Lafont
C.Soares Manolas Maguire Emerson
N.Kante Locatelli
Sterling Mbappe Sanchez
Kane

Onana, Henrichs, Diawara, Mendy, S.Diaz, Jesus

In goal Lafont a young fantastic shot stopper and a keeper that instills confidence in the back four, shouting instructions to his defenders. Out very quickly to shut down strikers and close there shooting angles down. Punches clear what he cant catch from high balls and likes to release early to set up quick counters.

Manolas and Maguire at CB on this occassion Manolas will man mark the CF. Manolas is quick and skillfull for a CB, with great marking abilities, powerfully built so marking the CF should be no trouble as he has to man up to him, will keep him away from goal and be on to him quickly as he comes forward so he can intercept any though he has of going for goal. When in possession he will carry the ball out and start attacks from the back. Maguire alongside is fantastic in the air, so will mark any other big players that come into our danger area, strong in the air and strong in the tackle and make sure he is strong enough to get the ball away from danger. Both go up for corners and are a huge threat.

Cedric and Emerson at fullback, we must keep the wingers quiet, stop them and we stop a lot of there attacks. They will look to keep them away from shooting areas where is dangerous in any position. This is a vital clash in this game. They will be up against quality wingers so look to force him away from goal and backwards. I want them to attack when in no danger so time these runs perfectly. One sits back a bit and allowing the other to attack, this is keeping a 3 at the back at all times. Their marking abilities are sound, both have good positional sense and very quick, do not make rash desicions and will stay on their feet. Both FBs can attack. When one goes the other stays as they look to make an extra man down the flank for our wingers to cut inside or play neat one twos to free the wingers up as there fullbacks get dragged out of position.

Kante to stop the AM getting the ball from midfield to the striker, he must be right on top of him looking to close him down at the quickest opportunity, let him dictate play and there striker will get plenty chances, we must not let this happen. So quick and into him, fairly and stop this! Kante himself will look to dictate from deep as he picks up from the defence and looks to drive us forward with precision passing. Locatelli v the second most advanced midfielder much the same, but obvs when we have the ball he is allowed to move forward and move into dangerous areas where he is best and force there players back, Locatelli should have a bit of time to look around him for the pass as he looks to find his team mates with ease. Use his upper body strength to get him away from the player. Pass and move always look for the return pass. When they have then close down the CM, he will look to ping the ball about so get to him before that opportunity arises. We have put Mbappe in a No.10 role or just slightly withdrawn No.10 against there DM he must be strong, Mbappe is an all round fantastic midfielder,, however he will look to take the DM on one v one drag him about open up spaces for others to drive into, with the ball at feet look to play quick one twos with those around him so he makes the runs into the box looking for that return ball that will get him in on goal. If the ball is played to him with his back to goal hold it up, draw the foul from the DM, if it doesnt come then look to lay it off, look to play the slide pass into Kane. At times he playes as a second striker alongside Sanchez, basically I want him him running the channels. This midfield I would pressing hard against them not giving them any time to dictate anything.

Sterling and Sanchez are known for their creativity, speed, and technical ability, and are fearless, explosive attacking midfielders who can change the game with a turn of pace or a dribble. More importantly both scorers of wonderful and important goals. Both technically excellent in limited areas, fast explosive acceleration during the first ten yards. Which more often than not takes them passed defenders and allows them to get into dangerous areas. Always play with there heads up looking for the runs of others to get the ball into there feet. When they have the ball look to stick close to fullbacks and stop them coming forward. Just track the fullbacks and use pace to get back and in around there faces to stop them becoming a threat. Always be looking for Mbappe inside as the four make an awesome quartet attack wise in behind Kane and a scary proposition for there slow back line

Kane will get plenty chances, he must put away there side who will be solid at the back, however I want to target the slower of the two. Get into positions that he can go for goal or at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Target the slower of the cbs, split them apart to create space, Kane is very hard working and if he needs to go and get the ball he will he has 3 players around him that can move beyond him if needed, we are quick, so our forwards must hit them with pace to drag them all over the place. He can score from various angles/ranges..All of our front four/five will be a threat today we must go for it and keep pace with the league leaders. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Sterling, Sanchez and Mbappe will be making his runs also so be watchful of him just to lay it off to the side

Captain - Manolas
Penalties - Sanchez
Free kicks - Sanchez
Corners - Wingers

Subs -

Losing
70 Mins - Gabriel for Mbappe 442
80 Mins - Mendy for Emerson he goes to.LM, Sanchez up top 343

Winning
70 Mins - Diawara for Mbappe 451

Drawing
70 Mins - Gabriel for Mbappe
----------------------------------------------------------------------

TATUNG Tactics

---------------------------Reina
-----------------Glik----------------Umtiti----------------
Sidibé--------------------------------------------------Telles
--------------Keïta--------------------Can
Mane--------------------Fekir------------------Bailey
----------------------------Ünal

Subs: Lenglet, Bakayoko, Kessié, Tousart, Sinkgraven, Woodburn, Trent Alexander-Arnold

Captain: Glik
Freekicks: Telles
Corners: Fekir
Penalties: Ünal

Possession, Positioning & Defending:
Building attacks starts from the back or deep midfield. Intelligent use of the ball from your midfielders & defenders enables your attackers to receive the ball in better positions making it easier for them to create chances & score goals. This does not necessarily mean a slow passive build-up with the ball. We still attack with intensity, press with intensity & defend with intensity. However we feel possession of the ball enables us to play with the strength in movement of our players with & without the ball to aid us in creating chances against teams that will look to defend deep. The formation isn’t the restricted position of our players when in possession. It is however a system in positioning to retreat into when our initial high press fails & we need to structure ourselves defensively. To enable us to dominate possession we need to position ourselves intelligently as we look to create overloads within the opposition’s structure enabling our players to pass their way out of the opposition’s press by moving the ball to an area of the pitch which then becomes less saturated & more vulnerable to penetration. The aim is to pass & lure the opposition to one area of the pitch with the compact positioning of players close to the ball & then quickly switch the play to the other side of the field thus catching the opposition out of position. So the vertical spacing between the defence, midfield & attack needs to be needs to remain compact at all times.

In Naby Keïta & Emre Can we have 2 midfielders who are capable of dictating the play as well springing a quick counter attack with a splitting pass or bursting run through midfield. Together they will look to get on the ball as much as possible. Once the play is moved to our forwards they will position themselves intelligently so that they can dictate the play by redistributing the ball to our creative workhorses in Mane, Bailey, Fekir & Ünal.
Can & Keïta more than have the physical attributes to dominate any midfield but they can also speed up or slow down the play depending on the rhythm of the game before making the right pass that will result in checkmate for us. Most teams will look to shut us out through the centre of the pitch so building attacks from wide areas will be utilised as well.
If the play is towards the left/ left-centre of the field we will use the positioning of Can, Umtiti, Telles & Bailey to create the overloads that enable us to keep possession. While those four players look to dominate the space & ball, Keïta & Fekir will move infield to make sure we are not neglecting the centre of the pitch which helps us both defensively(to press) & offensively(to pass). Ünal will make runs which will enable us to create chances and Mane will balance out the attack by either keeping himself free for us to switch the play or occupying the centre backs should Ünal move towards the play. The defence also moves as well, keeping an eye on the opposition’s forwards as they will look to cut off the passing options in the event that we lose the ball. This allows the defenders to press quickly.
When the opposition tries to win the ball back we have enough players to play around their press however should we find the play congested, we will quickly switch the play (via a combination of passes or a long pass) to less congested right side & utilise the individual abilities of Mane, Sidibé or Keïta (a collective of pace, power, speed of thought, vision & technical ability). Also by spacing our players close together, it also enables us to press the opposition quickly & in numbers aiding us to win the ball as quickly as possible thus counter-pressing the opposition & catching them disorganised which enhances the quality of our attacks.
If the opposition goes for the long ball, Glik & Umtiti more than have the physical attributes to deal with the scenario. The ball should only ever be passed to the defence to relieve the team of pressure as we re-evaluate the play & build again or to mislead the opposition out of their defensive shell & open up space in-between the lines for us to quickly move the ball forward & create more quality chances.

When the play is on the right hand side of the field the philosophy is the same, only the personal changes. So Keïta, Glik, Sidibé & Mane will create the overloads. Fekir & Can will move infield & Bailey will balance our play depending on the movement of Ünal. Defence performs their same role as well.

Possession of the ball is only the tool with which we need to fully express our style of play based on positional structure & movement of our players. Without the ball this is not possible. Chances are created from the positional structure, dynamic movement & spacing in the final third, which surprises opponent thus creating breakthroughs towards the opponent’s goal – especially when the creativity of Bailey, Keïta & Fekir is paired with the sheer speed of Mane & Ünal. We understand that our forwards are not blessed in height therefore we will mainly utilise cutbacks instead of crosses. This should also play into the box-2-box strengths of Keïta & Can.
Counter-pressing is also a tool should we lose the ball in the attacking third. As mentioned above the compact positioning of our players aids our intense pressing tactic.
Through balls, chips & lobs coupled with the movement of our forwards all contribute to our attacking style. Attackers are allowed freedom of movement & expression.

Part of our defensive strategy is intense pressing & counter-pressing the player with the ball & man-marking the immediate passing options available to the opposing player with the ball. However we do understand that the high press will not always win the ball there we will look to defend in a narrow 442 structure (Ünal & Fekir being the front 2).
• The default posture of the team is to sit deep in a narrow, compact shape in order to prevent the opponent from creating chances.
• The team only breaks the shape to press the ball when the odds of success are high. (And even here it might be better to say that the whole team moves together, causing the shape to temporarily change, rather than saying that the shape "breaks"
• When the ball is won, it is played forward quickly because fast attacks can catch opponents off balance & turning the ball over in the attacking third is less costly than turning it over in your own defensive third or in midfield.
• Every player in the team has to assist defensively.
• Position ourselves compactly, offering less space between our lines & force the opponent into less dangerous areas of the field away from our goal.

We have intelligent players that have this dynamic movement & intelligent positioning in their arsenal & thus we are comfortable implementing this style of play.

Subs
60mins: Kessié for Ünal. Switch to 433 with Can deepest in midfield and Fekir playing upfront.
75mins: Woodburn for Bailey. Get some fresh speed to run at their tired defence.
85mins: Tousart for Keïta just because I can.

vs Forres

————————Donnarumma
————Tah———Romagnoli———Ake
Moses—Tielemans—Verratti—Asensio—Rodriguez
—————O.Dembele——Aubameyang

or, in its fleshed out form

——————————Donnarumma
—————————-—Romagnoli
—————Tah———————————Ake
Moses————————Verratti————————Rodriguez
—————Tielemans———————Asensio
————————O.Dembele
—————————————Aubameyang

Subs: Kepa, P.Pereira, M.Merino, A.Blin, I.Williams, T.Abraham, M.Marega

Captain: Alessio Romagnoli
Free Kicks: Youri Tielemans/Ricardo Rodriguez
Corners: Youri Tielemans/Marco Asensio
Penalties: Ricardo Rodriguez

Big game, first and foremost we need to be very tough to break down, and then we must show our fluidity in attacking phases.

