Physical Address
Santasi Roundabout.
Off - Obuasi Road, +233 245628894
Tottenham failed to win any of their first 6 games this season after also struggling and finishing 17th last season, but right now out of four games, they have won three of them consecutively and got defeated by Leeds United in the last game.
We are going to break down how Roberto De Zerbi has transformed Tottenham’s buildup, why their new midfield dominates every area of the pitch, and the tactic that keeps creating dangerous 1V1s out wide. To help you understand this, we need to split up the pitch into thirds, starting with the defence.
Fixing the Buildup at the Backline
Spurs have had a big issue in buildup over the last couple of seasons, and their goal kicks show it clearly. In one game last season, they were wasteful from nearly every restart. They often completed the first pass but lost the ball by the second, and the most passes they strung together from a goal kick was two. At times, Kinský’s goal kick did not even reach a teammate.
The sequence is over pretty instantly. This meant that Tottenham just were not able to control a game. This momentum bar shows how they did not dominate the ball throughout, but compare that to the momentum bar against Chelsea this season at Stamford Bridge, a place that Tottenham have not won very often. It is a tough one, and it shows they were confident and, crucially, in control of the game.
Advertisements
De Zerbi has been able to implement his tactics and he has transformed them in this area. Kinský is now asked to almost join the same line as the defence in buildup, and that allows him to play a short pass over to Tosin. Playing short to the defenders is a crucial part in how Spurs now build up their play. To understand this a little better, look at where Andy Robertson actually gets on the ball. He is not just high up the pitch, he is also quite central for a fullback. He rarely collects the ball in the areas you would naturally expect him to.
A good example is what happened against Palce when van Hecke gets on the ball. Instead of moving into the typical left back area, Robertson steps into an inverted position, level with defensive midfielder Mateus Fernandes. That drags Crystal Palace right wing back Oscar Mingueza into a central area.
The reason for Robertson staying central is because De Zerbi wants these initial passes to be played through the middle. Van Hecke plays the bounce pass into Robertson, baiting that reaction from Crystal Palace. But straight after playing it back to van Hecke, Robertson is already scanning for the next space. He remains inverted and receives the ball in the opponent’s half, creating separation from the opposition. He then plays it back inside to Marmoush in between the lines. Another new defender vital to De Zerbi’s system this season is Jan Paul van Hecke.
Against Crystal Palace, no Tottenham player completed more passes than him. Van Hecke controlled the tempo in this game, moving the ball side to side in Palace’s half. Have a look at what happens to Spurs when van Hecke receives the ball. He plays it to Fernandes and immediately receives it back.
Advertisements
From there, Spurs’ shape begins to form. You can see the back three here with van Hecke, van de Ven and Gray. Meanwhile, a strange trio forms in between Palace’s midfield and defence. You have got left back Robertson stepping into the same lateral line as forward Marmoush and midfielder Tonali.
Embed from Getty ImagesFernandes acts as a bit of a decoy actually, ensuring Palace are focused on him and they therefore continue to be narrow. That allows Tonali to peel wide off the Palace midfield block and receive the pass from van Hecke. But when van Hecke moves the ball into midfield, you begin to see the best parts of De Zerbi’s Tottenham.
The New Midfield Three
To understand what makes Spurs’ new midfield so good, we need to go back and have a look at last season’s team because this is midfielder João Palhinha’s touch map from a game last season.
It is interesting because he did not really have many touches in the middle of the pitch. Actually, he had a higher concentration of touches in those wide areas. Pedro Porro is in possession. Palhinha also always scans the wide area.
By the time the ball reaches van de Ven, Palhinha has moved into that space and he receives the pass. But receiving in those areas makes it difficult for Spurs to play incisive passes centrally in buildup. De Zerbi wanted that to change, hence the arrivals of Tonali and Fernandes this summer.
It has helped to completely change this. They lined up like this against Chelsea with a midfield three of Tonali, Fernandes and Maddison and it worked.
Their average positions tell us a lot here because they were staying extremely close together and central. Spurs’ passing flow from the game now play into the centre of the pitch as much as possible in those early phases. Once the ball enters this area, the three midfielders combine to have total control.
Embed from Getty ImagesWhen Fernandes receives the ball. He’s highly technical but also had really risky pass to Tonali while the ball was still in the air. After playing that pass, he does not stand still. Fernandes is quick to make a follow-up movement. He evades the initial Chelsea press before then playing the ball into a wide area. De Zerbi even instructs his midfielders to do this when they are deep in their own half. Like here where the ball arrives and Fernandes decides to take it on his chest, the midfield trio are all close by and it allows them to combine here.
