Rafa Benítez (now unemployed)

[ATF]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rafa-benitezs-complete-tactical-breakdown-of-the-final-nr0wkvdd5

Defending
This is a final between the two sides with the best defensive records in the Premier League. Manchester City conceded 32 goals and Chelsea 36 last season. When I was in charge of Newcastle United, I had a meeting with Benfica officials in Liverpool. We were discussing some players and one name I mentioned was Rúben Dias. He was valued at £20 million at the time, but they did not want to sell him. He was a young player and they wanted him to be the new centre back in the first team. He has since become an important player for City. He can read the game very well and he is good on the ball. One of the big advantages of City is they can spend a lot of money on good players — Nathan Aké, Aymeric Laporte and John Stones among others — until they find the right one.

But it would be wrong to say City or Chelsea rely on one player for their defensive success. Both teams are organised and they have balance, which is important.

They can defend high, pressing with aggression when they give the ball away because they have the best players whose understanding and physicality is good. And, normally, in the Premier League they are on top of the opponent, so if the rival wants to be dangerous and go to the other goal they have to cover a lot of ground. Obviously, this offers time
to reorganise.

 

City and Chelsea are also good at defending “deep”. Why? In the case of City, they usually play 4-3-3 although in some of the games against the top sides they play 4-2-3-1.

In the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea in April, they did this with two midfielders in Rodri and Fernandinho protecting the centre backs. Pep Guardiola asked his full backs to go high, but they are usually solid and strong in the middle.

Chelsea won that game 1-0 and played 3-4-3. They used three centre backs in César Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Antonio Rüdiger, plus Jorginho and N’Golo Kanté. Jorginho, the holding midfielder, was always in front of the centre backs and Kanté was very quick, aggressive and dynamic over short distances.

In the league game three weeks later, I thought City were better but Sergio Agüero missed a penalty when they were winning 1-0. They then lost 2-1 in the last minute to a Marcos Alonso goal. The difference is City changed to a 5-3-2 with Dias, Laporte and Aké, at centre back, while Chelsea played the same 3-4-3.

Guardiola was looking to mirror the wing backs of their rivals and have more control of the game. He was maybe worried about the width Chelsea had in the cup game, so Benjamin Mendy and João Cancelo went against Alonso and Reece James. Then it is one versus one, each player has responsibility and it depends who is better. City looked more comfortable and it will be interesting to see whether they go with a five or a four in defence in the final today.

Striking options
When Guardiola won the Champions League with Barcelona against Manchester United in 2011, he used to play with a “false nine”. Lionel Messi was dropping off and he was playing David Villa from one side and Pedro on the other side. The idea, with Messi dropping off, was to have an extra player in the middle of the pitch to link and play more of a passing game. It also means defenders do not have a reference to mark. Centre backs do not like to follow the false nine too far because if they do, they leave a big gap for the wingers to run in behind.

 

They are more comfortable not following the player, but that also leaves the player free and, little by little, with passes, the opposition moves into the box. A false nine makes it complicated for defenders and that is why we have seen City using Kevin De Bruyne or Phil Foden there. Neither Gabriel Jesus or Sergio Agüero have started any of City’s past five matches in the Champions League, and it is possible to see a false nine with three or four defenders at the back. For Chelsea, Timo Werner is the runner who is the threat behind. Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic or Hakim Ziyech usually go inside and link the play.

The position of the three attacking players depends on how much they want to press the holding midfielder of the other team. They can play 1-2 — a striker and two offensive players behind — or 2-1 with two strikers. They have freedom to move around. They try to link with the midfielders or wing backs, always threatening to run in behind the opposition. Usually Werner is the most advanced player.

Achilles’ heel
The aggressive way in which both teams press to try to win back the ball is a weapon, but it can also be a problem. If the opponent can escape the pressure, then there is usually space to exploit. To beat the press, you need to support the player who regains the ball quickly. So if Jorginho has it, he needs Mason Mount to show or N’Golo Kanté to make themselves available for a pass. The same is true of Rodri or Fernandinho. They need options from Kevin De Bruyne or Bernardo Silva. Knowing Pep Guardiola’s methods, it is important for him to have a midfielder available behind the player who is coming to press. It is not enough for a player just to watch. You have to watch and move. Play simple and away from the pressure.

