TPiMBW

Mauricio Pochettino (the newly appointed Tottenham Hotspur manager), Gerardo Martino (former Barcelona), Jorge Sampaoli (Chile), Eduardo Berizzo (newly appointed Celta Vigo manager), Pep Guardiola - all have the words “press with intensity” inscribed into the playing-style within their coaching philosophy. All  directly inspired by Marcelo Bielsa (newly appointed Marseille manager). Also included in each philosophy of the managers listed above, will be the idea of getting into the pockets of space behind the opposition’s midfield - regardless of the approach …

This article was written by Jed Davies at the start of the 2013/14 season looking at Mauricio Pochettino's tactics. We thought it would be worth a re-publish now that he's been appointed Head Coach at Tottenham Hotspur. The list of former pupils who attended the school of Marcelo “El Loco” Bielsa appears to be doing quite well these days: Barcelona’s Gerardo Martino and Southampton’s Mauricio Pochettino are both amongst that long-list. In hindsight it would have been an obvious choice …

Picture this scenario (disclaimer: not a fictional account of events - stolen from a particular match in 2005): You’re less than 180 seconds away from taking the cup final to penalties. It’s the game that nobody gave you and your disciples a hope in hell, even your players thought so - with their rational mindset anyway. But this is now, the 117th minute; 117 minutes of twists and turns. At half time you were 3-0 down, down and out. But …

This article will take a look at the “new” 3-4-1-2 of Liverpool FC when in-possession. It will then compare the 4-2-3-1 formation to the 3-4-1-2, using Crystal Palace (5th October 2013) and Norwich (19th January 2013) as precedents. This article considers the in-possession formation only. This isn’t the first time Liverpool have experimented with a back three under Brendan Rodgers, as Liverpool used a 3-4-1-2 around this time last year for a short period of time. Chris Davies (Liverpool’s Head …

On paper, Cardiff’s game plan against Fulham should have played into Fulham’s strengths: the towering duo of Brede Hangeland and Fernando Amorebieta. Cardiff City’s strengths can be categorised into four different elements of play: Set Plays Positional play when playing out from the back (in their own half) The defensive organisation of their medium and low blocks Wide play as an entry route into the opposition’s box It is by no coincidence that each of Cardiff’s strengths are that of …

Sometimes in football it is individual players or those unique unplanned moments, rather than the collective strategy that a team has been working on all week in preparation for a football match, that wins football matches. Chelsea, statistically speaking, (bar the scoreline statistic) should have walked out of Goodison Park victorious. Chelsea created more clear cut chances than Everton, they had twice (16 to 8) as many shots from within the 18-yard box and accumulated a total of 31 penalty …

Roberto Martinez’s Everton debut in the Premier League saw Marouane Fellaini take centre stage as he was often the trigger for Everton’s change of tempo, either through Fellaini himself dictating the tempo by keeping in line with the play with his lung-bursting running around the pitch or through the Belgian giant’s advanced positioning that would lead to a “fast-transitional” pass (not seen by Martinez as a long ball) being played into Fellaini that would come under his control regardless of …

Football fanatics, people who truly understand football, know that by trying to copy the Barcelona or Spain model you are unlikely to succeed or even be on a path conducive to long term development. However, Barcelona’s philosophy (possession-based control) is something that clubs can and do strive towards. This article will attempt to detail just how Premier League teams currently build upon their possession-based philosophy through tactical solutions. For the purposes of trying to find general principles, this article will …