It could have been worse, this game. Much worse. While Sevilla against Atlético could have been a battle to give the ball away to your opponent, the game developed into a battle between two teams who both had a dominant half. Both in their own style. Nice to watch. Tactical analysis and match report by […]

Ernesto Valverde revisited last season’s 4-3-1-2 midfield diamond with four central midfielders, but it was not enough to create good chances against a solid Atlético wall. Diego Costa ended his goal scoring drought amidst a (yet again) dysfunctional Atlético offense, but Dembélé saved the day for Barcelona in the last minute. Tactical analysis by José […]

An injured Diego Godín scored an injury time header to complete Atlético’s comeback against Athletic Club. Do not be fooled by the result of this game, neither of these teams had a well-defined offensive game, but at least advantage was taken of the few big chances at hand. Atlético is a strange case to talk […]

Atlético Madrid controlled the game from beginning to end and relied on their defenders to make the difference up front. Real Sociedad tried to respond with counter-attacks and their own spells of possession on numerous occasions, but their weak attack consistently came up short against Atlético’s solid defensive structure. Diego Simeone’s men hosted Real Sociedad […]

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 […]

After a close, uneventful first half, Villarreal shifted from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-4-2 scheme and dominated an Atlético who still struggled to find good offensive mechanisms. The saves of Jan Oblak were vital to prevent a Villarreal victory. Villarreal came into this match as the biggest expected goal underperformers in LaLiga, with only 6 […]

Real Madrid started this game having not won a single Madrid derby at home in LaLiga since 2012. A trend that lived on after the ninety minutes came and went. Thus, despite some good adjustments from Real manager Julen Lopetegui in the second half, Atlético Madrid’s rock-solid defense fended off Dani Ceballos and co. and […]