Sahin, Kagawa and then Gotze all left the club, one has returned (on loan) and there is an inevitability that a return is imminent for the other.

A similar situation to loosing Gotze was when Spurs sold Modric two seasons back. Instead of replacing him with one like for like replacement they instead replaced him with a few players which in turn gave the side more variety and choices. Something similar has happened in Klopp’s strategy. One of Gotze’s strength was his ability to play both wide and centrally behind the striker. Henrikh Mkhitaryan was purchased after a very impressive season both domestically and on the continent, and he looks to fill the void left by Gotze centrally. In addition to the Armenian (as seen in the first game of the season) Klopp can also push players higher up the pitch. In particular Ilkay Gundogan graduated from the central of midfield to the apex of the midfield triangle with prodigal son Nuri Sahin coming in. Aubemeyang had a stand out season in Ligue 1 last year and Klopp brought him in as competition for Lewandowski. This was a smart move because Julian Schieber hasn’t really challenged the Pole effectively. Like Schieber, Aubemeyang also gives Klopp wide options with his blistering pace and his goal scoring exploits.

Blaszczykowski continues to impress with his craft and incredible workmanship out wide, he finished last season with 12 assists. Despite this Kuba has never really been valued as high on the continent as he has to Dortmund fans, but there is absolutely no doubting his importance to Klopp’s side. No other player sums up the equilibrium between ability and work rate so valued by Klopp than Blaszczkowski. Groβkreutz is another who has similar qualities, he is a natural left winger by trade but has effortlessly filled in the right back slot made vacant by Piszczek’s injury.

Dortmund has received another boost out wide with the youngster Jonas Hofmann. The youngster changed the game when brought on against Eintracht Braunschweig scoring and then winning a penalty. The 21 year old graduated from the Dortmund youth team after being purchased from Hoffenheim and has bolstered their options out wide which is their strongest area of attack.

Dortmund are four games in domestically and have maximum points. They sit on top of the Bundesliga as Bayern have dropped two points. The appointment of Guardiola invigorated an already energised Munich but one minor drawback is that Guardiola has made changes to the style of play. Changing a winning formula may cause problems and may result in a few dropped points here and there. Dortmund have kept a formula and a style which has proven that it works for them and they have added to it, strengthening in a number of positions as mentioned before. Klopp also added the former Milan defender Sokratis to his ranks from Werder Bremen to give more of a challenge and more options to his backline.

Having strengthened smartly and well, the upcoming Champions League campaign is filled with both expectation and optimism for a young Dortmund side gaining more experience at every turn. They made a huge pre-tax profit as a result of last season’s so should disaster strike Klopp has resources in January. With all these variables added up, for the North-Rine based club and perhaps for European football in general, the future is bright, the future is black and yellow.

Edin Dzeko gives Pellegrini food for thought

It is unusual to discuss a club at the start of a new season and wonder where last season’s top goal scorer fits in. This is the current situation surrounding Manchester City and their Premiership top scorer from last season Edin Dzeko. Last season by all accounts Roberto Mancini preferred his other options over the Bosnian. Tevez had 28 starts and 6 sub appearances and fellow Argentinean  Aguero managed 22 with 8 sub appearances. Dzeko managed just 16 starts and 16 sub appearances. The Bosnian was used just as much as from the bench as he was from the start.

In spite of this he managed 14 Premiership goals, two more than Aguero and one more than Tevez. Rickie Lambert & Frank Lampard where described as having fantastic seasons with a goal tally of 15, Theo Walcott who netted the same amount as Dzeko was hailed for his fruitful season in front of goal but yet Dzeko wasn’t being talked about in the same voice.

City saw Balotelli depart in January and this was followed by Carlos Tevez at the start of the summer both headed to Italy to seek pastures new. Dzeko was linked with moves away but nothing concrete materialised and things looked bleak for the hitman when City recruited Jovetic and Negredo, the pair looked to further push Dzeko down the pecking order. Dzeko is not helped however by City’s preferred system as it tends to favour the lone striker and Dzeko isnt suited to a wide role in this system, one in which Balotelli and Tevez were often sacrificed to and one in which Jovetic may thrive in.

Instead under the new Pellegrini on Monday we saw an excellent use of the 4-4-2 by City. They managed to still get players forward and also managed to keep a solid midfield base to protect the back 4. Zabaletta was still even allowed license to maraude forward and cause havoc. Dzeko was the stand out performer however. The only thing the Bosnian did not do was put the ball in the net and he was correctly identified by SkySports as man of the match.

