Though Arsenal had decent spells, Aston Villa’s organized defensive shape and work in transitioning proved too much for Mikel Arteta’s team. Arsenal had their most controlling periods towards the end of the game, thanks to their changes, but reverted back to old systemic problems in desperation for points. Tactical analysis and match report by Joel Parker. […]
Chelsea continued to provide intrigue in their third match under new coach Thomas Tuchel as they once again showed an ability to control possession and play in their opponents’ half. Tuchel’s slight tweak to the arrangement of his front three helped cause problems for Spurs. The home side became more aggressive in the second half […]
Boring, low-quality stalemates are not supposed to have twenty-eight shots within the game! Despite this deceiving shot count, neither Arsenal nor Manchester United were effective at breaking through each other’s similar defensive setups, which led to wild shots, poor decision making in the final third and zero goals. Tactical analysis and match report by Joel Parker. […]
Liverpool’s luck had to change some time after a run of five games without a victory and this was the perfect occasion for the champions to regain their flair. Facing a Spurs team that had nearly beaten them last time, Liverpool put on a phenomenal second half display to clinch the win, with Sadio Mané’s […]
A matchup between the red halves of Liverpool and Manchester, number one and two in the league, raised expectations, but failed to deliver the battle that we all craved. Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s game plan in United’s 4-4-2 shape created both advantages and disadvantages, whilst Liverpool still found themselves out of sync, resulting in a goalless […]
Manchester City invoked an extremely fluid formation, which saw them buildup in a nominal 3-2-2-3 shape. The freedom of the front five made it nearly impossible for Manchester United to get near the ball for the better part of seventy minutes, with the guests eventually snatching their first goal, settling back into a comfortable defensive […]
Flexibility, wide rotations, and false nine’s hit Chelsea with a flash of old Pep-fluency. Manchester City had the game wrapped up, with three goals before half-time, as they delivered a message for the rest of the league, whilst pressure continues to grow on Frank Lampard. Tactical analysis and match report by Joel Parker. A matchup between […]
Aston Villa brought good counterpressing, quick free-kicks and a narrow defensive block, but Manchester United withstood their rampant opponents to go level on points with Liverpool. This high intensity and entertaining affair brought the best out of few, but Paul Pogba’s role on the left turned out to be too much to handle for their […]
A matchup between two teams, level on points, forty-eight hours after their last game was not ideal for both, but Chelsea and Aston Villa served up a feisty affair. Chelsea blew hot and cold, convincing combinations hand-in-hand with fruitless passes, whilst Aston Villa pressed effectively, without feeding their attack as much as they could have. […]
As we have grown accustomed to this season, Tottenham took the lead early and chose to sit back, accepting Wolves’ seemingly harmless attacks. Settling for little often backlashes, though, and a late goal made the once high flying title contenders violently crash back to earth for a draw. Tactical analysis and match report by Kareem […]