UEFA’s report is full of interesting insights to the Champions League of last season, but there is one statistic that stands out strongly.
In accordance with its findings, more than half of those goals scored at the competition — 185 from 366, to be precise — came from ownership recovered in the final third of the opposition.
It’s an eye-catching detail which reflects the growing incidence of pressing the level of this game. The report specifically highlights the»extraordinary intensity» of Liverpool’s press in their own semi-final second-leg win over Barcelona. However, the guys of Jurgen Klopp weren’t the only ones up the pitch.
The closing, when Liverpool confronted Tottenham, was charged as a meeting between two of the best exponents of top pressing. Curiously, though, Spurs proceeded to record their number of pressures in almost any Champions League game all season, with 64. On his own, Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah accounted by means of comparison.
What felt to be an anomaly at the time — over double as many pressures had been recorded by Spurs within their second leg against Ajax a couple weeks earlier — now feels like the start of a fashion. In a time when high pressing is becoming more and more prominent everywhere, recent evidence indicates Spurs are moving in the opposite way.
This season, the press simply hasn’t been there. Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville described Spurs because»lethargic» in their 2-2 draw with Manchester City last month. Per week they had been similarly flat in the 1-0 loss to Newcastle. And if they did counter-attack against Arsenal at rate last Sunday, their game was still strangely absent.
Unai Emery’s side were able to construct in the trunk unchallenged at the Emirates Stadium, which was surprising given the obvious problems they had been induced by the high press of Liverpool in their game. Klopp’s side earned ownership at Anfield in the third 13 times. In the Emirates, Spurs handled it.
Spurs have only won ownership in the third nine times in four games annually, putting them 16th one of Premier League sides. Their average of 2.3 per match represents a considerable drop-off on their typical numbers. Last year , they averaged 4.2 per game, putting them fifth. At 2017/18, their average of 4.4 per game put them .
The information for sequences that are pressed of opta is much more revealing. Sequences are described as opposition passing sequences of 3 or fewer moves which end within 40 meters of the own goal. This season, Spurs have driven fewer pressed sequences (31) than any other Premier League side, averaging 7.8 per game compared to 13.2 last season.
It is still out of character for a facet whose aggressive pressing was a hallmark, although It’s a small sample size, naturally. It is not too long past that returning Watford director Quique Sanchez Flores was assessing Mauricio Pochettino’s gamers to»critters» for its pace and determination with which they searched down possession.
What’s happened? Then it is not working, When it is a deliberate strategy. Spurs have survived away trips to Arsenal and Manchester City this season, shooting five points from their first four matches, but the deficiency of off-the-ball urgency has observed them provide up a worrying number of opportunities. Only Aston Villa have faced more shots. Norwich have faced more shots on target.
It is likewise apparent that the issues are a source of shame for Pochettino. He’s cut a disgruntled figure because the Champions League final, complaining that his team is the most»unsettled» it’s been since his arrival in the club and confer with its impact on the team’s performances — specifically their pressing — following the Arsenal match.
«We want togetherness,» he explained. «The group was not settled and that I told you from day one of pre-season I wasn’t happy. The most significant issue is to be on precisely the exact same page and that the players have a clear idea of how we have to move.»
An press requires total commitment it needs focus and team spirit. However, together with Christian Eriksen’s thoughts elsewhere, together with Jan Vertonghen losing his place and also new signings bedding , those factors have yet to be there. Tottenham’s cohesion has taken a evidence suggests their pressing has too.
Pochettino hopes the close of the transfer window — coupled with a pause for its break — will allow Spurs to get their rhythm backagain. But a high-pressing approach wants a striker. Is Harry Kane nevertheless that striker? Is he suited to playing a high-pressing program?
It’s a conundrum for Pochettino. There may be no questioning the attacking contribution of Kane. He has scored seven days in the opening month of this season for country and golf . However, in the past couple of years he’s suffered a series of injuries as well as his game is evolving as a result.
Kane remains in his most dangerous from the opposition’s penalty box, but nowadays he is just as likely to be viewed as he’s playing on the back of the final defender falling. Rather than running in behind himselfhe prefers to vacate the area to get his.
The development of kane has impacted his off-the-ball function. This time, he is currently averaging fewer tackles and fewer ball recoveries than any of his six campaigns with Spurs. This season, he has won possession in the final third twice in 360 minutes.
A participant who once led the press Pochettino is no longer playing the same intensity, and it’s not any coincidence thatthe last time immemorial generated the sort of breathless pressing they have become known for below Pochettino — in that Champions League semi-final second leg from Ajax in May — Kane did not feature in any respect.
His return to the for its final was a boost for Spurs, but their intensity suffered since UEFA report informs us.
Pochettino is still hoping that Kane will contact his old intensity levels. There was in the way he won possession of the opposition half in the disagreement. He then made another introduction for Raheem Sterling in equivalent situation from Kosovo on Tuesday.
However, the Premier League is an environment. Kane’s evolution suggests he knows Tottenham’s adjusted strategy this season indicates Pochettino knows it as well and his features are shifting. A side whose progress was driven by high-pressing tactics must find a way. For now, it’s a work in progress.
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