In football many clichés exist. One of the most common is the phrase “he has good feet for a big man”, and although trying to avoid the use of this cliché with Dzeko it seems it was designed to describe him. Pellegrini’s change to a 4-4-2 (albeit with plenty of rotation and movement) saw Aguero the deeper of the forward pairing and Dzeko the main threat.  New signing Jesus Navas is a genuine winger and offers City an option that they did not have before, and you can see the main supply to Dzeko by the Spaniard is dangerous crosses which Dzeko loves to attack.

 Throughout the game Dzeko had 8 shots, half of them where headers which shows the varied nature of his play. He is equally comfortable peppering the goal with shots from inside the box like a genuine penalty box poacher as he is using his considerable height getting on the end of crosses.

Zabaletta offers City a unique threat as he is a wing back who likes to overlap on the inside. One particular example of this coming to effect was the goal against QPR for 1-0 when City won the league on that last day. Wheras Navas will whip crosses into Dzeko for him to attack, Zabaleta will come in the inside and look to find the Bosnian’s feet inside the area. Against Newcastle the most frequent source from which Dzeko received the ball was from Zabaleta  (7 times)and then from Navas (4). The positions Dzeko received his passes from Zabaleta also shows a side to his play, his workrate and willingness to run the channels rather than simply operate centrally. This fits Pellegrini’s 4-4-2 style with plenty of movement and positional rotation.

Many thought Dzeko would be frozen out at City, that he was not suited to the clubs style and that the manager would favour more well regarded superstars over the undoubtedly talented Dzeko. Despite less chances the Bosnian got more goals for the club last season than his positional rivals, and the manner of his play on Monday night, coupled with how high his performance was, means that Edin Dzeko could in fact be in for huge make or break season in the blue of City.

Premiership Prospects 2013/14

A statistical look at some players who could be in for a big year

Andy Carroll

Having amassed over £40million now in transfer fee’s one can hardly consider Andy Carroll a surprise package for the upcoming season. In fact the spotlight will be on Carroll as much as ever as he prepares for this weekend’s kick off. However, this is a world cup year and you could hardly argue any of the other English strikers left last season with particular world cup form. Carroll did well at West Ham, although his season was restricted by injury he helped West Ham finish a credible 10^th. His return of 7 goals and 4 assists was not bad in 24 games but he gives West Ham a lot more than that.

His style of play is so suited to the Hammers, he is the ideal target man and almost custom built for Sam Allardyce’s team.  He was fouled on average 2.2 times a game. The only players who were fouled more were the likes of Maloney, Sterling and Hazard, tricky wingers rather than strong centre forwards. His physical presence unsettles defences and he gets on the end of many long balls. He brings those around him into play through flick ons and knock downs, as well as offering a threat from set pieces.

In the last 2 seasons Matthew Jarvis has been the Premierships 6^th most accurate crosser, averaging 2.1 accurate crosses per game. When he was at Villa in the 2010/11 season Stewart Downing was averaging the same. In short this quality of service combined with a style of play perfectly suited to him, Andy Carroll may eventually prove that he is worth the hype and book his place in Brazil.

Andy Carroll as an outball.

Kevin De Bruyne

Last season in the Bundesliga only 5 players finished with more assists than Kevin De Bruyne (9). 4 of the 5 played in the Champions League final. Mario Gotze and Marco Reus were tied with De Bruyne on the same number. In short he is a creator of world class ability which he showcased throughout the campaign last season. Not only does the Belgian have a fantastic ability to create he also scores goals. He finished last season with 10 Bundesliga goals which is only one less than Chelsea’s new German star Andre Schurrle. Domestically, De Bruyne was tied with Mario Gotze. The pair both achieved 10 goals and 9 assists (although Gotze done it in fewer appearances,) this shows the calibre of player De Bruyne is.

He saw plenty of action in pre-season for Chelsea, and could fit perfectly into the 4-2-3-1 formation Mourinho is likely to implement. He likes to play from the left of this system but is equally comfortable centrally. Chelsea’s key strength lies in the creative young force which drives on behind the striker. Hazard, Mata, Oscar & Moses all impressed last season in that bank of 3, and with the return of De Bruyne and the acquisition of Schurrle the London side will have more options and more cover.

