Transcription
This is what the Champions League final looked like for 75% of the match. PSG suffocating Arsenal in their own box and constantly putting them under pressure. It was a dominant performance from PSG if you look at the statistics. In fact, on Football Manager we can see way more shots, higher xG, and the momentum is nearly always in their favor.
But what happened in this final can't be captured by the numbers alone, because even though Arsenal basically didn't have any of the ball, there was a growing feeling that they were doing everything right. PSG star players were constantly doubled up. There was no one ready to attack the box, and they'd often end up with half the team behind the ball waiting for a gap that basically never came.
So, in this video we need to understand two things: the clear defensive setup used by Arsenal and the difficulties it caused for PSG, but then the clever tactical change from Enrique that unlocked the game in the second half. Now, from a neutral's perspective, Arsenal going ahead after 5 minutes was never going to be a good thing in terms of making the game more enjoyable. But credit to them, they knew exactly how to defend against one of the best attacks in Europe.
Luis Enrique has built a system where positions are essentially meaningless. Dembélé is never on the defensive line. The wingers are often right next to each other on the same flank, or the full-backs can be the most advanced players on the pitch. And one trap that nearly every team falls into is that they try and track these movements with man marking. You don't want to give these players space, so you assign a defender that needs to follow them regardless of where they go. But this is exactly what PSG want you to do, because just one run not being tracked and your defense is exposed in an instant.
So, Arteta set up to do the complete opposite in this game. Wherever these players want to go is none of Arsenal's concern. Their only instruction is to stay compact and force play away from the center. Interestingly, there was a slightly different shape being used by Arsenal in the press in the opening minutes of the game before Havertz scored. And it was very similar to what Pep Guardiola did against Arsenal in the League Cup final. In fact, in the opening minutes, we saw Arsenal in a 4-2-4 press. They didn't rush to close down the center backs, but would ensure that any pass through the middle was instantly closed down. And PSG was struggling to find a solution. We see, for example, in this clip, Vitinha basically shifting from left to right trying to find a gap, but not being able to find a free player further up the pitch. Even with all these rotations away from the center and onto the flanks, which is exactly where Arsenal wanted PSG to play. So, this was clearly the plan from Arteta in the current game state.
But that basically only lasted while it was nil-nil. So, from Havertz's goal onwards, Arsenal started to sink deeper and deeper on the pitch. But it still felt like they were the ones in control. And this is where I think PSG's constant rotations actually became a bit of a problem for themselves. Let's put Arsenal into their low block and start moving the PSG players based on how they set up. First, we have their rest defense or their build shape, which was a 3-1. And we'll take a look at why I think this was the biggest tactical problem for PSG later on. Then, the rest of the team was much more fluid. You'd mostly end up with Dembélé out wide on the flank with either Doué or Hakimi. João Neves would be on the defensive line in the half space. And Fabián Ruiz would be on the left near Achraf Hakimi. But there was no real specific shape. There are zones that they look to occupy. So, there would always be a player hugging the touchline. And there is always a connection with the player out wide. But other than that, the players are free to roam.
But here is where the issue was for PSG. Because as they gained ground and had the ball in these positions, most of these rotations were away from the center. Arsenal stayed compact, and PSG would have a lot of players on the flanks, but couldn't create a numerical advantage. And if they did find the space to break forward, there was no one ready in the box for them to pick out. Take, for example, this move here in the 17th minute. Kolo has shifted out to the right along with Dembélé and Hakimi. There is no chance of a numerical advantage. And even when they play it forward into Kvara, there is only one player ready in the box against five Arsenal defenders. So, this constant movement away from the center was creating more problems for PSG than solutions.