Maddison plays it back to Fernandes and now Chelsea have become extremely compressed around the ball. Fernandes bypasses the opposition with this pass to Tel and now there are six Chelsea players on the wrong side of the ball. But what makes this midfield really work is that each player solves a different problem.
We know by now that Fernandes links the midfield. But he goes further than that, often linking the entire team. Fernandes on the ball here. Ahead of him, he has Maddison and Tonali, both of whom are taking up the attention of Chelsea’s midfield of Kaiser and Henderson.
That forced Chelsea into a narrow shape out of possession. This is all part of De Zerbi’s plan to attract opponents into central areas, then punish them out wide. Fernandes of course understands this and drills the ball over to Tel, who was totally free.
In a historic win, Chelsea simply had no answer to this tactic. Fernandes received the ball and Chelsea reacted, but he had already spotted his next pass. That means he can move it on before they apply real pressure. Again, he sets up Tel for a 1v1 opportunity. But also in the midfield, of course, you have got Tonali, who has a slightly different role higher up the pitch.
Against Palace, he generally played just on the right side and this is a key attacking tool for Tottenham. With van Hecke in possession, Tonali took up a position inside Crystal Palace’s defensive block. But when van Hecke strides forward with the ball, Tonali does not get out of the way or move away or run in behind. Tonali moves towards him, which drags an opposition centre back out of the defensive line.
This may not look like much in isolation, but notice what happens when Tonali keeps dragging the same defender out of position. This time Spurs are a bit closer to the opposition’s box, with Tonali in a similar area inside the Palace block.
Van Hecke plays the ball into Tonali, which drags the centre back out once again and leaves space in behind. Tonali lays it off first time to Fernandes, who is right there because the midfield stays close together. Fernandes then plays the ball into the space the defender vacated, which creates a chance in the box.
Lastly, you have got James Maddison, who is considered the most attacking of the three, of course, and against Coventry Spurs played with a slightly different formation, but his instructions to get on the ball as much as possible remain the same, which is exactly what Maddison loves to do.
Maddison’s role ensures that Tottenham can spark attacks as quickly as possible. When Van de Ven gets the ball, he has to look for Maddison. That is because after Tottenham played the central pass during buildup, they always looked to those wide areas for penetration.
Maddison is great at allowing them to do this in as few touches as possible. Against Coventry, he exploited their defence before they had time to settle into a defensive shape. As that traditional attacking midfielder, he can smell and identify those correct moments to join the attack and which spaces in particular to target.
Isolating the Wingers One-on-One
But possibly the biggest change so far is how Spurs are creating these goals because last season the chances typically came from quick transitions and capitalising on loose balls. Spurs were most threatening when exploiting unsettled defences, but they really struggled to punish teams with their end product.
This season, Spurs are now able to dismantle defences even when opponents set up in a low block. So what has De Zerbi changed exactly? Well, firstly, Kudus being back to full fitness has been a game changer.
He has registered three assists in his last five games, and the instructions given by De Zerbi to both Kudus and Tel have been playing a key part in their resurgence and their higher level of attacking output.
De Zerbi wants this for one key reason, taking on a defender 1v1. Kudus and Tel made a combined 22 dribble attempts against Crystal Palace. That is the first time that two Spurs players have attempted over 10 dribbles in a single game since 2009.
Embed from Getty ImagesPalace set up in a low block. Archie Gray was in possession and he is attracting Kamada. Gray plays the ball to Tonali but stays close to the box, forcing Kamada to mark him. Tonali quickly gives it to Kudus, who now has a 1v1 against Mitchell, exactly what De Zerbi wants.
Spurs not only have several players arriving in the box, but they also have multiple players on the edge to sustain the pressure if the cross gets headed away.
In this instance, Kudus beats Mitchell, puts in a cross and forces a corner. On the other side, Spurs are creating the same opportunities for Mathys Tel. Robertson this time is in possession, which forces McNeil to move over to him, and that sets up a 1v1 for Tel, who uses the space available to him to put in a great cross to the back post for Kudus on the other side.
I appreciate that it was Crystal Palace. They had 10 men for a lot of that game, but the freedom that Tel is afforded is exactly what led to his goal against Chelsea.
Here he is driving with the ball into the space ahead of him. Crucially, he takes the shot early to score a great goal in their win against Chelsea, but there is another reason why De Zerbi wants to pin wide areas just like that.
Against Coventry Andy Robertson maintained the width. He stretches the defences and that creates space on the inside for Marmoush to receive the ball. With the skill set that he possesses, Marmoush is able to punish Coventry with a great strike. Tottenham were rock bottom of the Premier League. Now De Zerbi has them looking up
📢 Stay Updated with Us!
Join our channels for the latest sports news, live updates, and more:
✅ WhatsApp 📢 Telegram