His style of play is one which will excite Premiership neutrals as well, he likes to get on the ball and make things happen. His close control and skill is exceptional and he is a tidy long and short range passer. When playing from the left he enjoys cutting inside, very similar to fellow Belgian Hazard. If he is given enough playing time, De Bruyne might be one of this seasons stand out performers.

Shinji Kagawa

In the same bracket as Andy Carroll, Kagawa isn’t a player who if he has a good season, he will surprise many people. Making his name at Dortmund, he left for Manchester last season and by the end of the campaign had six goals and a premiership medal to his name. Not bad you think, but there was something about Kagawa’s performances which didn’t quite live up to his reputation. On his debut against Everton as United lost, he was the stand out performer for the reds. He played in the pocket of space behind Rooney and showcased his potential. His ball control and positional play is outstanding. He is a very intelligent footballer who hurts teams by drifting around, getting into space, linking up with others and causing problems. Because of Van Persie last season Rooney was forced to play either as the secondary striker or in the number 10 role behind the Dutchman. Kagawa was resigned to either the wing, the bench or the fitness table. This season with the much publicised problems with Rooney, Kagawa could eventually see a lot more game time in his favourite role.

Moyes is a fan of the player behind the striker, for years at Everton had Tim Cahill and then eventually Marouane Felliani starring in the role. Kagawa only finished with 3 assists in his 20 appearances. He isn’t a player who will pick the ball up in that role and dribble; instead he enjoys making angles and laying off the final ball. He wasn’t getting into these positions enough last season either because of lack of game time or else being played out of position. This season that could change.

With a pass success rate of 89.7% Kagawa was the league’s 13^th best passer last season. This is impressive considering how many more games the other 12 had than him. This season could see Kagawa really fulfil his potential and grow into possible one of United’s most important attacking options, under Moyes and in his favoured number 10 role, the Japanese star could flourish.

Morgan Schneiderlin

What a signing the Frenchman has been for Southampton. Joining from hometown side RC Strasbourg in 2008 for €1.2million the combative midfielder has become a fans favourite at St Mary’s playing just under 200 times  for the club. Last season he picked up Southampton’s fans player of the year award as well as the players player of the year award.

Last season in the Premiership Schneiderlin averaged 4.1 tackles per game. An exceptional amount which was only beaten by Lucas Leiva. A very combative player Schneiderlin has a fantastic ability to also read the game which saw him make a league high average of 3.9 interceptions per game. This means that on average Schneiderlin was making an average of 4 tackles and 4 interceptions per game, making him statistically the league’s best defensive midfielder. He also very gifted with the ball at his feet, his pass completion rate of 85.2% is equal to that of Chelsea trio Ramires, Eden Hazard and Juan Mata.

Southampton have also captured the Kenyan midfield colossus Victor Wanyama who is also a very combative midfielder. Early indications suggest that Southampton intend for the two to partner each other which makes for a very very difficult midfield to break down. This could result in Southampton being this season’s surprise package; especially with the likes of Gaston Ramirez and Adam Lallana who will be given license to create because of the defensive platform in the midfield. At 23 Schneiderlin has been capped at every level for France except senior, and if he can build on last year’s performances then that could very soon change.

Emanuele Giaccherini

The main problem last season for Sunderland was how blunt they looked in front of goal and at creating chances. They suffered a massive loss through Steven Fletcher’s injury and then made safety in time under Di Canio. The Italian has made the most signings in the league and none stand out more than the Italian international Giaccherini. The rumoured fee is just under £7million and the player may take the Premiership by storm.

Injuries and being played out of position at Juventus meant he didn’t have the most enjoyable time in Turin, but Giaccherini played in every game of Italy’s confederations cup. Sunderland will utilise him on the wing where he should be able to use his pace and trickery. In Serie A Giaccherini made on average 1.9 key passes per game, the 13^th highest in the league. Only Pirlo and Vidal at Juventus averaged more and they played a lot more games than him. Di Canio is trying stamp his own mark upon the club, changes in discipline and personal have been made. Giaccherini has the ability now to become Sunderland’s key man and week in week out football if he remains fit could do his World Cup chances no harm at all.