When we lose the ball, no matter where we lose it, we will always look to fall back into our own half and quickly shut up all the space the opposition has to work in, allowing us to focus primarily on defending the middle of the field, keeping it very tight, not allowing them room, conceding the wide areas as any crosses we have 3 CBs who are all aerially much stronger than their forwards. The forwards must be quick to drop in shut off the passing lanes to the DM, one either side of him, following him everywhere in the oppositions build up whilst the CM on the side of the opposition build up steps forward and closes the man on the ball down straight away, doing so from the front so he can help the forwards to force the opposition attack out to the wide areas, whilst the other CM drops in with Verratti and the WBs get back into their defensive positions, everyone back behind the ball except the forwards who sit in the passing lanes to that DM. If we lose the ball in our own half then Verratti must look to force the ball wide with his pressing whilst the two CMs get back quickly into their position, along with WBs and forwards. We then enter into a phase of triangulation with the aim of making sure the middle ground is always shut off. If we do succeed in forcing them wide, this phase of triangulation focuses on the positioning of the WB, the CM and the wide CB on the side of attack. If we look at this for attacks down the opposition left, essentially, the WB (Moses) becomes the active player engaging the opposition man on the ball, stepping out of the back 5 to get tight, with the CM (Tielemans) coming across to close the passing lanes to the central attacking players, with the forwards still blocking the ball to Kante and the WB (Ricardo) on the opposite side dropping in to make it a back 4, allowing the defence to shuffle across, making the wide CB (Tah) on the side of build up a FB, with both wide CBs suited to this role, it means we block the ball infield or back to Kante, and the CB that is now a FB is able to block the ball into the channels or half spaces, or get across quickly if the opposition FB overlaps and is played in behind our WB and if the WB is beaten and the CM/FB has to step out, the WB always drops back in so no gap is left. Whilst these 3 players close the opposition into the touchline and squeeze their space, the rest of the team shuffles across so they don’t lose touch and leave gaps, always with a back 4 (Tah, Romagnoli, Ake, Ricardo) and always the midfield 3 are close to each other, essentially as another triangle. Any attempts at longer balls into wide areas to beat our defence before it can get organised will be dealt with by the wide CBs, who when we are in possession will be pushed slightly wider in order to negate this type of counter quickly.

When we defend the middle we use a back 5 but the concept of triangulation will still be used even in a 5-3-2. Behind the forwards there are triangles everywhere, the midfield 3 and the 3 CBs being the obvious, but also WB > wide CB > CM, CM > DM > wide CB, wide CB > CB > DM ect, so as soon as the ball is played between any of these groups, they quickly close in on the man on the ball, keep squeezing them, eventually they play the ball sideways or backwards or they lose it all together and we can break on them.

Attack in a 3-3-4. Wide CBs have to spread wide with the WBs pushing on too, Romagnoli as the deepest of the CBs and Verratti at the tip of what is a diamond, keeping the spaces between the players large so we are difficult to press, and allowing Verratti/Romagnoli the time on the ball to pick their passes into the forwards, or the wide CBs to find the WBs. Build ups will tend to move wide so we can stretch things out, so when we build up down the right, Moses joins in the midfield line and Tielemans goes ahead of him and joins the front 4, with Ricardo pushed right up on the other side against their FB keeping the defence spread out, which allows Moses, Tielemans and Dembele to quickly circulate the ball in between the lines, whilst Asensio gets into the half space, making sure we have numbers committed but not all grouped together, stretch things out and we become hard to defend against, so when one person drops from attack to midfield, another goes forward, say CM drops in, WB goes forward. It also makes us hard to counter, initial high press to slow things down so we can reorganise. We are set up from there with Tielemans and Asensio rotating as mezzala’s depending on the side of build up to create overloads out wide and in the half spaces, so when the ball goes wide Dembele comes across too and the CM on the side of build up as said already gets into the forward line and becomes an 8, looking to use their quick intricate passing to link with their WB and Dembele to either get the ball into a crossing position or to drag defenders out to cover half spaces then quickly play it in behind for Aubameyang who will be able to run into the space that is vacated by Dembele pulling defenders towards him. Of course we don’t just have this one style of play, if that side of the field becomes crowded we have the quick switch out to the other WB who is pushed high and in position to take on his FB, or even get between FB and CB and into the channel. We can also bring the ball back infield and build up using the roaming runs of Tielemans and Asensio, and the excellent passing of Verratti, with Dembele dropping off to get involved, he draws a defender and allows Auba and the CMs, who can get either side of the DM and look to break into the box where they won’t be tracked. Important thing is to keep the ball circulating, CMs always using their movement to find the spaces and forwards working on a tangent so one comes to get involved and the other spins behind.
Subs:

If Winning: Blin for Asensio 70’, if he will play as the DM, with Verratti into the mezzala role. Williams for Dembele 75’, like for like, fresh legs, bit stronger on the ball but the pace to run into the spaces is even more evident in his play. Pereira for Moses 80’, bit stronger in defensive situations.

If Drawing: Williams for Dembele 70’, like for like in many ways but gives us fresh legs in the attack. Marega for Asensio 80’, move into a 3-4-3 and give them a bit more to worry about in terms of dragging CMs out of position, which can open up more space for Tielemans and Verratti to get a foothold. Abraham for Aubemayang 85’, on for the final 5 to play as a poacher.

If Losing: Williams for Asensio 60’, 3-4-3 with a more focused approach to attacking the half spaces with our pace and ability to run at players. Tammy Abraham for Moses 75’, 4–4-2 with Tah out to RB, Dembele and Williams flanking Aubameyang and Abraham as we put pressure on their back 4. Marega for Ricardo 80’, our shape will be broken somewhat to throw off the opposition’s defensive pattern, 3 CBs and 2 DMs to keep us safe when they counter and to distribute the ball quickly, 5 attackers, Abraham as the poacher, Aubameyang making runs off the shoulder and the other 3 behind them working to create openings with their direct football.

Cambuur Tactics :
Captain : Fabinho
Vice Captain : Sánchez

Team:
------------------Ederson
Bernardo---Sánchez---Lemos---Santos
------------------Fabinho
-----------Paredes--Rafinha
Malcom-----------------------------Costa
-------------------Icardi

SUBS: Batalla, Arana, Montes, Walace, Arrascaeta, Martins, Vizeu

Goalkeeper: Ederson 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: Fabinho 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. Paredes and Rafinha will play just in front of Fabinho. Paredes will be a more box to box type. He will be involved all over and will offer as much in defence as in attack. Rafinha 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 Malcom and Costa 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 Rafinha, Paredes and Icardi 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 Paredes may sit a bit deeper allowing Rafinha 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.

Icardi starts as the CF. He won’t be short of support or ammunition with the attacking talent behind him. Great playing off the shoulder of the last man he is deadly in and around the box. A bag of energy and very strong we will also look for him to hold up and bring others in to play if it doesn’t seem to be on for him. 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 lightning 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: Rafinha, Costa or Malcom with Sánchez, Lemos, Fabinho and Icardi to offer an aerial threat. Rafinha and Costa (with his thunderbolt left foot) may try their luck with several free kicks from distance.

Substitutions: (if winning) Martins for Malcom, Vizeu for Icardi and Walace for Fabinho, 3 like for like substitutions.


If losing (on 70 minutes) Vizeu for Paredes, Martins for Malcom. Shift to a 4-1-3-2 attack. Vizeu and Arrascaeta offering fresh legs, pace and a bit of the unknown in attack.

------------------------Fabinho
Arrascaeta---------- Rafinha----------Costa
-----------------Icardi --------Vizeu

Fishguard Sports

Captain: Hummels
Penalties: Firmino (Dolberg)
Free Kicks: Coutinho

----------------------Bijlow
Carvajal---Süle-------Hummels---Toljan
--------------Weigl-----------Dahoud
---Sané------------Pulisic----------Coutinho
----------------------Firmino

Subs: Klostermann, Fosu-Mensah, Goretzka, Amiri, Kluivert, Brandt, Dolberg


Our defensive unit consists of Niklas Süle and Mats Hummels paired up at centre-back, Daniel Carvajal at right-back and Jeremy Toljan at left-back, with Julian Weigl and Mahmoud Dahoud as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.

This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Weigl and Dahoud 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 Dahoud can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Weigl 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 Dahoud’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.

With Dahoud running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Julian Weigl.

Weigl 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 Weigl such a talent.


The attacking unit consists of Leroy Sané, Christian Pulisic and Philippe Coutinho as our band of three attacking midfielders, with Roberto Firmino 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 Weigl or Dahoud, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.

Carvajal and Toljan can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Weigl and Dahoud can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Leroy Sané and Philippe Coutinho who are fleet-footed speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. Christian Pulisic our attacking central midfielder’s diminutive physique and low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Pulisic 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 Sané, Coutinho or Firmino in via fast passing combinations.

In our system we have a wealth of fleet-footed players and players with similar strengths; Firmino is the man who will do the job of being a jack-of-all-trades-but-master-of-none like talent. He will look to score, create or press with high-intensity up front.

One of the rarest traits that Firmino has up sleeve is his movement, which will open up the tightest of defences. His positioning near the half-spaces and the movement slightly deeper towards our opponents midfielders will drag either the full back or the centre-half out of position, opening up spaces for his team-mates to run into. And this ability of his is massively underrated.

Subs: Dolberg on for Firmino on 72 mins

A complete striker, Dolberg will act as a presence up front whilst also possessing the ability to go past defenders, by unleashing his pace on our opponents defence.

His skill-set goes against the stereotype which states that the lanky forwards can only act as target men up front, or use their hold-up abilities to allow the team-mates to join the attack. And apart from pace, a main part of Dolberg’s armoury is his lethal finishing.

Subs: 80 mins

Goretzka on for Dahoud (Goretzka has a massive engine which will bring fresh intensity into the midfield for the final minutes)

Brandt on for Pulisic. Coutinho will move to AM, with Brandt on the left - Brandt is a real speed merchant and could prove a real handful for our opponents as tired legs set in

Wellington Phoenix tactics – vs someone

-------------------------Valdes------------
Jung---Alderweireld--Ginter--Grimaldo
--------------------Alonso---Gueye-----------------
Pedro-----------------Pjanic---------------Carrasco
---------------------------Milik------------------

Subs: Foderingham, Galloway, Gnabry, Ndidi, Gray, Rashford, Vieira

Captain – Alonso
Vice – Alderweireld
Corners – Pjanic
FKs from deep – Alonso
FKs at goal - Pjanic
Pens - Milik

Big game today, trying to recover our absent start. We line up with a more traditional 4231 again today, but our system will be very similar to last season's - Alonso will hold the deep space allowing Gueye to press the ball high up the pitch. Essentially we will be looking to win the ball back high up the pitch and from there we have great ball playing defenders and the maestro Alonso, picking out passes. The plan is that with such pace and movement in attack we can flood the attack, give us the upper hand due to the shock factor and the extra player will mean that the opposition defence will always be occupied. While they'll probably have contingencies in place, hopefully by flooding the box with fluid attackers we can have their defenders falling each other and giving this side the big defeat they've been due all season. Obviously our midfield two will be put under more strain, but Alonso is such an intelligent reader of the game who has never relied on pace or an all action style and Gueye is just an animal who is in great shape and great form, who can cover a lot of ground, support the defenders and the attacks and has enough ability to move the ball on to the better players.