When I was at Valencia, we had a lot of players who were in sync and a lot of our rivals were not ready for that. The quality of both teams mean they have players who are quicker and more aggressive, and they can press faster. Equally, both teams have players who can play out of trouble.

The game is difficult to predict. I think Manchester City will have more possession. It seems they have a bit more confidence now in terms of passing and moving the ball. Chelsea will be a threat on the counterattack, especially if Timo Werner is playing because he likes to run behind defenders. But the opposite is also true. City can be very dangerous on the counter if Chelsea play high like they did in the second game against Leicester City after losing the FA Cup final. They were more aggressive in that second match. Under Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea can also score from open play. That shows how both teams are strong in all areas.

Feels familiar
Between 2004 and 2010, I faced Chelsea 14 times as Liverpool manager in cup competitions and the Community Shield. That was in addition to the Premier League games! This will be the third meeting in six weeks between Man City and Chelsea and each time the analysis becomes harder as you try to see something that can be key. You must focus on your strengths as a team, but also what your rival will do to try to stop you. That means hard work with your staff before the game.

I do not think Pep Guardiola has an advantage because he has won the trophy before. Both teams will feel pressure. But as a manager, you can make a difference. It depends on your experience and capacity to read the game and make decisions in a short period of time. I used to try to be calm, analyse quickly the shape of the other team and what they are trying to do. During the game, the manager can change things by moving players, asking them to attack one side more than the other depending on what you see.

At half-time, you can do the same. In Istanbul, we made a tactical change playing three instead of four at the back, using Didi Hamann in the middle for Steve Finnan, and reinforced to the players that they were doing the right things despite the scoreline. But when you analyse what happened in Istanbul, there is also the fact that you have a player like Steven Gerrard in your team who can score a great headed goal and start the comeback.

There is also always the chance that as a manager you can be thorough in your analysis and then a player scores with a free kick into the top corner, for example.

One to watch
Phil Foden is a player who has shown so much maturity and his understanding of the game is exceptional. Some players do not like taking players on in one-versus-one. He is the opposite. He has the skills to do it. His movement, and his change of pace, can unbalance any system of the other team.

If you watch how City arrived in the final, there are moments in every game where he is doing something different.

[astraguy]

What a man 

[ToonArmy1892]

Imagine Bruce doing that.

[Yorkie]

Gave him away so we could buy Steve Bruce for £5m.

[stlouismag]

12 minutes ago, ToonArmy1892 said:

Imagine Bruce doing that.

"Let's play!"

Hmm, still need 1498 more words.

"Let us start playing!"

Much better, only 1496 now . . . .

[number37]

Wor Steve could have at least saved The Times a few quid if they were paying by the word. 

"Steve, can you give us your tactical analysis based on the Champions League finals you've managed in?" 

"No."

"Well how about the times you've remained calm, analysed the opposition and made a positive tactical and/or positional change either during the match or at half time to counter or neutralise the threat of an opposition player?"

"Eh?"

"Steve, how are you able to read the game and make effective changes?" 

"I've probably written more books than I've read." 

Five million pounds well spent. 

[Ketsbaia]

"Man City lost twice to Chelsea, so they'll just have to dust themselves down and roll their sleeves up" - Steve Bruce

[nufcjb]

Everytime I see this thread near the top of the topics, I get nervous because I fear he is joining someone else. I'll be honest. I want Rafa more back than the takeover. I know it is supposed to go hand in hand but the time when he was here, I couldn't care less about fat Mike as our owner because I was more focussed on Rafa and the football. I'd take that back than being under Bruce and fat Mike right now.

 

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by nufcjb

[Mattoon]

On 26/05/2021 at 18:39, NE27 said:

So in demand by desperate tinpot clubs, like ours unfortunately.

 

He's nearing the end of his PFM sell by date though.

