Rodrigo Bentancur

[braineclipse]

what i mean is that paulinha and bentancur can leave significant gaps around the middle that can make it difficult to have any systematic play through the middle. they both have the license (and ability) to roam and they cover large grounds and sometimes may struggle to get back to once the ball is turned over by the opposition.

i would like to emphasise that it is a minor point right now, just a question of priority and of course every tactic has its pros and cons. just highlighting to say that eventually someone will figure this out in start the counter through the middle (where of course they have to deal with our excellent CBs - which is why this works for now)

also, while I don't want to make excuses for xavi but knowing that there is a disciplined DM behind him will make his job easier for sure.

For me our problems playing through the middle isn't really related to what you point out.

Assuming I'm reading you correctly they move around quite a bit when the opponents have possession, defending in deeper areas, wider areas, sometimes pushing higher up (when we press high). That I agree with.

For those turnover moments when we win the ball there isn't much systematic play at first. Whoever is on or near the ball should take responsibility regardless of who it is.

For our more systematic play I think they've been a bit overly cautious in their positioning and on the ball. Little to no risk. Thought it was better against Everton and will be interesting to see what that looks like in the coming weeks.

 

[metalgear]

For me our problems playing through the middle isn't really related to what you point out.

Assuming I'm reading you correctly they move around quite a bit when the opponents have possession, defending in deeper areas, wider areas, sometimes pushing higher up (when we press high). That I agree with.

For those turnover moments when we win the ball there isn't much systematic play at first. Whoever is on or near the ball should take responsibility regardless of who it is.

For our more systematic play I think they've been a bit overly cautious in their positioning and on the ball. Little to no risk. Thought it was better against Everton and will be interesting to see what that looks like in the coming weeks.

yeah agree

one weakness of paulinha is his ability after winning the ball. he likes to offload it to the nearest player but I would like to see him try to play someone in first time... i.e. he should be getting more assists and key passes