Our defence will play high, but our defence is as fast and powerful as anyones, not to mention as intelligent and experienced as they come and will be playing on the front foot. Although we will have to be more wary of midfield runners with this formation, I would bet that we will still have a free man along the back line, which really means our players can attack the ball with confidence, keeping the oppostion (hereby known as Team X) in their own half. As always, although we are playing a high line and pushing to keep the play in the opposition half, we will not play an offside trap unless it’s clear – this means the defenders can read the game and drop off half a yard in anticipation of a ball coming over the top to give them the edge on the striker. This, matched with their pace, should be enough to mean that it will take something very special for Team X to get in behind us and even when they do, they have the vast frame of Valdes to try and get past.

IN SUMMARY – we’re looking to press Team X into either playing themselves into trouble and making mistakes at the back or resorting to clearing the ball, which our defence can deal with comfortably given their attributes and recycle position back to Alonso, to get us started again.

Valdes - Classic DL keeper, bags of experience. He will play as you want a keeper to play – alert all game and full of confidence. He’ll command his box and inspire confidence throughout the rest of the team. Otherwise, usual stuff (off his line quickly when needed, big at one on ones, great shot stopper and collect crosses).

As usual his good feet will come into play - we start attacks with him, thus drawing a man onto him, passing beyond him and leaving us with a man spare which we look to exploit with with passing

Grimaldo & Jung – both players with incredible engines, pace to burn and ability on the ball. It’s important to keep them grounded and remind them they’re defenders first – but these qualities listed above will make them very hard to beat in any 1v1 situation. Given our formation, they won’t really be getting forward too often, but they will have their chances. Mainly we want them getting the right side of their attacker and making us hard to beat, but when we’re with the ball I do want them to be hugging the opposite touchline, not too far up the pitch, just to give an option to switch the play and keep our width if the wide forward drifts inside to join the play. I don’t want them making overlapping runs all the time when the play is on their side though, just stretching the play with the switch option.

Alderweireld and Ginter – IMO two of the most complete defenders in the world right now, one at the height of the game with a lot of experience & another still relatively early on in his career, but playing at the top. I want them to work with each other and use their intelligence and experience to cover each other, playing to their strengths with Ginter being the younger, fitter & faster of the two. We won't be letting one or the other attack the ball specfically, they will take control of their area and the other CB will work around them accordingly. They are decent in the air, quick on the ground, great at reading the game, great at picking out passes from the back and both experienced defenders. Alderweireld will lead the line a little more in terms of organisation but I'm really excited to see what the two of them can do together.

Alonso- Allowed to get on the ball and dictate the pace of the game, he'll play in a similar way to Alonso but with more bite and energy, given his age, which should stand us in good stead. He has a very talented, energetic side around him and he’s the cool head in the middle to bring it all together and make them tick. He’ll be protecting the defence as ever, with his reading of the game and picking up the ball from the defence and spraying passes around. This should be a fun challenge for him, something slightly different which I believe he will relish. The movement in front of him will make this aspect of his game relatively easy given his ability to pick a pass, but more importantly a lot of fun for him! Defensively he may get caught 2v1 now and again but he has the intelligence to know when to foul, when to hold people up and allow Gueye to get back and when to call a defender out to help him.

Gueye – A big coup for us - he's essentially a luxury version of Diame, on steriods and smarter and more technical. And we'd been doing well with Diame! He has bags of energy, good passing, good shot, good decision making. These attributes make this man the perfect box to box player for our formation today. He will play slightly ahead of Alonso, his main role will be to put the Tewm X DM under too much pressure to settle on the ball and play them out of trouble. He should thrive on getting on the ball in dangerous areas, rather than a more reserved role, with a lot of movement and pace around him causing problems for the opposition, giving him a little more space than usual as well. Defensively, I just want him to be very aware of the counter attack and when Alonso is being doubled up on bust a gut to get back and help him. But when we are pressing the opposition in a normal situation he will be up high on the DM.

Pedro & Carrasco – hungry, direct, pacey and unpredictable, which will make them a constant pain for Team X. I want them always looking to get forward, beat a man, taking the quickest route into the box, whether that be a direct run in or down the line and whip a ball in. I want them always wanting the ball too, always moving off the ball. Off the ball it’s simple, just drop in and get goalside of your FB as soon as you can. Not so much defensive responsibility today with our FBs playing as defenders, not wing backs, so they will look to get at the full backs in 1v1 battles, keep them pinned back and just try to beat them and get the ball in the box. If the opposition FBs do try and push on, let them – we will try and stop the attack very quickly and aggressively at the back and then when we get the ball back, the wingers will have space and we will outnumber the defence 4 to 3. They're also hard workers which was make us more solid as a team, as well as having huge experience of turning big games on their heads

Pjanic - naturally he'll put in a shift closing people down and without the ball he'll beat people, pick passes and create things. He gets a chance to do this as he pleases and let others play to his tune

Milik - a classic CF who will play to his strengths, bringing players into the game and coming alive when hes in the box.

Subs - 65 mins - Ndidi, Gnabry & Rashford on for Alonso, Carrasco & Milik.

Straight swaps, but more direct, pacey & unpredictable. Gueye drops into more of a tradtional 'Makele role' while Ndidi goes box to box.

-----------------Pickford-----------------
Semedo--M.Keane--van Dijk--Robertson
-----------Wanyama-Dembele------------
Robben---------Barkley----------Lanzini
------------------Lukaku-------------------

Sakho, Dier, McCarthy, Roberts, Kelechi, Moussa

We have Pickford in goal who is a big target to aim for, he oozes confidence and this will run through out the team. Will dominate his box and look to start quick counter attacks from the back.

Keane will mark the striker, and van Dijk will be the ball player who will take it out of defence. Both comfortable on the ball especially van Dijk who will start attacks from the back. he is also top class in the air and strong in the tackle, both big men so they can attack high balks and win them no problem . They will remain tight when we are under attack! The fullbacks can attack if they see fit, Robertson is especially good and supporting the winger so he will be up and down the pitch, Semedo will attack sporadically. When they do attack, get beyond the wingers and scream for the ball even if it is just a decoy for the wingers. Defend as a four, stay in a line and stay strong.

Wanyama is our defensive midfielder he takes no prisoners a very hard man to get in behind especially with Dembele beside him, Wanyama takes total care of there most advanced central midfielder and stops him becoming a danger. Dembele and Barkley are our playmakers and attacking midfielders, Dembele is the playmaker from deep but will make lung bursting runs forward, this is a good combination with the other two as we have all basis of what a midfield needs covered, once Wanyama has the ball won, a little pass sideways/forwards to either of the two and we are away very quickly on the attack, Dembele who will look to pass it forward to the attacking players, both can tackle so dont let their midfield near our defence! Barkley is the one likes to support the striker so he will be making the late runs into the danger area. He has skills to take him passed players and his passing i svery good as he will look to get Lukaku into a shooting opportunity. Will link well with Robben and Lanzini

Robben and Lanzini, both are very quick and can score spectacular goals, so we have given them freedom to attack the fullbacks, Robben tends to cut inside and use his pace and power to get him passed players and into the opposition area whereas Lanzini will use his skill and pace to go to the outside of defenders and cross in, Both can score from distance with accuracy so on they go. Use Barkley as a pivotal player as they look to support Lukaku

We defend as a team, it isnt all about attack, so again a strong 4 in a line when we defend, two banks of 4/5 are always difficult to penetrate.

Lukaku is quick, powerful and good eye for goal, will look to link up quickly with Barkley as he comes forward with as they will be a big threat today hopefully. All about movement as they look to put away the chances to win this game. Always stays on the last man moving across the line. He is good with his feet and not many will beat him in the air, he will be a constant threat to them, will also look to bring our other attackers into the game if he cant create an opportunity for himself.

Captain van Dijk
Penalties Lukaku
Free Kicks Barkley
Corners The wingers will take

if we are losing Kelechi will come on for Dembele, Barkley will drop into CM and we play 442 on 70 minutes and on 80 minutes Roberts will come on for Robben

If we are winning Dier will come on for Barkley on 80 minutes and sit in midfield and Kelechi for Lukaku at the same time

If we are drawing McCarthy for Dembele on 70 minutes will add some drive from midfield, Roberts for Robben and Kelechi for Lukaku at the same time
----------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Goodwick United
<u>injured</u>
Maarten Stekelenburg
Ludwig Augustinsson
Predrag Rajkovic
Lucas Hernández

Captain: Carrick
Penalties: Dzeko (Llorente)
Free Kicks: Mertens (Forsberg)/Bernardeschi

---------------------------Weidenfeller
Vrsaljko---------Elvedi-------Gibson------T. Hernández
------------------Carrick-------------Baselli
-----Bernardeschi---------Coric------------Mertens
--------------------------------Dzeko

Subs: Durm, Andersen, Romeu, Höjbjerg, Odegaard, Forsberg, Llorente


Our defensive unit consists of Nico Elvedi and Ben Gibson paired up at centre-back, Sime Vrsaljko at right-back and Theo Hernández at left-back, with Michael Carrick and Daniele Baselli as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.

This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Carrick and Baselli 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 Baselli can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Carrick 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 Baselli’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.

With Baselli running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Michael Carrick.

A holding midfielder through and through, Carrick 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 Carrick such a talent.

The attacking unit consists of Federico Bernardeschi, Ante Coric and Dries Mertens as our band of three attacking midfielders, with Edin Dzeko 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 Carrick or Baselli, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.

Vrsaljko and Theo Hernández can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Carrick and Baselli can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Bernardeschi and Mertens who are fleet-footed speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. Ante Coric our attacking central midfielder’s diminutive physique and low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Ante Coric 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 Bernardeschi, Mertens or Dzeko in via fast passing combinations.

Upfront Dzeko will operate in fluid attacking system— looking to latch onto through balls, intelligently lofted passes, one-touch movement and drilled crosses from our full backs.

Subs – Höjbjerg on for Baselli, Forsberg on for Mertens and Llorente on for Dzeko on 75 mins

week 14 vs Fishguard

Injuries-
Tolisso
Callegari
Felix Passlack
Andre Silva


------------------------------Storari--------------------------------

Hysaj---------Zouma-----------Chiellini------------Raphael

---------------------Saul----------Kimmich----------------------

Lemar---------------------Bernardo-----------------------Pjaca

-------------------------------Dybala----------------------------------

subs: Lirola, Lindelof, Maia, Horta, Sanches, Emre Mor, Aduriz

Out of possession game plan: We're setting up in a 4-2-3-1 shape in this match, we will look to press high up the pitch from the front and very centrally, we know of Fishguard's attacking threat so we need to negate that by keeping them away from the box, we've added the pace, strength and quality of Zouma who will bring great qualities and solidity to the defence, a real leader. Bernardo Silva will join Dybala in the first line to pressurise the Pumas defenders while Pjaca and Lemar move narrower to cut off the supply to midfield, this will only open up passing avenues for the opposition out wide, when the ball goes wide, it is the job of Raphael and Hysaj to push quickly onto the fullback(whichever flank the ball is distributed to), forcing them either backwards,to launch the ball long or to hurry them into a mistake, the advantage of this is that should a mistake happen we have plenty of numbers forward to punish mistakes.