Not a chance, he's bought himself a few more years on the gravy train by keeping poor little no marks NUFC in the PL for another season, equalling the mighty Rafas point hauls with no money...

[NE27]

11 minutes ago, Mattoon said:

Not a chance, he's bought himself a few more years on the gravy train by keeping poor little no marks NUFC in the PL for another season, equalling the mighty Rafas point hauls with no money...

We may joke about this. But the sad truth is it's the reality.

 

We should accept our lot and shut up.

[Rafalove]

What a guy. What a fucking guy.

[hakka]

Fucking loved reading that article with Rafa giving insight in to the final. That's amazing to read, love his nuanced and detailed views.

[Scotty66]

Tried to bring Dias here 

[Guest]

Was meant for Simon Smith.

 

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by Optimistic Nut

[Chicane]

[Rafalove]

58 minutes ago, Scotty66 said:

Tried to bring Dias here 

And Bruno !!!

[Miggys First Goal]

To think, amongst the ocean of shit managers we've had during the Ashley era, we had the pleasure of Rafa keeping a careful watch over us.

[Guest HTT II]

4 hours ago, ATF said:

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rafa-benitezs-complete-tactical-breakdown-of-the-final-nr0wkvdd5

Defending
This is a final between the two sides with the best defensive records in the Premier League. Manchester City conceded 32 goals and Chelsea 36 last season. When I was in charge of Newcastle United, I had a meeting with Benfica officials in Liverpool. We were discussing some players and one name I mentioned was Rúben Dias. He was valued at £20 million at the time, but they did not want to sell him. He was a young player and they wanted him to be the new centre back in the first team. He has since become an important player for City. He can read the game very well and he is good on the ball. One of the big advantages of City is they can spend a lot of money on good players — Nathan Aké, Aymeric Laporte and John Stones among others — until they find the right one.

But it would be wrong to say City or Chelsea rely on one player for their defensive success. Both teams are organised and they have balance, which is important.

They can defend high, pressing with aggression when they give the ball away because they have the best players whose understanding and physicality is good. And, normally, in the Premier League they are on top of the opponent, so if the rival wants to be dangerous and go to the other goal they have to cover a lot of ground. Obviously, this offers time
to reorganise.

 

City and Chelsea are also good at defending “deep”. Why? In the case of City, they usually play 4-3-3 although in some of the games against the top sides they play 4-2-3-1.

In the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea in April, they did this with two midfielders in Rodri and Fernandinho protecting the centre backs. Pep Guardiola asked his full backs to go high, but they are usually solid and strong in the middle.

Chelsea won that game 1-0 and played 3-4-3. They used three centre backs in César Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Antonio Rüdiger, plus Jorginho and N’Golo Kanté. Jorginho, the holding midfielder, was always in front of the centre backs and Kanté was very quick, aggressive and dynamic over short distances.

In the league game three weeks later, I thought City were better but Sergio Agüero missed a penalty when they were winning 1-0. They then lost 2-1 in the last minute to a Marcos Alonso goal. The difference is City changed to a 5-3-2 with Dias, Laporte and Aké, at centre back, while Chelsea played the same 3-4-3.

Guardiola was looking to mirror the wing backs of their rivals and have more control of the game. He was maybe worried about the width Chelsea had in the cup game, so Benjamin Mendy and João Cancelo went against Alonso and Reece James. Then it is one versus one, each player has responsibility and it depends who is better. City looked more comfortable and it will be interesting to see whether they go with a five or a four in defence in the final today.

Striking options
When Guardiola won the Champions League with Barcelona against Manchester United in 2011, he used to play with a “false nine”. Lionel Messi was dropping off and he was playing David Villa from one side and Pedro on the other side. The idea, with Messi dropping off, was to have an extra player in the middle of the pitch to link and play more of a passing game. It also means defenders do not have a reference to mark. Centre backs do not like to follow the false nine too far because if they do, they leave a big gap for the wingers to run in behind.

