The Godfather of Football

How to play against Tottenham?

I believe this has become a common problem for all European teams in the past few seasons, especially for Premier League teams. They can't escape from two matches with Tottenham every year. How to play is a problem.

In fact, there are only two options. Stick to defense, try to keep the goal intact, don't let Tottenham score, and then seize the opportunity to counterattack. There are teams that beat Tottenham in this way. It mainly depends on how confident you are in your defense.

Another way is to attack against attack, use the rushing tactics to suppress Tottenham, strive to score first, hit Tottenham's morale, and then win the game. This tactic has also been effective for many teams, but this season, with the improvement of Tottenham's defensive strength, fewer and fewer teams can break their goal.

Ancelotti has also been troubled by this problem. In the face of Tottenham, should he take offense or defense?

Chelsea has good offensive capabilities. Under Ancelotti's coaching this season, although the team style and dominance are not as good as when Ye Qiu was coaching, the number of goals is worse than Ye Qiu's.

Many people believe that the reason why Chelsea is still 12 points behind Tottenham Hotspur this season is ultimately due to Ancelotti's own coaching ability.

Looking at Chelsea's losses so far this season, although they have defeated Manchester United and Arsenal twice, Ferguson obviously gave up the game in the away game against Manchester United. In the first round of the match, Chelsea's victory at home was not convincing, with a small victory of one goal. As for Arsenal, this team almost lost to strong teams this season.

But what really makes people doubt Chelsea's ability to win the championship is that Chelsea was defeated twice by Manchester City this season, and also fell to Tottenham Hotspur, Everton and Wigan Athletic. Among them, Chelsea lost three goals to Tottenham Hotspur and Wigan Athletic, and in the two games against Manchester City, Chelsea lost six goals and scored three goals, and lost 2:4 at home, creating Chelsea's most painful home defeat in the past eight years.

You know, whether it was during Ye Qiu or Mourinho's time, Chelsea was a veritable home dragon. Not only was the home record very good, but the number of goals lost at home and away was also quite small. Even if they lost, they rarely lost more than three goals, let alone losing four goals at home. This result can be traced back to Ranieri's first season as Chelsea coach, and he also lost 2:4 at home to the black cat Sunderland.

Chelsea lost to Wigan Athletic 1:3, lost to Tottenham Hotspur 0:3 at home, and lost to Manchester City 2:4. These two defeats made Chelsea's performance this season unconvincing. This is also seen by many as one of the reasons why Chelsea lost the championship this season. At least Ancelotti always makes some incredible mistakes in some matches that test the head coach's ability.

This is also why the media unanimously supports Tottenham Hotspur to defend the Premier League. In the eyes of many people, Ancelotti's claim that the team made mistakes due to multi-line operations is obviously unreasonable, because Wigan Athletic is far less powerful than Chelsea, and Manchester City's overall combat effectiveness is not as good as Chelsea. It is unbelievable that there was a big defeat.

In other words, why didn't Tottenham Hotspur suffer such a big defeat in the same multi-line operations?

This is also the reason why Tottenham Hotspur is the favorite this season. Manchester United lost 0:3 to Fulham and 1:3 to Everton. In addition, they were defeated twice by Chelsea. Although they also defeated Arsenal twice and had one win and one loss against Liverpool, Ferguson's team's performance in the Premier League this season is also unconvincing.

But Manchester United's situation is a bit special, because Ferguson reorganized the entire midfield and frontcourt this season, which led to Manchester United not really running in a complete set of offensive and defensive systems with strong combat effectiveness until around the Champions League knockout stage, and the losses to Fulham and Everton were before that.

But Chelsea's situation is different. There is almost no reason to explain the tragic defeat of Ancelotti's team this season. Even facing Mourinho's short-handed Inter Milan, Ancelotti also lost both home and away games. This shows a problem, that is, Ancelotti's team is difficult to convince at critical moments.

The media's judgment on this is that Ancelotti always makes wrong decisions at critical moments.

So, will it appear in the match against Tottenham?

Ye Qiu said before the game that he had studied almost all the video clips of Chelsea's games this season. He even joked that he was more familiar with this Chelsea team than Ancelotti, so he was absolutely confident that he could beat Chelsea at home.

But Ancelotti did not give a positive response to such remarks, but only said that he would prove it with a victory.

So, all reporters were surprised to find that the Chelsea team that appeared at White Hart Lane had made significant changes in tactics. They gave up the 442 diamond midfield position that Ancelotti used in the first round of the duel between the two sides, obviously worried that his midfield and flank would be blown up by Tottenham again, and returned to the 433 position during the period of Ye Qiu and Mourinho.

Goalkeeper Cesar, the back line is Zhirkov, Alex, Terry and Ferreira, the midfield is Lampard, Essien and Ballack, and the front trident is Malouda, Drogba and Anelka.