---------------------Zouma-----------Chiellini-------------------

-------------------Kimmich

Hysaj---------------------------Saul-------------------Raphael
-----------------Lemar----------------------Pjaca--------------
(opp FB)---------(opp MF)----------------(opp MF)---------(opp FB)

---------------Dybala-------------------Bernardo-------------------
--------------(oppCB)--------------------(oppCB)---------------


In possession game plan: we are a side full of energy and pace, and will be looking to fully utilise this in our attacking game. In Saul, Kimmich and Bernardo we have great central presence to move the ball in the opposition half. As the deepest of the midfield three, Kimmich has the most responsibility in moving the ball from the deep phases of build up, Saul next to him is very adept at carrying the ball and his passing both long and short is superb, Bernardo, Pjaca and Lemar all possess pace, trickery and the ability to score and provide goals, they will look to get on the ball as much as possible and interchange as all are equally comfortable across the attacking line. Paulo Dybala will lead the line and we all know how good he is, his explosiveness, trickery and shooting ability will be very much on show today, can go in behind or come short and try and create, a real all round fantastic forward who will create havoc for defences.

Subs:

Renato Sanches for Saul on 75 minutes, straight swap, fresh legs


if losing after 65 minutes: switch Aritz Aduriz for Lemar, Aduriz to move up front alongside Dybala who will use his pace and movement to get in behind and stretch the defence of Fishguard creating more space and pushing them back while Bernardo Silva moves to the right

if winning after 80 minutes, Pol Lirola comes on for Lemar or Bernardo, switch to 4-5-1, Maia to hold in front of the defence, using his strength and power to marshall the Fishguard attack while still retaining the ability to distribute and begin counter attacks, Lirola to play as a defensive right midfielder in front of Hysaj while Pjaca plays a more disciplined role on the left.

--------------------- Lafont --------------------

C.Soares -- Manolas -- Varane -- Emerson

-------------- Arturo ----- Kante -------------

Sanchez ------------ Alli ------------ Mbappe

---------------------- Kane ---------------------

Onana, Henrichs, Locatelli, Skriniar, Havertz, G.Jesus, Soleri

In goal Lafont a young fantastic shot stopper and a keeper that instills confidence in the back four, shouting instructions to his defenders. Out very quickly to shut down strikers and close there shooting angles down. Punches clear what he cant catch from high balls and likes to release early to set up quick counters.

Manolas and Varane at CB on this occassion Manolas will man mark the CF. Manolas is quick and skillfull for a CB, with great marking abilities, powerfully built so marking the CF should be no trouble as he has to man up to him, will keep him away from goal and be on to him quickly as he comes forward so he can intercept any though he has of going for goal. When in possession he will carry the ball out and start attacks from the back. Varane alongside is fantastic in the air, so will mark any other big players that come into our danger area, strong in the air and strong in the tackle and make sure he is strong enough to get the ball away from danger. Both go up for corners and are a huge threat.

Cedric and Emerson at fullback, we must keep the wingers quiet, stop them and we stop a lot of there attacks. They will look to keep them away from shooting areas where is dangerous in any position. This is a vital clash in this game. They will be up against quality wingers so look to force him away from goal and backwards. I want them to attack when in no danger so time these runs perfectly. One sits back a bit and allowing the other to attack, this is keeping a 3 at the back at all times. Their marking abilities are sound, both have good positional sense and very quick, do not make rash desicions and will stay on their feet. Both FBs can attack. When one goes the other stays as they look to make an extra man down the flank for our wingers to cut inside or play neat one twos to free the wingers up as there fullbacks get dragged out of position.

Kante to stop the AM getting the ball from midfield to the striker, he must be right on top of him looking to close him down at the quickest opportunity, let him dictate play and there striker will get plenty chances, we must not let this happen. So quick and into him, fairly and stop this! Kante himself will look to dictate from deep as he picks up from the defence and looks to drive us forward with precision passing. Vidal v the second most advanced midfielder much the same, but obvs when we have the ball he is allowed to move forward and move into dangerous areas where he is best and force there players back, Vidal should have a bit of time to look around him for the pass as he looks to find his team mates with ease. Use his upper body strength to get him away from the player. Pass and move always look for the return pass. When they have then close down the CM, he will look to ping the ball about so get to him before that opportunity arises. One thing is for sure, they wont get any time on the ball whatsoever with these two in midfield. We have put Alli back in a No.10 role or just slightly withdrawn No.10 against there DM he must be strong, Alli is an all round fantastic midfielder,, however he will look to take the DM on one v one drag him about open up spaces for others to drive into, with the ball at feet look to play quick one twos with those around him so he makes the runs into the box looking for that return ball that will get him in on goal. If the ball is played to him with his back to goal hold it up, draw the foul from the DM, if it doesnt come then look to lay it off, look to play the slide pass into Kane. At times he playes as a second striker alongside Kane, basically I want him him running the channels. This midfield I would pressing hard against them not giving them any time to dictate anything.

Mbappe and Sanchez are known for their creativity, speed, and technical ability, and are fearless, explosive attacking midfielders who can change the game with a turn of pace or a dribble. More importantly both scorers of wonderful and important goals. Both technically excellent in limited areas, fast explosive acceleration during the first ten yards. Which more often than not takes them passed defenders and allows them to get into dangerous areas. Always play with there heads up looking for the runs of others to get the ball into there feet. When they have the ball look to stick close to fullbacks and stop them coming forward. Just track the fullbacks and use pace to get back and in around there faces to stop them becoming a threat. Always be looking for Alli inside as the four make an awesome quartet attack wise in behind Kane and a scary proposition for there slow back line

Kane will get plenty chances, he must put away there side who will be solid at the back, however I want to target the slower of the two. Get into positions that he can go for goal or at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Target the slower of the cbs, split them apart to create space, Kane is very hard working and if he needs to go and get the ball he will he has 3 players around him that can move beyond him if needed, we are quick, so our forwards must hit them with pace to drag them all over the place. He can score from various angles/ranges..All of our front four/five will be a threat today we must go for it and keep pace with the league leaders. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Alli, Sanchez and Mbappe will be making his runs also so be watchful of him just to lay it off to the side

Captain - Manolas
Penalties - Kane
Free kicks - Sanchez
Corners - Wingers

Subs -

Losing -
70 Mins - Jesus > Alli, he goes up top 442
80 Mins - Skriniar > Emerson, Havertz > Soares, Skriniar goes to the left of a back 3, Havertz to RM and we go with Sanchez up front with Kane and Jesus 343

Winning
70 Mins - Locatelli > Alli and into a 3 man midfield
80 Mins - Skriniar > Emerson, solid defender
80 Mins - Jesus > Kane

Drawing -
70 Mins - Jesus > Kane fresh legs, good eye for a goal
80 Mins - Havertz > Alli

TATUNG Tactics
13421

---------------------------Reina
----------------------------Glik
------------Orban--------------------Umtiti---------------
TAA----------Kessié----------------Can------Sinkgraven
-------Mane-------------------------------Ziyech
------------------------Lacazette

Subs: Lenglet, Bakayoko, Bailey, Tousart, Traore, Woodburn, Fekir

Captain: Glik
Freekicks: Ziyech
Corners: Ziyech
Penalties: Lacazette

Possession, Positioning & Defending:
Building attacks starts from the back or deep midfield. Intelligent use of the ball from your midfielders & defenders enables your attackers to receive the ball in better positions making it easier for them to create chances & score goals. This does not necessarily mean a slow passive build-up with the ball. We still attack with intensity, press with intensity & defend with intensity. However we feel possession of the ball enables us to play with the strength in movement of our players with & without the ball to aid us in creating chances against teams that will look to defend deep. The formation isn’t the restricted position of our players when in possession. It is however a system in positioning to retreat into when our initial high press fails & we need to structure ourselves defensively. To enable us to dominate possession we need to position ourselves intelligently as we look to create overloads within the opposition’s structure enabling our players to pass their way out of the opposition’s press by moving the ball to an area of the pitch which then becomes less saturated & more vulnerable to penetration. The aim is to pass & lure the opposition to one area of the pitch with the compact positioning of players close to the ball & then quickly switch the play to the other side of the field thus catching the opposition out of position. So the vertical spacing between the defence, midfield & attack needs to be needs to remain compact at all times.

In Franck Kessié & Emre Can we have 2 midfielders who are capable of dictating the play as well springing a quick counter attack with a splitting pass or bursting run through midfield. Together they will look to get on the ball as much as possible. Once the play is moved to our forwards they will position themselves intelligently so that they can dictate the play by redistributing the ball to our creative workhorses in Mane, Ziyech & Lacazette.
Can & Kessié more than have the physical attributes to dominate any midfield but they can also speed up or slow down the play depending on the rhythm of the game before making the right pass that will result in checkmate for us. Most teams will look to shut us out through the centre of the pitch so building attacks from wide areas will be utilised as well.
If the play is towards the left/ left-centre of the field we will use the positioning of Can, Umtiti, Sinkgraven & Ziyech to create the overloads that enable us to keep possession. While those four players look to dominate the space & ball, Kessié & Mane will move infield to make sure we are not neglecting the centre of the pitch which helps us both defensively(to press) & offensively(to pass). Lacazette will make runs which will enable us to create chances and TAA will balance out the attack by either keeping himself free for us to switch the play. The defence also moves as well, keeping an eye on the opposition’s forwards as they will look to cut off the passing options in the event that we lose the ball. This allows the defenders to press quickly.
When the opposition tries to win the ball back we have enough players to play around their press however should we find the play congested, we will quickly switch the play (via a combination of passes or a long pass) to less congested right side & utilise the individual abilities of Mane, TAA or Kessié (a collective of pace, power, speed of thought, vision & technical ability). Also by spacing our players close together, it also enables us to press the opposition quickly & in numbers aiding us to win the ball as quickly as possible thus counter-pressing the opposition & catching them disorganised which enhances the quality of our attacks.
If the opposition goes for the long ball, Orban, Glik & Umtiti more than have the physical attributes to deal with the scenario. The ball should only ever be passed to the defence to relieve the team of pressure as we re-evaluate the play & build again or to mislead the opposition out of their defensive shell & open up space in-between the lines for us to quickly move the ball forward & create more quality chances.

When the play is on the right hand side of the field the philosophy is the same, only the personal changes. So Kessié, Glik, TAA & Mane will create the overloads. Ziyech & Can will move infield & Sinkgraven will balance our play depending on the movement of Lacazette. Defence performs their same role as well.

Possession of the ball is only the tool with which we need to fully express our style of play based on positional structure & movement of our players. Without the ball this is not possible. Chances are created from the positional structure, dynamic movement & spacing in the final third, which surprises opponent thus creating breakthroughs towards the opponent’s goal – especially when the creativity of Can & Ziyech is paired with the sheer speed of Mane & Lacazette. We understand that our forwards are not blessed in height therefore we will mainly utilise cutbacks instead of crosses. This should also play into the box-2-box strengths of Kessié & Can.
Counter-pressing is also a tool should we lose the ball in the attacking third. As mentioned above the compact positioning of our players aids our intense pressing tactic.
Through balls, chips & lobs coupled with the movement of our forwards all contribute to our attacking style. Attackers are allowed freedom of movement & expression.