 

They are more comfortable not following the player, but that also leaves the player free and, little by little, with passes, the opposition moves into the box. A false nine makes it complicated for defenders and that is why we have seen City using Kevin De Bruyne or Phil Foden there. Neither Gabriel Jesus or Sergio Agüero have started any of City’s past five matches in the Champions League, and it is possible to see a false nine with three or four defenders at the back. For Chelsea, Timo Werner is the runner who is the threat behind. Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic or Hakim Ziyech usually go inside and link the play.

The position of the three attacking players depends on how much they want to press the holding midfielder of the other team. They can play 1-2 — a striker and two offensive players behind — or 2-1 with two strikers. They have freedom to move around. They try to link with the midfielders or wing backs, always threatening to run in behind the opposition. Usually Werner is the most advanced player.

Achilles’ heel
The aggressive way in which both teams press to try to win back the ball is a weapon, but it can also be a problem. If the opponent can escape the pressure, then there is usually space to exploit. To beat the press, you need to support the player who regains the ball quickly. So if Jorginho has it, he needs Mason Mount to show or N’Golo Kanté to make themselves available for a pass. The same is true of Rodri or Fernandinho. They need options from Kevin De Bruyne or Bernardo Silva. Knowing Pep Guardiola’s methods, it is important for him to have a midfielder available behind the player who is coming to press. It is not enough for a player just to watch. You have to watch and move. Play simple and away from the pressure.

When I was at Valencia, we had a lot of players who were in sync and a lot of our rivals were not ready for that. The quality of both teams mean they have players who are quicker and more aggressive, and they can press faster. Equally, both teams have players who can play out of trouble.

The game is difficult to predict. I think Manchester City will have more possession. It seems they have a bit more confidence now in terms of passing and moving the ball. Chelsea will be a threat on the counterattack, especially if Timo Werner is playing because he likes to run behind defenders. But the opposite is also true. City can be very dangerous on the counter if Chelsea play high like they did in the second game against Leicester City after losing the FA Cup final. They were more aggressive in that second match. Under Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea can also score from open play. That shows how both teams are strong in all areas.

Feels familiar
Between 2004 and 2010, I faced Chelsea 14 times as Liverpool manager in cup competitions and the Community Shield. That was in addition to the Premier League games! This will be the third meeting in six weeks between Man City and Chelsea and each time the analysis becomes harder as you try to see something that can be key. You must focus on your strengths as a team, but also what your rival will do to try to stop you. That means hard work with your staff before the game.

I do not think Pep Guardiola has an advantage because he has won the trophy before. Both teams will feel pressure. But as a manager, you can make a difference. It depends on your experience and capacity to read the game and make decisions in a short period of time. I used to try to be calm, analyse quickly the shape of the other team and what they are trying to do. During the game, the manager can change things by moving players, asking them to attack one side more than the other depending on what you see.

At half-time, you can do the same. In Istanbul, we made a tactical change playing three instead of four at the back, using Didi Hamann in the middle for Steve Finnan, and reinforced to the players that they were doing the right things despite the scoreline. But when you analyse what happened in Istanbul, there is also the fact that you have a player like Steven Gerrard in your team who can score a great headed goal and start the comeback.

There is also always the chance that as a manager you can be thorough in your analysis and then a player scores with a free kick into the top corner, for example.

One to watch
Phil Foden is a player who has shown so much maturity and his understanding of the game is exceptional. Some players do not like taking players on in one-versus-one. He is the opposite. He has the skills to do it. His movement, and his change of pace, can unbalance any system of the other team.

If you watch how City arrived in the final, there are moments in every game where he is doing something different.

tl;dr

[Guest HTT II]

Love Rafa me, I could listen to him talk footy 24/7. So glad we got to enjoy him, but still bitter he didn’t get to enjoy turning our potential into anything meaningful which you don’t fucking go and then sabotage and then allow to leave and pay 5m for fucking Bruce.

[ATF]

He mentioned in that article how much more comfortable City looked in a back five in the league game against Chelsea, as opposed to when they played a back four in the FA Cup semi, because of the extra central cover and the control in the wide areas. Tonight Guardiola played a back four and the backline looked really stretched.

