PSV successfully implemented a game plan with aggressive pressing and direct play towards their commanding striker Luuk de Jong, preventing Barcelona from controlling the game. This forced the Spanish champion into an uncomfortable high-tempo game, which exposed their problems when transitioning from attack to defense. However, trading punches against Lionel Messi often ends up badly… […]
You expect the game changer of PSG – Liverpool to have a Brazilian nationality (Neymar or Roberto Firmino), to be the best teenager in the world (Kylian Mbappé) or even to act as a living pharaoh (Mohamed Salah). Well, in the end, the hero of the day appeared to be an Italian: Marco Verratti. PSG […]
In similar fashion to their big win at the Etihad Stadium two months ago, Bruno Génésio’s aggressive defensive approach paid dividends. Never looking to retreat at the hands of City’s relentless ball control, Lyon managed to comfortably deal with their opponent’s attempts to pull them apart and subsequently got the better of the English champions, […]
Breaking into Valencia’s defense is not an easy task, but once Juventus got an opening goal, the match never seemed out of control for them. Thanks to their controlled possession and great defensive organization, Juventus saw the match out with minimal effort as they cruised towards Champions League knockout phase qualification. Tactical analysis and match […]
The free-roaming forwards Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala never gave United’s midfield a moment’s rest, whilst the ever-brilliant Rodrigo Bentancur continued to shine, this time in a more rigid, advanced role. Despite their dominance, in the most un-Juventus of ways, Max Allegri’s side managed to surrender their one-goal lead inside the final ten minutes to […]
For the second time in two weeks, Ajax and Benfica prove to be very evenly matched teams. Where the first meeting between these two sides was an end-to-end, dynamic affair, the return-leg in this crucial Champions League group stage game was more of ‘a tale of two halves’. In the two weeks since their first […]
The group to watch in this season’s Champions League edition is definitely group C. Liverpool’s shock defeat away against Crvena Zvezda – two hours before PSG and Napoli kicked off – only made things more interesting, as Liverpool were held on their point tally of six. Going into this match, Napoli had collected five points […]
It turns out Borussia Dortmund can score just fine without their scorching hot striker, Paco Alcácer. Lucien Favre’s decision to start Marco Reus as a defensive number ten behind Mario Götze disrupted Atletico’s buildup. Dortmund’s wing speed more than negated Diego Simeone’s fullback tactics, as Achraf Hakimi put in a man of the match performance […]
Barcelona’s new “Arthur-system” passed a difficult test by dominating Internazionale even without Messi, as Barcelona showed both defensive stability and an intelligent attack. Inter shifted from its more conservative first half game plan to a high press in the second half, without being able to make a dent in Barcelona’s defense. FC Barcelona’s manager Ernesto […]
PSG manager Thomas Tuchel takes a fascinating path in his aim to win the club’s first Champions League title. For the third time this season, PSG deliberately gave up possession to test themselves in a defensive setting. Napoli largely dominated the first half as a result and took the lead. The game tilted PSG’s way […]