Part of our defensive strategy is intense pressing & counter-pressing the player with the ball & man-marking the immediate passing options available to the opposing player with the ball. However we do understand that the high press will not always win the ball there we will look to defend in a narrow 541 structure (Lacazette occupying the opposition's CBs).
• The default posture of the team is to sit deep in a narrow, compact shape in order to prevent the opponent from creating chances.
• The team only breaks the shape to press the ball when the odds of success are high. (And even here it might be better to say that the whole team moves together, causing the shape to temporarily change, rather than saying that the shape "breaks"
• When the ball is won, it is played forward quickly because fast attacks can catch opponents off balance & turning the ball over in the attacking third is less costly than turning it over in your own defensive third or in midfield.
• Every player in the team has to assist defensively.
• Position ourselves compactly, offering less space between our lines & force the opponent into less dangerous areas of the field away from our goal.

We have intelligent players that have this dynamic movement & intelligent positioning in their arsenal & thus we are comfortable implementing this style of play.

Subs
75mins: Fekir for Mane. Ziyech to play as the CAM behind Lacazette & Fekir
78mins: Bakayoko for Can to get some fresh legs in midfield to help with pressing.

SC Cambuur Tactics (4-3-3)
Captain : Dória
Vice Captain : Ederson

-----------------Ederson
Bernardo---Lemos---Dória---Santos
---------Fabinho-------Paredes
------------------Rafinha
Malcom---------------------------Costa
-------------------Icardi

SUBS: Batalla, Montes, Sánchez, Walace, Arrascaeta, Driussi, Simeone


SUMMARY: This week we go with a 4-3-3 set up although we will be a tad more conservative and operate with one holding/defensive midfielder (Fabinho) who will be complimented with a deep sitting box to box midfielder (Paredes). In front of them Rafinha will operate as the link between midfield and attack. This I feel will give us a better balanced midfield and while being absolutely defensively sound with 2 ‘sitting’ Paredes will also be allowed the freedom (when the time arises) to link with Rafinha and attack. I think this set-up lets us link up quickly with our attack while at the same time that little bit of extra cautiousness means it will be easy for us to close the door in midfield with all 3 players as comfortable sitting and breaking up attacks if necessary.
We will focus on our own gameplan and perfecting that. We want to play a nice tidy and crisp passing game. Our aim is to move the ball forward as quickly and as effectively as possible. We want to continue where we left off in seasons past and search for that perfect balance between defence and attack. Use our pace and power and build our attacks up from the back. If there is nothing on then we will be patient and ball retention is important. When we have the ball we will use it wisely and when we don’t have the ball then we will press our opponents all over the park with high urgency to win it back. We want to keep the ball on the deck and attack as a team and equally as important defend as a team. This team is bursting with pace. We will utilise that to our advantage and make the pitch wide and use our flying wingers to cause all sorts of mayhem. It will also be a tool that we use to hit opponents on the counter where we know we can out pace any team. We want to press and pressurise the opponents at any given chance and not give them a moment’s peace on the ball. We really want to make the pitch wide in this game and pull the opposition out of shape. We will look to our strength to really have a go at their defence. We will use the fitness levels of our young team to play with an outrageous tempo from the off – pressing the opponents and going for the jugular to try and get in front. If that is successful and gets us in front then it will be up to the player’s own discretion on how to manage the ferocity and pace of how we play.

Goalkeeper: Ederson 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: We will operate with one holding/defensive midfielder (Fabinho). He 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. He will be complimented with a deep sitting box to box midfielder (Paredes). He has a more conservative role this week and while being a little more constrained than normal he will still have the opportunity to bomb forward when the time is right. They will both have to put a defensive shift in and both are very strong in the tackle. 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. In front of them Rafinha will operate as the link between midfield and attack.

Wingers/Centre Forward: When in possession both Malcom and Costa 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 De Rafinha, Paredes and Icardi in to play. They can vary their attacks as they see fit. Both players can play all across the middle so don’t be surprised to see them swapping wings. At times Paredes may sit a bit deeper allowing Rafinha 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.
Icardi starts as the CF. He won’t be short of support or ammunition with the attacking talent behind him. Great playing off the shoulder of the last man he is deadly in and around the box. A bag of energy and very strong we will also look for him to hold up and bring others in to play if it doesn’t seem to be on for him. 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 lightning 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: Rafinha, Costa or Malcom with Lemos, Dória, Fabinho and Icardi to offer an aerial threat. Rafinha and Costa (with his thunderbolt left foot) may try their luck with several free kicks from distance.

Substitutions : (75 mins) If winning (and comfortable) then 3 like for like subs – Montes for Lemos, Walace for Fabinho and Simeone for Icardi.

If losing (70 mins) then switch to a 4-1-3-2 and replace Paredes with Simeone and Malcom with Driussi. Fresh legs and 2 attackers that carry a goal threat about them. We will look to their pace and freshness to offer us something different.

--------------Fabinho
Driussi------Rafinha-----Costa
------Simeone -----Icardi

Blyth Spartans

Injuries:
Santon, Sturaro, Winks, Zidane



……………………………….Buffon © ……………………….
Calabria………..Barzagli…..Rugani………De Sciglio
…………………Mascherano…….Gagliardini…………
Berardi……………………..Iniesta………………..Ribery
………………………………….Zlatan……………………………
Subs: Cragno, Caldara, Cataldi, Munir, Immobile, Sadiq, Iorfa

Hands down the biggest game of the season, not because Pumas are a rival or that I have any beef with LSTD, but this is they are the reigning champions, and by rights will have a target on their back.. Blyth are the only back to back champions, and a win today further increases the possibility of us keeping that record.

Injuries for once have been pretty kind on us, so we’re more or less full strength, playing a system today that I openly despise but alas it’s one I think that probably suits us best.

We’re not playing possession football today, don’t really have the midfield for it, so as always one has to play to their strengths. Fast paced wing play and aiming for the big man in the box, that’s how we set up and that’s how we look to get the job done.

Buffon continues between the sticks, still up there with the very best and will lead the side out, marshal his defence, collect what he can and leave what he feels his defence can deal with, Part of an all-Italian back five, no communication issues here.

Calbria and De Sciglio, both team-mates in Milan, both fantastic at getting forward and that today will be the key, they are both given free licence to attack as far up and as often as is possible, run the line and allow our wingers to drift inside, Mascherano when we have the ball will sit deep and cover the FB’s effectively playing as a 3rd CB. Defensively it’s pretty generic, show the man the line, don’t dive in etc etc.

Barzagli and Rugani, Master and apprentice – team-mates at Juve and for Italy, they are the perfect combo, the experience and mastery if the dark arts by Barzagli and the youthful energy and willingness to learn by Rugani – not sure if LSTD goes 1 or 2 up top…if it’s one then Barz marks him, if it’s two then Barz gets first pick, Rugs takes the other.

Mascherano and Gagliardini will provide a pretty robust wall in front of the defence, as established Masch is an extra CB when we have the ball, Gag’s is more box-to-box, having a great season, managed to get into the Italy squad despite contacting Interitis.
Berardi and Ribery, neither are pure wingers so will play their natural game, drifting infield allowing our full-backs the space to run the line, both men will look to attack the gaps between FB & CB, trying to make some space for Iniesta to thread the balls through.

Iniesta is still a top quality #10 and he’s the man that everything passes through today, links the play beautifully and with Zlatan infront of him he has a lovely target to aim at.

Zlatan, the man, the myth, the legend – might be old and past it now but still a massive handful, legs aren’t what they were but we have runners all over the pitch, him being isolated is not an issue.


Subs:

60 mins
Caldara > Barzagli, just fresh legs for the old warhorse


70 mins
Cataldi > Gags. Like for like in the engine room

80 mins
Immobile > Zlatan, fresh legs

Fishguard Sports

Captain: Hummels
Penalties: Firmino (Dolberg)
Free Kicks: Coutinho

---------------------------------Horn
Klostermann---Stark---------Hummels------Toljan
---------------------Weigl-----------Dahoud
------Sané-----------------Pulisic-----------Coutinho
------------------------------Firmino

Subs: Bijlow, Fosu-Mensah, Kempf, Goretzka, Nouri, Kluivert, Dolberg


Our defensive unit consists of Niklas Stark and Mats Hummels paired up at centre-back, Lukas Klostermann at right-back and Jeremy Toljan at left-back, with Julian Weigl and Mahmoud Dahoud as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.

This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Weigl and Dahoud 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 Dahoud can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Weigl 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 Dahoud’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.

With Dahoud running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Julian Weigl.

Weigl 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 Weigl such a talent.


The attacking unit consists of Leroy Sané, Christian Pulisic and Philippe Coutinho as our band of three attacking midfielders, with Roberto Firmino 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 Weigl or Dahoud, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.

Klostermann and Toljan can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Weigl and Dahoud can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Leroy Sané and Philippe Coutinho who are fleet-footed speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. Christian Pulisic our attacking central midfielder’s diminutive physique and low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Pulisic 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 Sané, Coutinho or Firmino in via fast passing combinations.

In our system we have a wealth of fleet-footed players and players with similar strengths; Firmino is the man who will do the job of being a jack-of-all-trades-but-master-of-none like talent. He will look to score, create or press with high-intensity up front.

One of the rarest traits that Firmino has up sleeve is his movement, which will open up the tightest of defences. His positioning near the half-spaces and the movement slightly deeper towards our opponents midfielders will drag either the full back or the centre-half out of position, opening up spaces for his team-mates to run into. And this ability of his is massively underrated.

Subs: Dolberg on for Firmino on 72 mins

A complete striker, Dolberg will act as a presence up front whilst also possessing the ability to go past defenders, by unleashing his pace on our opponents defence.

His skill-set goes against the stereotype which states that the lanky forwards can only act as target men up front, or use their hold-up abilities to allow the team-mates to join the attack. And apart from pace, a main part of Dolberg’s armoury is his lethal finishing.

Subs: 80 mins

Goretzka on for Dahoud (Goretzka has a massive engine which will bring fresh intensity into the midfield for the final minutes)

week 15 vs Cambuur

Injuries-
Kimmich, Nagy, Lemar, Silva

------------------------------Storari--------------------------------

Hysaj---------Zouma-----------Chiellini------------Raphael

---------------------Saul----------Tolisso----------------------

Emre Mor------------------Bernardo-----------------------Pjaca

-------------------------------Dybala----------------------------------

subs: Lirola, Lindelof, Maia, Horta, Sanches, Passlack, Aduriz

Out of possession game plan: We're setting up in a 4-2-3-1 shape in this match, we will look to press high up the pitch from the front and very centrally, we know of Cambuur's attacking threat so we need to negate that by keeping them away from the box, we've added the pace, strength and quality of Zouma who will bring great qualities and solidity to the defence, a real leader. Bernardo Silva will join Dybala in the first line to pressurise the Cambuur defenders while Pjaca and Emre move narrower to cut off the supply to midfield, this will only open up passing avenues for the opposition out wide, when the ball goes wide, it is the job of Raphael and Hysaj to push quickly onto the fullback(whichever flank the ball is distributed to), forcing them either backwards,to launch the ball long or to hurry them into a mistake, the advantage of this is that should a mistake happen we have plenty of numbers forward to punish mistakes.