But there was another more glaring issue for PSG against this low block from Arsenal. One way teams look to break down a low block is to move it quickly from flank to flank, hoping to have more space on the opposite side and isolate the wingers in a 1v1 against the fullback. This is a dream scenario for a team like PSG, as Kvara and Dembélé are some of the best dribblers in the modern game. But in this game, even when PSG were able to shift it quickly out wide, because of Arsenal's defensive shape, these players were instantly doubled up with the Arsenal wingers dropping deep. And PSG had little support from players dragging away defenders. Even if there were players near the ball, because Gabriel and Saliba had no one to mark, they were always ready to add support if needed. In fact, if we look on FotMob, we can see that both Kvaratskhelia and Dembélé completed 50% and 25% of their dribbles, respectively. Even Dembélé, who often found himself out wide on the right, completed zero dribbles. There was basically just no space for this to be a possibility for PSG. I urge you to check out some of the stats from this game on FotMob to see how the game unfolded. Specifically, take a look at some of their heat maps, because there's so much rotation and so much fluid movement in attack, yet little end product against this low block. You can download their app completely for free using my link in the description or pinned comment down below.
Okay, so here's where I think we could see the main problem for PSG in the first half, and how Enrique attempted to address this in the second half. And it all starts from their 3-1 build shape. Take for example this clip we just looked at. Mendes moves the ball to Dembélé, and he's instantly doubled up in a 2v1. So, in a situation like this, Dembélé needs support. So, maybe Mendes could make a run forward. It could drag away Saka or Rice, but it would certainly give Gabi another option. However, we see he stays in his position in the back three. And this is where the problem was for PSG. Against this low block in the first half, PSG had way too many players behind the ball. Arsenal were not closing down the center-backs. And with Marquinhos, Vitinha, Pacho, and Mendes, it was essentially a 4v2, with the wingers always being outnumbered. At times, there would be five or even six players helping to circulate possession, whilst not being under pressure, which played perfectly into Arsenal's hands. Even if Mendes did join the attack, he would be replaced by Fabián Ruiz, dropping so PSG always kept at least a back three plus Vitinha in the center.
So, this was something Enrique had to address in the second half. Because Arsenal aren't going to press you that aggressively, you don't need that many players in support to help build the attack. And well, we instantly saw this change at the start of the second half. And they shifted from a 3-1 build to a 2-1, with Mendes already in attack in the half space or out wide. From a deep position, it was mostly Ruiz or João Neves that would help build from the back. And Mendes was not tasked with helping the team progress. And once they did break forward, this extra player was clearly a huge boost for PSG. Notice how in this clip, for example, Mendes moves the ball out wide, then attacks forward. This drags away Saka and leaves Kvara in a 1v1, even though he's not able to exploit. The benefit of this extra man in attack is visible in the move that led to the corner that led to the penalty. Arsenal clear the ball and the back three for PSG is enough to regain possession and start the attack. They move it out wide to João Neves, and because Mendes is already in attack, it's a 3v3. So, Kvaratskhelia can be in a 1v1 against Mascarell. They play it forward and he gains the corner. From there, PSG have a lot of players already in attack. And a great one-two on the edge of the box leads to a foul from Mosquera, with Dembélé converting to make it one all.
After the goal, PSG reverted back to this more cautious three plus one shape. And from this moment, the game started to open up a little bit more. Arsenal had a reason to want to attack, so we started to see them commit more players forward. But their main tactics in possession for the whole game were just long balls from Raya into Havertz, trying to win the aerial duel or win the loose ball and then attack forward. Once it was one all, they brought on players like Gyökeres to try and help with these aerial duels. But the tactics were pretty linear, and they struggled to create any meaningful chances. In fact, they only ended the game with one shot on target, which was the goal from Havertz. And as they pushed more players forward, it actually exposed their defense to more dangerous counterattacks from PSG. In fact, we saw a dangerous opportunity from Kvaratskhelia, and with the last kick of the 90 minutes from Barcola.
Ultimately, these patterns continued throughout extra time. PSG were more in control in terms of possession, yet struggled to create a lot of meaningful chances. And Arsenal's attacks were mostly with long balls and trying to break forward quickly.
>> [music] >> However, no team was able to break the deadlock, and the game progressed to penalties. And while penalties are a bit of a lottery, I do think PSG were the deserved winners overall. Arsenal were incredible defensively for large periods of the game. But when it came to actually creating an attack, they didn't have much to offer. And when looking back at this game, I do wonder if Arteta thinks they could have done more in possession in this game. But let me know your thoughts in the comments down below. Do you think PSG deserved to win this game, and what did you make of the tactics in this match? Thanks for watching.