How Man City's signings could impact the title race

This season the race for the Premiership is wide open. Potentially four teams are challenging for the title and the likes of Tottenham and Liverpool will be not too far behind the pack come May 2014. Arsenal’s squad is in a good overall shape and they have money to spend, but so far have been slow to recruit. Manchester United have failed to land any of their big summer targets and could be set for a loss if Wayne Rooney gets his way and leaves the club. The other two are looking strong. Chelsea enhanced by the return of their charismatic crowd favourite Mourinho, have strengthened with recruitments but also through the returning of last season’s loan stars adding more quality and depth to a young talented squad. Chelsea finished last season incredibly strong whereas Manchester City on the other hand coasted to the end. The Citizen’s season was already over by March except for the FA Cup but this manifested itself in a shock defeat to Wigan which in the end cost Mancini his job.

City have strengthened like no other this season. They recognised what they wanted and they went out and got it. New man Pellegrini has acted smartly, getting his transfer business done early giving him maximum time with his squad and new arrivals before the start of the season. His signings have also been smart. City have many big name players and big name players sometimes tend to come with big ego’s. Recent examples at the club have been Balotelli and Carlos Tevez who clashed with previous manager Mancini in some aspect or another. They have been cut loose and replaced. Pellegrini hasn’t just replaced them with more big name players, he has replaced them with professionals and players who fit into his system. Mancini favoured strikers out wide, or central trequaristas playing from wide coming inside. This was successful in winning him the title two years back, the likes of David Silva performing well in this role. However last season they struggled and the lack of penetration from natural wingers cost the side. In the end they finished with only 66 goals despite coming 2^nd. Liverpool finished 7^th with 71. Navas has been added, a real speed merchant who is almost uncatchable when he is tearing to the by-line. He is often used by the Spanish national side as a plan-b because of his ability to provide quality out wide.

 At Sevilla Navas formed a good partnership and a good understanding with the Spanish hitman Alvaro Negredo. The former Madrid man had a goal return last season of 25 in La Liga and City added him to their ranks as well. He is a good professional who gives them a genuine number 9 threat. Last season City lacked a goal scorer with Aguero not fulfilling his 1^st season promise, Balotelli out of form, Dzeko lacking confidence at stages and Tevez inconsistent. In short Negredo will get goals. With two of the above player left, there will be less rotation through the ranks and more time on the pitch for the current strikers to find form and improve that goals tally.

Another key addition has been the Montenegrin Stevan Jovetic. City have had big profile strikers who like to score goals but they have often lacked a forward who is isn’t the key man, a striker who offers balance and prefers to be part of the build up, opening space and helping out the other attackers. This is why the addition of Jovetic could prove to be a massive hit for City. His goal return of 13 in 29 last season was good and he is a striker who will still score goals, but his style of play and his intelligence on the pitch will be his key asset. He can lead the line but has said himself he prefers to either be played behind the striker or out left. Tactically having Jovetic support goal scorers of immense quality such as Aguero, Negredo & even Dzeko could give City an advantage in the race for the title.

 Jovetic's passes received against Inter. Look at the varied positions he gets into around the box and in the channels. He finished the game with two goals and an assist.

Jovetic managed to create 5 chances for others throughout the game. One of these lead to a goal. With City's quality upfront to finish a higher number of these chances, Jovetic could have a very good season.

The other capture for City which was the one that they saw the most criticism for was the recruiting of the Donetsk holding midfielder Fernandinho. The fee was around £30million and although anyone who has seen the Brazillian play can’t deny he has quality, there are few who could argue that Manchester City didn’t overspend even slightly. Fernandinho isn’t a natural holder in the mould of De Jong who breaks up play physically and then plays the ball to a more talented attacker. Nor is he in the Javi Garcia mould of a quiet blocker who tactically closes angles and shelters back fours without drawing much attention. Fernandinho is similar to Yaya Toure but without as dominating a physical presence. He plays with a lot of energy a real box to box type player. Perhaps one player he draws comparisons too is Ramires at Chelsea. It was against Chelsea in the Champions League last season Fernandinho made a huge impact, scoring once but maintain an excellent overall standard of play. He again gives City more options in the centre of the pitch, strong in the tackle and with a good reading of the game, the Brazilian is comfortable with the ball at his feet and getting at the opposition.

Fernandinho defensively against Chelsea. Two tackles including one just in front of the 18 yard box, three interceptions and a block.

In addition to his defensive duties in front of the back four, Fernandinho contributed well to the attacking part of his side. 7 shots, 3 on target and a goal show the varied nature of his play.