---------------------Zouma-----------Chiellini-------------------

-------------------Tolisso

Hysaj---------------------------Saul-------------------Raphael
-----------------Emre----------------------Pjaca--------------
(opp FB)---------(opp MF)----------------(opp MF)---------(opp FB)

---------------Dybala-------------------Bernardo-------------------
--------------(oppCB)--------------------(oppCB)---------------


In possession game plan: we are a side full of energy and pace, and will be looking to fully utilise this in our attacking game. In Saul, Tolisso and Bernardo we have great central presence to move the ball in the opposition half. As the deepest of the midfield three, Tolisso has the most responsibility in moving the ball from the deep phases of build up, Saul next to him is very adept at carrying the ball and his passing both long and short is superb, Bernardo, Pjaca and Emre all possess pace, trickery and the ability to score and provide goals, they will look to get on the ball as much as possible and interchange as all are equally comfortable across the attacking line. Paulo Dybala will lead the line and we all know how good he is, his explosiveness, trickery and shooting ability will be very much on show today, can go in behind or come short and try and create, a real all round fantastic forward who will create havoc for defences.

Subs:

Renato Sanches for Saul on 75 minutes, straight swap, fresh legs


if losing after 65 minutes: switch Aritz Aduriz for Emre, Aduriz to move up front alongside Dybala who will use his pace and movement to get in behind and stretch the defence of Cambuur creating more space and pushing them back while Bernardo Silva moves to the right

if winning after 80 minutes, Pol Lirola comes on for Emre or Bernardo, switch to 4-5-1, Tolisso to hold in front of the defence, using his strength and power to marshall the Cambuur attack while still retaining the ability to distribute and begin counter attacks, Lirola to play as a defensive right midfielder in front of Hysaj while Pjaca plays a more disciplined role on the left.

Wellington Phoenix tactics – vs someone

-------------------------Foderingham------------
Jung---Alderweireld--Ginter--Grimaldo
--------------------Alonso---Gueye-----------------
Pedro-----------------Pjanic---------------Carrasco
---------------------------Milik------------------

Subs: Galloway, Gnabry, Gray, Rashford, Vieira

Captain – Alonso
Vice – Alderweireld
Corners – Pjanic
FKs from deep – Alonso
FKs at goal - Pjanic
Pens - Milik

Big game today, trying to recover our absent start. We line up with a more traditional 4231 again today, but our system will be very similar to last season's - Alonso will hold the deep space allowing Gueye to press the ball high up the pitch. Essentially we will be looking to win the ball back high up the pitch and from there we have great ball playing defenders and the maestro Alonso, picking out passes. The plan is that with such pace and movement in attack we can flood the attack, give us the upper hand due to the shock factor and the extra player will mean that the opposition defence will always be occupied. While they'll probably have contingencies in place, hopefully by flooding the box with fluid attackers we can have their defenders falling each other and giving this side the big defeat they've been due all season. Obviously our midfield two will be put under more strain, but Alonso is such an intelligent reader of the game who has never relied on pace or an all action style and Gueye is just an animal who is in great shape and great form, who can cover a lot of ground, support the defenders and the attacks and has enough ability to move the ball on to the better players.

Our defence will play high, but our defence is as fast and powerful as anyones, not to mention as intelligent and experienced as they come and will be playing on the front foot. Although we will have to be more wary of midfield runners with this formation, I would bet that we will still have a free man along the back line, which really means our players can attack the ball with confidence, keeping the oppostion (hereby known as Team X) in their own half. As always, although we are playing a high line and pushing to keep the play in the opposition half, we will not play an offside trap unless it’s clear – this means the defenders can read the game and drop off half a yard in anticipation of a ball coming over the top to give them the edge on the striker. This, matched with their pace, should be enough to mean that it will take something very special for Team X to get in behind us and even when they do, they have the vast frame of Foderingham to try and get past.

IN SUMMARY – we’re looking to press Team X into either playing themselves into trouble and making mistakes at the back or resorting to clearing the ball, which our defence can deal with comfortably given their attributes and recycle position back to Alonso, to get us started again.

Foderingham - He will play as you want a keeper to play – alert all game and full of confidence. He’ll command his box and inspire confidence throughout the rest of the team. Otherwise, usual stuff (off his line quickly when needed, big at one on ones, great shot stopper and collect crosses).

As usual his good feet will come into play - we start attacks with him, thus drawing a man onto him, passing beyond him and leaving us with a man spare which we look to exploit with with passing

Grimaldo & Jung – both players with incredible engines, pace to burn and ability on the ball. It’s important to keep them grounded and remind them they’re defenders first – but these qualities listed above will make them very hard to beat in any 1v1 situation. Given our formation, they won’t really be getting forward too often, but they will have their chances. Mainly we want them getting the right side of their attacker and making us hard to beat, but when we’re with the ball I do want them to be hugging the opposite touchline, not too far up the pitch, just to give an option to switch the play and keep our width if the wide forward drifts inside to join the play. I don’t want them making overlapping runs all the time when the play is on their side though, just stretching the play with the switch option.

Alderweireld and Ginter – IMO two of the most complete defenders in the world right now, one at the height of the game with a lot of experience & another still relatively early on in his career, but playing at the top. I want them to work with each other and use their intelligence and experience to cover each other, playing to their strengths with Ginter being the younger, fitter & faster of the two. We won't be letting one or the other attack the ball specfically, they will take control of their area and the other CB will work around them accordingly. They are decent in the air, quick on the ground, great at reading the game, great at picking out passes from the back and both experienced defenders. Alderweireld will lead the line a little more in terms of organisation but I'm really excited to see what the two of them can do together.

Alonso- Allowed to get on the ball and dictate the pace of the game, he'll play in a similar way to Alonso but with more bite and energy, given his age, which should stand us in good stead. He has a very talented, energetic side around him and he’s the cool head in the middle to bring it all together and make them tick. He’ll be protecting the defence as ever, with his reading of the game and picking up the ball from the defence and spraying passes around. This should be a fun challenge for him, something slightly different which I believe he will relish. The movement in front of him will make this aspect of his game relatively easy given his ability to pick a pass, but more importantly a lot of fun for him! Defensively he may get caught 2v1 now and again but he has the intelligence to know when to foul, when to hold people up and allow Gueye to get back and when to call a defender out to help him.

Gueye – A big coup for us - he's essentially a luxury version of Diame, on steriods and smarter and more technical. And we'd been doing well with Diame! He has bags of energy, good passing, good shot, good decision making. These attributes make this man the perfect box to box player for our formation today. He will play slightly ahead of Alonso, his main role will be to put the Tewm X DM under too much pressure to settle on the ball and play them out of trouble. He should thrive on getting on the ball in dangerous areas, rather than a more reserved role, with a lot of movement and pace around him causing problems for the opposition, giving him a little more space than usual as well. Defensively, I just want him to be very aware of the counter attack and when Alonso is being doubled up on bust a gut to get back and help him. But when we are pressing the opposition in a normal situation he will be up high on the DM.

Pedro & Carrasco – hungry, direct, pacey and unpredictable, which will make them a constant pain for Team X. I want them always looking to get forward, beat a man, taking the quickest route into the box, whether that be a direct run in or down the line and whip a ball in. I want them always wanting the ball too, always moving off the ball. Off the ball it’s simple, just drop in and get goalside of your FB as soon as you can. Not so much defensive responsibility today with our FBs playing as defenders, not wing backs, so they will look to get at the full backs in 1v1 battles, keep them pinned back and just try to beat them and get the ball in the box. If the opposition FBs do try and push on, let them – we will try and stop the attack very quickly and aggressively at the back and then when we get the ball back, the wingers will have space and we will outnumber the defence 4 to 3. They're also hard workers which was make us more solid as a team, as well as having huge experience of turning big games on their heads

Pjanic - naturally he'll put in a shift closing people down and without the ball he'll beat people, pick passes and create things. He gets a chance to do this as he pleases and let others play to his tune

Milik - a classic CF who will play to his strengths, bringing players into the game and coming alive when hes in the box.

Subs - 65 mins - Gnabry & Rashford on for Carrasco & Milik.

-----------------Pickford-----------------
Semedo--M.Keane--van Dijk--Tierney
-----------Wanyama-Dembele-------------
Roberts---------Barkley----------Lanzini
------------------Lukaku-------------------

Sakho, Dier, McCarthy, Moussa

We have Pickford in goal who is a big target to aim for, he oozes confidence and this will run through out the team. Will dominate his box and look to start quick counter attacks from the back.

Keane will mark the striker, and van Dijk will be the ball player who will take it out of defence. Both comfortable on the ball especially van Dijk who will start attacks from the back. he is also top class in the air and strong in the tackle, both big men so they can attack high balks and win them no problem . They will remain tight when we are under attack! The fullbacks can attack if they see fit, Tierney is especially good and supporting the winger so he will be up and down the pitch, Semedo will attack sporadically. When they do attack, get beyond the wingers and scream for the ball even if it is just a decoy for the wingers. Defend as a four, stay in a line and stay strong.

Wanyama is our defensive midfielder he takes no prisoners a very hard man to get in behind especially with Dembele beside him, Wanyama takes total care of there most advanced central midfielder and stops him becoming a danger. Dembele and Barkley are our playmakers and attacking midfielders, Dembele is the playmaker from deep but will make lung bursting runs forward, this is a good combination with the other two as we have all basis of what a midfield needs covered, once Wanyama has the ball won, a little pass sideways/forwards to either of the two and we are away very quickly on the attack, Dembele who will look to pass it forward to the attacking players, both can tackle so dont let their midfield near our defence! Barkley is the one likes to support the striker so he will be making the late runs into the danger area. He has skills to take him passed players and his passing i svery good as he will look to get Lukaku into a shooting opportunity. Will link well with Robben and Lanzini

Roberts and Lanzini, both are very quick and can score spectacular goals, so we have given them freedom to attack the fullbacks, Roberts tends to cut inside and use his pace and power to get him passed players and into the opposition area whereas Lanzini will use his skill and pace to go to the outside of defenders and cross in, Both can score from distance with accuracy so on they go. Use Barkley as a pivotal player as they look to support Lukaku

We defend as a team, it isnt all about attack, so again a strong 4 in a line when we defend, two banks of 4/5 are always difficult to penetrate.

Lukaku is quick, powerful and good eye for goal, will look to link up quickly with Barkley as he comes forward with as they will be a big threat today hopefully. All about movement as they look to put away the chances to win this game. Always stays on the last man moving across the line. He is good with his feet and not many will beat him in the air, he will be a constant threat to them, will also look to bring our other attackers into the game if he cant create an opportunity for himself.

Captain van Dijk
Penalties Lukaku
Free Kicks Barkley
Corners The wingers will take

if we are losing Moussa will come on for Dembele, Barkley will drop into CM and we play 442 on 70 minutes

If we are winning Dier will come on for Barkley on 80 minutes and sit in midfield and Moussa for Lukaku at the same time

If we are drawing McCarthy for Dembele on 70 minutes will add some drive from midfield and Moussa for Lukaku at the same time

———————————Donnarumma
Pereira——Christensen———Tah———Romagnoli——Ghoulam
—————————Verratti—————Neves
————O.Dembele————————————Zivkovic
————————————Aubameyang


Subs: Kepa, Ake, Merino, Chalobah, Tielemans, Lozano, Williams

Captain: Marco Verratti
Free Kicks: Marco Verratti/Andrija Zivkovic
Penalties: Pierre Emerik Aubameyang
Corners: Andrija Zivkovic/Marco Verratti

Leaf taken out of Sampaoli’s notebook today using what starts as a 5-4-1 but offers flexibility between itself and 4-4-2, 3-1-3-3, 3-4-3 in order to adapt to the challenges the opposition pose at particular instances of the game, in particular in limiting the opposition to the wide areas, keeping Iniesta and co away from the middle of the field where they are so threatening, looking to be really hard to break down and force them to have to commit the FBs forward, this why we force them to create gaps in their own system and we can look to get Dembele, Aubamayeng and Zivkovic 3 v 3 as much as possible. Other change sees Neves in for Tielemans, the midfield battle is going to be massive in this game, Neves helps with keeping our shape tight, whilst not losing too much of Tieleman’s passing range, but does mean that Verratti has more licence to get on the ball and use it higher up the field where he’s a bigger threat.

