Real Madrid – Olympique Marseille:Madrid’s press suffocates De Zerbi’sbuild-up (2–1)

Real Madrid took control of their Champions League opener thanks to their intensity out of possession and constant exploitation of Marseille’s disorganized defensive scheme. Roberto De Zerbi’s men showed their trademark intent in possession but were repeatedly undone by their lack of compactness and confusion in the press.

Tactical analysis and match report by Sebastián Parreño.

Real Madrid played with Courtois; Alexander-Arnold* (went off injured at 5’ for Carvajal), Militão, Huijsen, Carreras; Tchouaméni, Valverde; Rodrygo, Güler, Mastantuono; Mbappé.

Olympique Marseille started with Rulli; Pavard, Balerdi, Medina, Emerson; Højbjerg, Kondogbia; Weah (right), O’Riley (10), Greenwood (left); Aubameyang.

Context, shapes, and the first fault lines

Marseille’s on-ball reference was a 4-2-3-1: O’Riley as a free-form ten between lines; Greenwood right, Weah left; Aubameyang up front. When Marseille had the ball on the opposition’s half, Emerson positioned himself in Madrid’s right halfspace, trying to create an overload on the last line. Without the ball, they morphed into a 4-4-2, with O’Riley stepping beside Aubameyang, while tasking Greenwood with a specialist job: tracking Madrid’s
left-back Carreras. But the execution wasn’t good. Greenwood repeatedly lost Carreras when he ball-watched and turned his back on the runner; Madrid immediately built 2-v-1s on that flank, with Carreras darting the half-space and Rodrygo pinning Pavard. Every lost reference created a chain reaction: Pavard got isolated, Balerdi/Medina were forced to step wider than ideal, leaving a lot of space and channels available.

Marseille’s high press was man-oriented . . .