Between attack and defense, Ancelotti's final choice was defense, so Chelsea played very cautiously at the beginning, and all three midfielders adopted defensive tactics. Not only that, Ancelotti did not dare to press the defense line, but let the defense line stay in his own half. Even when attacking, he did not invest a lot of troops, but relied more on the combination of the front trident to play around Drogba.

In this game, Tottenham Hotspur still arranged Thiago Silva to defend Drogba. The main central defender of the Brazilian national team is more experienced in this regard. In Ye Qiu's opinion, if Drogba can be defended, more than half of Chelsea's offensive firepower can be curbed. Once Drogba is fully in form, it will be a disaster for Tottenham Hotspur.

Such tactics made Chelsea look passive, but the strength of the Blues and the players' tactical execution were the most troublesome and difficult aspects of the team. So when Ancelotti made it clear that he wanted to defend, Tottenham's attack was difficult to launch. So after Tottenham attacked for a while at the beginning, Ye Qiu immediately signaled the players to slow down.

After that, Tottenham was not in a hurry to attack, but more through short passes in the midfield and players passing back and forth to find opportunities, but Chelsea's entire defensive system was still very tightly arranged.

After all, from the Ranieri period, to Ye Qiu, Mourinho, and now Ancelotti, Chelsea still maintains the foundation of the Italian defensive system built during the Ranieri period.

Tottenham's starting lineup for this game is also star-studded, with Cech as the goalkeeper, Marcelo, Zielinski, Thiago Silva and Alves as the back line, David Silva, Yaya Toure and Fabregas as the midfielders, and Ribery, Falcao and Messi as the front trident.

After all, it is a derby between the city's mortal enemies, and Ye Qiu is still unwilling to give up such an important event easily.

Compared with Chelsea's defense, Tottenham still chooses to attack, actively trying to open a channel through the two sides, actively creating articles on the side, even if it cannot form an effective breakthrough, but also strive to attract the opponent's defensive attention, and then suddenly make a large-scale horizontal transfer to create threats from the other side.

But while the two sides are active, Tottenham's central attack is curbed. After all, Chelsea ambushed heavy troops in the midfield in this game, making it difficult for Tottenham's midfield to form effective penetration and advancement.

Although there was a Falcao in front, Ribery and Messi were also able to do a good job in cutting in from the wing, but Chelsea's defense was also very targeted, forming a strong containment of Tottenham's attack.

Although such a tactic led to a passive and embarrassing situation on the field, it was not like a strong dialogue at all, but rather a duel between two teams with a huge disparity in strength, but the stalemate was still maintained on the field.

It should be said that among all the teams that faced Tottenham, there were only a handful of teams that could really do this.

Facts have proved that Ancelotti's defensive strategy is still very tightly arranged, especially for Tottenham's two flanks. Although Tottenham's offense seems to have many opportunities, there are actually almost no good opportunities, which shows Chelsea's success in defense.

As Ye Qiu said before, unless Ancelotti and Chelsea make mistakes in the starting tactics, otherwise, playing Chelsea is a war of attrition, but the problem is that in such a game, you can't play without trying your best.

To be honest, the current problem of Tottenham Hotspur is that the bench is too weak. Beckham is old, Phil Jones and Ramsey are too young, Kompany is not experienced enough, and there is only one substitute in the frontcourt, Hazard. The healthy financial policy adopted by Tottenham Hotspur has prevented the team from having a luxurious bench lineup like Manchester City.

In other words, if you look at the top teams in Europe, which team's bench lineup can be compared with Manchester City, Real Madrid and other teams? Manchester United's salary budget has increased significantly this season because of the signings of many players, so Ferguson has to make a big bet on the Champions League, because every step forward in the Champions League will increase the team's income by millions or even tens of millions.

Of course, another part of the reason is that Manchester United lost too many points in the first half and lost the opportunity.

Tottenham Hotspur is currently in a stage of adjustment and transformation. Ye Qiu will try his best to ensure the integrity of the main lineup and then improve the team's substitute lineup. For example, starting from next season, Neymar and Coutinho, who are over 18 years old, will enter the Tottenham Hotspur first team. If Lucas can apply for a work permit, he will also enter the first team. If not, he will be temporarily loaned to a satellite club for further training.

In addition, Ye Qiu will further promote the current youth team, such as Pogba, Varane, Nastasic, and even Eden Hazard's younger brother Thorgan Hazard, who is currently performing well in the youth team and reserve team. These players have the opportunity to enter Tottenham Hotspur's first team.

Use young players to enrich the first team's lineup and improve the team's bench thickness. As the strength of young players increases, especially Neymar, Pogba, Varane and other young players with outstanding strength and potential, the stronger they are, the overall combat effectiveness of Tottenham Hotspur and its ability to cope with multiple fronts will also increase.

This is the benefit of youth training, and it is a strategy that any team that wants to maintain financial health must adhere to.

And with insufficient bench strength, it is impossible for Ye Qiu to play in a young lineup to beat local rivals like Chelsea, because young players lack strength and will be devoured by Chelsea's hungry wolf anytime, anywhere without leaving any bones.