I don't know if Rafa would have won as many league titles as Guardiola's won with City - certainly not as comfortably - but I'm pretty sure he'd have won a Champions League in five years. His Champions League record with Liverpool was excellent and of course he's won two UEFA Cups/Europa Leagues as well. Almost every coach is built more for either cups or leagues - even Ferguson only won the big European title twice in 26 years. Wenger lost his only final. Coaches like Rafa, Tuchel very possibly, Ancelotti, Emery - they know how to set up for these games and control the variables to get over the line. They're maybe not as effective at creating a team that continually wins week after week in the league like Ferguson or Guardiola, but they seem to have the magic touch in one-off matches or two-legged knockout situations. 

[ToonArmy1892]

5 hours ago, Optimistic Nut said:

Was meant for Simon Smith.

[HaydnNUFC]

Rafa was looking at Bruno Fernandes and Ruben Dias when here. Bruce is giving Shelvey and Gayle new contracts.

[et tu brute]

11 minutes ago, HaydnNUFC said:

Rafa was looking at Bruno Fernandes and Ruben Dias when here. Bruce is giving Shelvey and Gayle new contracts.

The year when we finished 5th was the perfect time for Ashley to actually progress the club and his opportunity to move us forward. That summer’s transfer window showed to me he neither wants or requires the club to be competitive. As a businessman (and to be fair a pretty successful one) I’ve never understood his approach of not investing and keeping to his methods of buy cheap, price cheap and sell big. It obviously works in the sporting goods world, but will never work in the Premier League.
 

He is knackered if this specific takeover does not happen as although he may have new buyers, I just can’t see anyone buying the club at the current value, when the infrastructure, the team and the facilities would require a massive investment now to move forward. Maybe he will get another mega rich investment (I doubt it), but I can currently see only a similar type of owner probably being interested. 
 

I will turn my back fully this year with him and Bruce still at the helm. I just can’t stomach one game more of these two pricks in charge.

[HaydnNUFC]

26 minutes ago, et tu brute said:

The year when we finished 5th was the perfect time for Ashley to actually progress the club and his opportunity to move us forward. That summer’s transfer window showed to me he neither wants or requires the club to be competitive. As a businessman (and to be fair a pretty successful one) I’ve never understood his approach of not investing and keeping to his methods of buy cheap, price cheap and sell big. It obviously works in the sporting goods world, but will never work in the Premier League.
 

He is knackered if this specific takeover does not happen as although he may have new buyers, I just can’t see anyone buying the club at the current value, when the infrastructure, the team and the facilities would require a massive investment now to move forward. Maybe he will get another mega rich investment (I doubt it), but I can currently see only a similar type of owner probably being interested. 
 

I will turn my back fully this year with him and Bruce still at the helm. I just can’t stomach one game more of these two pricks in charge.

I can't just switch my NUFC attachment off, mainly because I'm an idiot. Believe me, over the last 2 years I've tried. But yeah, it just will be more of the same shite next season, probably an okayish start, a rancid run in December-March and a good end to the season topped off with a bottom 8 finish. A handful of good performances which are immediately followed with 90 minutes of shit a la the turnaround from West Ham away to Brighton at home, Burnley at home to Man Utd at home, Everton away to Palace at home et cetera.

It's why Bruce is shit, no consistency, or just consistently shit. He never has taken a club to Europe via league position or won anything. Even if we somehow get Willock back, hold onto ASM or whatever, what I just described above is how next season will go. On top of all of that you've got the goading of the fans and being general cunt.

Benitez, if he was still here and we were signing the likes of Dias and Fernandes like he's stated he was looking at doing before limitations imposed by the hierarchy stopped him from doing so, with Rondon, Perez et cetera, we'd be in Europe now. Or challenging the likes of Leicester. 

And like you say, 2011-12, 2017-18 and 2018-19, perhaps even this season at a stretch, are times to invest in the team and make those steps forward. But no.

Newcastle United, a club of ifs.

 

 

Edited May 30, 2021 by HaydnNUFC

[cubaricho]

100% dude