When we lose the ball, no matter where we lose it, we will always look to fall back into our own half and quickly shut up all the space the opposition has to work in, allowing us to focus primarily on defending the middle of the field, keeping it very tight, not allowing them room, conceding the wide areas as any crosses we have 3 CBs who are all aerially strong. Aubameyang must be quick to drop in, shut off the passing lanes to the DM, following him everywhere in the oppositions build up whilst the AM on the side of the opposition build up steps forward and closes the man on the ball down straight away, whilst the opposite side AM quickly steps up and closes the space between the CB and FB on his side of the field (or CM and FB if we loose it in our own area of play), looking to use a front three triangle to force Blyth’s build up wide, whilst the rest of the team quickly finds its shape behind. We then enter into a phase of triangulation with the aim of making sure the middle ground is always shut off. If we do succeed in forcing them wide, this phase of triangulation focuses on the positioning of the WB, the AM and the wide CB on the side of attack. If we look at this for attacks down the opposition right, essentially, the WB (Ghoulam) becomes the active player engaging the opposition man on the ball, stepping out of the back 5 to get tight, with the AM (Zivkovic) coming across to close the passing lanes to the central attacking players, with Aubameyang still blocking the ball to the DM, Dembele tucked in working in tandem with Auba to block the ball back to the deeper midfielders and the WB (Pereira) on the opposite side dropping in to make it a back 4, allowing the defence to shuffle across, making the wide CB (Romagnoli) on the side of build up a FB in a narrow 4-4-2, which we see as the ultimate formation for shutting off all of the space. We block the channels, we block the half spaces and we negate some of the threat of an overlapping run, all the space is covered, the 3 players in a triangle closing the play down and the rest of the team putting a blanket over Blyth’s team. If they attack central we stick to the 5-4-1, both AMs narrow to give us the numerical advantage, we shut off every inch of space, looking to close passing lanes rather than stepping out to put pressure on the player, instead force them to keep slowing the play down and waiting for options, make them go out wide and reshuffle to deal with their attack. In the back four Tah picks up Ibra today, use his physicality, don’t let Ibra bully him out of it.

What this formation gives us is fluidity in attack, if we attack wide our AMs are position as wingers in a 4-3-3 (that is quickly going to overload into a 3-1-3-3), with the AM on the opposite side of the field to build up pushed infield as an out and out number 10 to make sure we have equal numbers in midfield and the WB on his side pushed right up the field to occupy his opposition FB and keep things stretched out. The FB on the side of build up is then able to get further up the pitch too and provide an overlap, but as soon as he makes that run, the AM on that side must be looking to play the ball and drop back in to midfield to make sure we have a 3-1-3-3 shape in the attack, helping us to create the overloads in the wide areas and the central areas as with one or two of Verratti/AMs able to get closer to Auba when the ball is coming back infield with the WBs pushed right on, but also giving us the ability to quickly snuff out a counter, with the 3 forwards ready to press quickly as discussed previously, usually the AMs job to quickly push up but if the WBs are in a better position on the side of attack then they will press and the AM must be disciplined enough to drop back and cover the space the WB leaves when pressing, two hard working AMs today, particularly Zivkovic who got the nod with this in mind, we need a collective performance to get anything from this game. If we get the ball in the middle and there isn’t space out wide then we look to use our usual 3-4-3 set up. Neves will look to hold the fort, both if we are in 3-1-3-3 when he’s the one charged with quickly covering space with the help of the wide CBs in case of longer balls forward to start counters, but also to give Verratti the freedom to step forward and dictate attacks when we have the ball, he’s the one that makes us tick and finds the passes others can’t. WBs of course high up the field in attacks, keeps the opposition defence stretched and they cn both cross a ball. Dembele and Zivkovic play in the half space, neither out wide nor in the whole, they occupy the positions between, roaming where they can effect the game in the way they like, Zivkovic linking midfield to attack and Dembele occupying defenders with his trickery and pace. Occupy the vacant spaces between lines, make it hard for the Dms, and FBs to know who should be picking you up, play at speed to take advantage of that confusion. Aubameyang will occupy the CBs with his movement, if they give him an inch he’s too quick to catch but if they go with him they free space for the two supporting forwards, this leaves them in a catch 22 and any moment of hesitation is a chance for Auba to pounce, keep using his movement off the CB and the chances will arrive for him and his team mates. When we attack wide CBs stretch out and push up closer to Neves, this means we have triangles from the back and out to the WB and then back into the CM, with the front 3 their own triangle, makes it easier to pass out from the opponents press, we can pass faster than they run, especially Ibra, gives Christensen and Roma to play fast balls into the WBs and AMs.

Subs:

If Winning: Tielemans for Zivkovic 70’, 3-5-2, look to try and close off the middle of the pitch. Ake for Ghoulam 80’, defensive legs at WB. Williams for Dembele 85’.

If Drawing: Tielemans for Neves 70’, faster balls into the forwards. Williams for Zivkovic 75’. Lozano for Pereira 80’, 4-2-3-1.

If losing: 3-4-3, Tielemans for Neves 60’. Williams for Pereira 70’, push high up from WB. Lozano for Zivkovic 75’, adds extra flair and a bit of unpredictability with the ball.

Goodwick United
<u>injured</u>
Gibson, Baselli, Rajkovic, Durm

Captain: Carrick
Penalties: Dzeko (Llorente)
Free Kicks: Mertens (Forsberg)/Bernardeschi

---------------------------Weidenfeller
Vrsaljko---------Elvedi-------L. Hernández T. Hernández
------------------Carrick-------------Höjbjerg
-----Bernardeschi---------Coric------------Mertens
--------------------------------Dzeko

Subs: Stekelenburg, Andersen, Augustinsson, Romeu, Odegaard, Forsberg, Llorente


Our defensive unit consists of Nico Elvedi and Lucas Hernández paired up at centre-back, Sime Vrsaljko at right-back and Theo Hernández at left-back, with Michael Carrick and Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.

This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Carrick and Höjbjerg 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 Höjbjerg can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Carrick 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 Höjbjerg’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.

With Höjbjerg running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Michael Carrick.

A holding midfielder through and through, Carrick 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 Carrick such a talent.

The attacking unit consists of Federico Bernardeschi, Ante Coric and Dries Mertens as our band of three attacking midfielders, with Edin Dzeko 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 Carrick or Höjbjerg, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.

Vrsaljko and Theo Hernández can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Carrick and Höjbjerg can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Bernardeschi and Mertens who are fleet-footed speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. Ante Coric our attacking central midfielder’s diminutive physique and low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Ante Coric 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 Bernardeschi, Mertens or Dzeko in via fast passing combinations.

Upfront Dzeko will operate in fluid attacking system— looking to latch onto through balls, intelligently lofted passes, one-touch movement and drilled crosses from our full backs.

Subs – Forsberg on for Mertens and Llorente on for Dzeko on 75 mins

Fishguard Sports

Captain: Hummels
Penalties: Firmino (Dolberg)
Free Kicks: Coutinho

----------------------------Horn
Carvajal-------Süle----------Hummels------Toljan
-------------------Weigl----------Dahoud
--Sané-----------------Pulisic-----------Coutinho
---------------------------Firmino

Subs: Bijlow, Klostermann, Stark, Goretzka, Neres, Kluivert, Dolberg


Our defensive unit consists of Niklas Süle and Mats Hummels paired up at centre-back, Dani Carvajal at right-back and Jeremy Toljan at left-back, with Julian Weigl and Mahmoud Dahoud as our midfield ‘double pivot’ screening them.

This ‘double pivot’ is the key to our team and in Weigl and Dahoud 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 Dahoud can press the ball without leaving lots of space, as Weigl 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 Dahoud’s role, he will press almost anywhere in his own half to allow defenders to stay in the defensive line.

With Dahoud running his socks off for the team, our high tempo will dictated by his partner in holding midfield, Julian Weigl.

Weigl 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 Weigl such a talent.


The attacking unit consists of Leroy Sané, Christian Pulisic and Philippe Coutinho as our band of three attacking midfielders, with Roberto Firmino 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 Weigl or Dahoud, then our 4-2-3-1 can spring into attack.

Carvajal and Toljan can surge up the wings in the knowledge that Weigl and Dahoud can drop into the space left behind if needed. As they come up the wings, both Leroy Sané and Philippe Coutinho who are fleet-footed speed merchants, excellent in tight spaces and fantastic dribblers will cut inside or make runs into the box. Christian Pulisic our attacking central midfielder’s diminutive physique and low centre of gravity will enable him to navigate away from defenders at a frighteningly quick pace. Pulisic 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 Sané, Coutinho or Firmino in via fast passing combinations.

In our system we have a wealth of fleet-footed players and players with similar strengths; Firmino is the man who will do the job of being a jack-of-all-trades-but-master-of-none like talent. He will look to score, create or press with high-intensity up front.

One of the rarest traits that Firmino has up sleeve is his movement, which will open up the tightest of defences. His positioning near the half-spaces and the movement slightly deeper towards our opponents midfielders will drag either the full back or the centre-half out of position, opening up spaces for his team-mates to run into. And this ability of his is massively underrated.

Subs: Dolberg on for Firmino on 72 mins

A complete striker, Dolberg will act as a presence up front whilst also possessing the ability to go past defenders, by unleashing his pace on our opponents defence.

His skill-set goes against the stereotype which states that the lanky forwards can only act as target men up front, or use their hold-up abilities to allow the team-mates to join the attack. And apart from pace, a main part of Dolberg’s armoury is his lethal finishing.

Subs: 80 mins

Goretzka on for Dahoud (Goretzka has a massive engine which will bring fresh intensity into the midfield for the final minutes)

Blyth Spartans @ Fishguard Sports

Injuries:
Barzagli, De Sciglio, Aarons, Zidane


…………………………………..Buffon……………………………..
Calabria…………….Rugani……….Caldara………….Gaya……
……………………….D.Suarez………Gagliardini………………
Berardi………………………..Iniesta………………………Insigne
…………………………………….Walcott…………………………….

Subs: Cragno, Zimmermann, Mascherano, Sturaro, Munir, Zlatan, Sadiq

A slight changing of the guard taking place at Spartans, and for us this is a pretty youthful starting XI with an average age of 25 – not bad considering the keeper is 39


We’ve had a mare of 2 seasons, whilst Welshy has gone and built a fantastic side, won the cup last year and look like they could take the league title this year – so as triple champions it’s up to us to slow the juggernaut down….I’ve done tactics on time

We know that Fishy can be possession heavy, so we’ll play a submissive defence approach, allow them to have the ball as much as they like, stroking it about themselves, until they get into our half before pressing heavy – this is why stalwarts such as Mascherano and Zlatan are dropped in favour of younger faster legs.