At least, he doesn't want to lose a big score in the same city derby.

The first half ended with a score of 0:0. Chelsea did not make any mistakes at the tactical level. Ancelotti cautiously helped Chelsea maintain the situation. Although they lost the initiative, they were also attacked by Tottenham Hotspur. It was very embarrassing, but at least they kept the goal.

When Ye Qiu walked into the locker room, he could clearly see the players' consumption in the first half from their expressions and reactions. In fact, through Roland's tablet, Ye Qiu could also clearly see their consumption. degree.

But this is a strong dialogue. What you play is consumption. If you can't afford it, you lose!

"We played very well in the first half!" Ye Qiu clapped his hands vigorously to get all the players to pay attention, "But I still have to say a few questions. First, we made too many high passes, which is very harmful to us. Unfavorable, especially in the opponent’s penalty area!”

Ye Qiu has already raised this issue during the game, but the players still did not do a good enough job. However, this is definitely not just a problem for Tottenham Hotspur players, but also a problem for Chelsea's defense to consciously carry out targeted containment. .

When the opponent is specifically suppressing your inward cuts and low crosses, you can only choose to go high, because everything on the court happens in an instant, and many times your options are very limited. Not even a choice.

Although Falcao has good headers and jumping ability, the height limit exists objectively. Facing two strong men, Alex and Terry, Falcao wants to grab the ball between the two strong men. The first landing point of the lob was really difficult. In the first half, he lost almost all direct lob confrontations.

"Second question, I think we put too much pressure on our opponents and attacked too quickly. As I told you before, when we press our opponents tighter, the opponent's defense will relatively change. The stronger they are, so we have to relax the pressure appropriately in the second half to let them see hope!”

Ye Qiu smiled when he said this, "We are going to play Manchester United in the middle of the week, and it is still at this stadium, so I believe that Ancelotti will not let this game go, he will want to win, And when we reduce our offense, they will feel that we want to stay and play Manchester United, because for us, a draw will achieve our goal. "

"After seventy minutes, I'm sure Chelsea will want to attack!"

Ye Qiu himself is an experienced player in targeted tactics. He is very clear about Ancelotti's plan for this game. After seventy minutes, Tottenham Hotspur's physical energy has been exhausted to a certain extent, and this is the time. The best time for Chelsea to counterattack.

For all head coaches who play defensive counterattacks, defense is a basic skill, but knowing and grasping the timing of counterattacks is the real test of a head coach’s skills. It can be said that whether the timing of counterattacks is good or not is a test of a head coach’s ability. key.

Ye Qiu didn't dare to say how good he was at defensive counterattack, but he knew himself and his opponents very well. Chelsea's poor record against strong teams this season, as well as the three-goal defeat at home in the first round, made Chelsea It is impossible to give up on this game again, because you play every week and have the advantage in physical fitness and condition. If you still dare not give it a try with Tottenham Hotspur, then Ancelotti is not qualified. He can be called a famous European coach.

But as Ye Qiu has always said, everything has two sides. Sometimes the advantage is used well and can be turned into help, but sometimes it is not used well, or it is used by the opponent in turn. It is possible to become a helper to others.

"In the second half, we must pay attention. The pressure we put on our opponents cannot be too great, but we must not be too weak. We must not relax in the middle and continue to suppress me!" Ye Qiu looked at Cesc Fabregas and the other three and said seriously. warned.

Lampard, Ballack and Essien were almost defensive in the first half. Although they contained Tottenham Hotspur's penetration in the middle of the midfield, they also paid the price, that is, their attack on the frontcourt. Support is almost zero.

"There is another thing to note, Anelka. In the first half, he played on the right. This did not bring out his characteristics. He performed very poorly. He was almost invisible offensively. I think, in the second half, There should be some adjustments, and he may be allowed to return to the dual forward position, lurking behind Drogba. You must pay attention when defending!"

When many people think about problems, they always think in a static way. That is to say, they feel that Anelka's poor performance in the first half proves that the team's defense is effective and should continue in the second half. But he forgets one question, you When making adjustments, wouldn't Ancelotti make adjustments?

Therefore, the role of the head coach is to remind the players of the changes that the opponent may make in the second half.

"In the second half of the offense, we still created opportunities from both wings, especially our left wing. Ferreira was not in very good condition in this game. If it weren't for Ballack in the midfield, he would have been finished. So in the midfield of the second half, David Silva, pay attention to pull Ballack away, and then kill Ferreira in the frontcourt!”

After listening to this, Scarface Ribery nodded heavily. It was precisely because of Ballack's presence that his attack in the first half was restricted, because the German often appeared in key positions to help defend Ferreira.

If a teammate could help pull Ballack away, Ribery would have absolute confidence that he could kill Ferreira!

In a one-on-one situation, Ribery is not afraid of any defensive player in the world!

But when Ye Qiu was making careful midfield adjustments and tactical arrangements for the second half, he never thought that the development of the situation in the second half would be completely beyond his expectations.