We’re not playing possession slow football today, but quick tempo slick passing ala Napoli, one pass, two pass, the third will be a diagonal into the box, turning the Welshman’s defence and using the blistering pace of our trident.


The Defence:
Buffon still marshals this team, really is the greatest ever, and still going strong, I think I’ll cry when he leaves his gloves in the centre circle and walks out the arena for the last time. Calabria may only be young but he’s establishing himself as a first teamer for Milan and also Italy’s U21’s – he like Gaya on the opposite flank are tasked with getting up and down the pitch giving us some much needed width and trying to force fishes wingers deeper than they’d wish to relieve some pressure off us….Caldara and Rugani are both having great seasons and there’s a good chance they’ll be a long term partnership together at Juve so they may as well be at Blyth as well. If Welshy goes one up top then Caldara marks him with Rugani as the spare man.


Suarez and Gagliardini:

I think this is a nice partnership, Suarez has a lovely range of passing and will drive the ball forwards, where as Gagliardini has enjoyed a massive break-through season, and gotten into the national side – he’s the Gattuso to Saurez’s Pirlo – both will keep the midfield ticking over, and whilst not being classed as “world class” both are good enough to deserve their spot.


The attack:

Berardi and Insigne are inside forwards rather than pure wingers, means as they drift inside to link up with Iniesta we have some lovely passing triangles with which to draw the welshmans defence out, before slipping a through in there for Walcott to latch onto – this is a recurring theme in our attack – they cant leave us unhurried 30 yards out, but they cant leave a gap for Theo to run into – Berardi/Iniesta/Insigne are all encouraged to take pot shots from distance keeping Fishy on their toes.

The pace and movement of Walcott,Berardi and Insigne are key for us today and the main reason that Zlatan is benched, we need to break hard and fast and this trio gives us excellent movement and versatility – at times Berardi or Insigne will be the central figure with Theo covering out-wide, this flexibility will give defenders and their man marking real problems.

Subs 65 mins
Sturaro > Gagliardini, like for like, one terrier replaces the other
Mascherno > Caldara, experienced head at the back comes on to see the game out
Zlatan > Berardi – Theo Walcott goes RW and Zlatan plays through the middle

---------------------- Onana -----------------------

C.Soares --- Bonucci --- Manolas --- Emerson

---------------- Arturo --- Kante -----------------

Sterling -------------- Alli --------------- Hazard

----------------------- Kane ------------------------

Henrichs, Skriniar, Locatelli, Diawara, Mbappe, G.Jesus

In goal Onana a young fantastic shot stopper and a keeper that instills confidence in the back four, shouting instructions to his defenders. Out very quickly to shut down strikers and close there shooting angles down. Punches clear what he cant catch from high balls and likes to release early to set up quick counters.

Manolas and Bonucci at CB on this occassion Manolas will man mark the CF. Manolas is quick and skillfull for a CB, with great marking abilities, powerfully built so marking the CF should be no trouble as he has to man up to him, will keep him away from goal and be on to him quickly as he comes forward so he can intercept any though he has of going for goal. When in possession he will carry the ball out and start attacks from the back. Bonucci alongside is fantastic in the air, so will mark any other big players that come into our danger area, strong in the air and strong in the tackle and make sure he is strong enough to get the ball away from danger. Bonucci can also pick a pass and is very good on the ball so will be allowed to carry it out of defence when in no danger. Both go up for corners and are a huge threat.

Cedric and Emerson at fullback, we must keep the wingers quiet, stop them and we stop a lot of there attacks. They will look to keep them away from shooting areas where is dangerous in any position. This is a vital clash in this game. They will be up against quality wingers so look to force him away from goal and backwards. I want them to attack when in no danger so time these runs perfectly. One sits back a bit and allowing the other to attack, this is keeping a 3 at the back at all times. Their marking abilities are sound, both have good positional sense and very quick, do not make rash desicions and will stay on their feet. Both FBs can attack. When one goes the other stays as they look to make an extra man down the flank for our wingers to cut inside or play neat one twos to free the wingers up as there fullbacks get dragged out of position.

Kante to stop the AM getting the ball from midfield to the striker, he must be right on top of him looking to close him down at the quickest opportunity, let him dictate play and there striker will get plenty chances, we must not let this happen. So quick and into him, fairly and stop this! Kante himself will look to dictate from deep as he picks up from the defence and looks to drive us forward with precision passing. Vidal v the second most advanced midfielder much the same, but obvs when we have the ball he is allowed to move forward and move into dangerous areas where he is best and force there players back, Vidal should have a bit of time to look around him for the pass as he looks to find his team mates with ease. Use his upper body strength to get him away from the player. Pass and move always look for the return pass. When they have then close down the CM, he will look to ping the ball about so get to him before that opportunity arises. One thing is for sure, they wont get any time on the ball whatsoever with these two in midfield. We have put Alli back in a No.10 role or just slightly withdrawn No.10 against there DM he must be strong, Alli is an all round fantastic midfielder,, however he will look to take the DM on one v one drag him about open up spaces for others to drive into, with the ball at feet look to play quick one twos with those around him so he makes the runs into the box looking for that return ball that will get him in on goal. If the ball is played to him with his back to goal hold it up, draw the foul from the DM, if it doesnt come then look to lay it off, look to play the slide pass into Kane. At times he playes as a second striker alongside Kane, basically I want him him running the channels. This midfield I would pressing hard against them not giving them any time to dictate anything.

Hazard and Sterling are known for their creativity, speed, and technical ability, and are fearless, explosive attacking midfielders who can change the game with a turn of pace or a dribble. More importantly both scorers of wonderful and important goals. Both technically excellent in limited areas, fast explosive acceleration during the first ten yards. Which more often than not takes them passed defenders and allows them to get into dangerous areas. Always play with there heads up looking for the runs of others to get the ball into there feet. When they have the ball look to stick close to fullbacks and stop them coming forward. Just track the fullbacks and use pace to get back and in around there faces to stop them becoming a threat. Always be looking for Alli inside as the four make an awesome quartet attack wise in behind Kane and a scary proposition for there slow back line

Kane will get plenty chances, he must put away there side who will be solid at the back, however I want to target the slower of the two. Get into positions that he can go for goal or at very least drag players away for other players to drive into the space. Target the slower of the cbs, split them apart to create space, Kane is very hard working and if he needs to go and get the ball he will he has 3 players around him that can move beyond him if needed, we are quick, so our forwards must hit them with pace to drag them all over the place. He can score from various angles/ranges..All of our front four/five will be a threat today we must go for it and keep pace with the league leaders. Can hold it up and look for runners, in particular Alli, Sterling and Hazard will be making his runs also so be watchful of him just to lay it off to the side

Captain - Bonucci
Penalties - Kane
Free kicks - Hazard
Corners - Wingers

Subs -

Losing -
70 Mins - G.Jesus for Alli 442
80 Mins - Mbappe for Emerson, 3232 goes into a No.10 role

Winning -
75 mins - Locatelli for Alli and into CM
80 Mins - Jesus for Kane

Drawing
75 Mins - Jesus for Kane, Mbappe for Alli, he goes left and Hazard to No.10

---------------------- Onana -----------------------

whats ma name

SC Cambuur Tactics (4-3-3)

Captain: Ederson
Vice Captain: Dória

------------------Ederson
Bernardo---Lemos---Dória---Santos
------------Fabinho---Paredes
-----------------Arrascaeta
Malcom-----------------------------Costa
--------------------Icardi

SUBS: Batalla, Montes, Mina, Walace, Driussi, Moreno, Simeone


SUMMARY: This week we go with a 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 set up and operate with one holding/defensive midfielder (Fabinho) who will be complimented with a deep sitting box to box midfielder (Paredes). In front of them Arrascaeta will operate as the link between midfield and attack. This I feel will give us a better balanced midfield and while being absolutely defensively sound with 2 ‘sitting’, Paredes will also be allowed the freedom (when the time arises) to link with Arrascaeta and attack. I think this set-up lets us link up quickly with our attack while at the same time that little bit of extra cautiousness (slipping back to a 4-5-1) means it will be easy for us to close the door in midfield with all 3 players as comfortable sitting and breaking up attacks if necessary.
We will focus on our own gameplan and perfecting that. We want to play a nice tidy and crisp passing game. Our aim is to move the ball forward as quickly, efficiently and as effectively as possible. We want to continue where we left off last season and search for that perfect balance between defence and attack. Use our pace and power and build our attacks up from the back. If there is nothing on, then we will be patient and ball retention is important. When we have the ball we will use it wisely and when we don’t have the ball then we will press our opponents all over the park with high urgency to win it back. We want to keep the ball on the deck and attack as a team and equally as important defend as a team. This team is bursting with pace. We will utilise that to our advantage and make the pitch wide and use our flying wingers to cause all sorts of mayhem. It will also be a tool that we use to hit opponents on the counter where we know we can out pace any team. Ideally we want to play attractive free flowing football. Sometimes that’s not possible so getting the opponent on the counter and doing a ‘smash and grab’ job today would suit us fine.

Goalkeeper: Ederson 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. One goes forward and one stays back. 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 into the stands. Both big men will be a real aerial threat at set pieces.

Midfield: We will operate with one holding/defensive midfielder (Fabinho). He 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 gameplan and while sitting deep will still offer a lot with his great passing ability. He also has a thunderbolt right foot. He will be complimented with a deep sitting box to box midfielder (Paredes). He has a more conservative role this week and while being a little more constrained than normal he will still have the opportunity to bomb forward when the time is right. They will both have to put a defensive shift in and both are very strong in the tackle. 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. In front of them Arrascaeta will operate as the link between midfield and attack. This I feel will give us a better balanced midfield and while being absolutely defensively sound with 2 ‘sitting’, Paredes will also be allowed the freedom (when the time arises) to link with Arrascaeta and attack. I think this set-up lets us link up quickly with our attack while at the same time that little bit of extra cautiousness means it will be easy for us to close the door in midfield with all 3 players as comfortable sitting and breaking up attacks if necessary.

Wingers/Centre Forward: When in possession both Costa and Malcom 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 Arrascaeta, Paredes and Icardi in to play. They can vary their attacks as they see fit. Both players can play all across the middle so don’t be surprised to see them swapping wings. At times Paredes may sit a bit deeper allowing Arrascaeta 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.
Icardi starts as the CF. He won’t be short of support or ammunition with the attacking talent behind him. Great playing off the shoulder of the last man he is deadly in and around the box. A bag of energy and very strong we will also look for him to hold up and bring others in to play if it doesn’t seem to be on for him. 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 size and strength 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: Arrascaeta, Malcom or Costa with Lemos, Dória, Fabinho, and Paredes to offer an aerial threat. Arrascaeta and Malcom (with his thunderbolt left foot) may try their luck with several free kicks from distance.

Substitutions: (80 mins) If winning then 3 like for like subs – Montes for Lemos, Morero for Malcom and Simeone for Icardi.

If losing (70 mins) then switch to a 4-1-3-2 and replace Paredes with Driussi and Malcom with Simeone. Fresh legs and 2 dangerous attackers that carry a goal threat about them. We will look to their pace and freshness to offer us something different.

-----------------Fabinho
Driussi------- Arrascaeta----------Costa
------------Simeone---Icardi