Copa America 2021: Colombia – tactical analysis
Coming into this year’s Copa America, Colombia are one of the dark horses of the tournament. As of right now, there is not much we know about the team, the coach’s intention or the style of play he’s planning to instil. What we do know, however, is that Colombia will be heading into the event [...]
Euro 2020: Russia – tactical analysis
Following their glorious run in the 2018 World Cup that they hosted, Russia will be looking to replicate or even improve on that success in the upcoming Euros. Stanislav Cherchesov has warranted his contract extension which will see him take charge of the team for yet another big event but with a squad that does [...]
Copa America 2021: Bolivia – tactical analysis
Bolivia aren’t on a good streak. Having won just two of the 26 matches they have played since 2018 and with their last official win having come in September 2017, they are clearly the worst team in the tournament. 2017 saw them having one of their best streaks ever, winning three games, drawing one and [...]
Copa America 2021: Paraguay – tactical analysis
Judging them by their FIFA World Ranking, you might view Paraguay as outsiders for the 2021 Copa América. They’ve got the third-worst ranking (35) of any CONMEBOL team, besting only Ecuador and Bolivia. Paraguay occupy a unique position in CONMEBOL. They carry expectations based on their historical standing in Copa América. Only South America’s ‘big [...]
Euro 2020: Belgium – tactical analysis
Belgium has long been regarded as one of the best teams in Europe but they are yet to achieve any glory in major competitions. At the last Euros in 2016, they were surprisingly knocked out by Wales in the quarter-finals, despite having the likes of Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, and Kevin De Bruyne, to name [...]
EURO 2020: North Macedonia – tactical analysis
North Macedonia’s FIFA World Ranking (62) makes them the biggest outsiders for UEFA EURO 2020. Their underdog status won’t put a damper on their achievement of qualifying, however, as EURO 2020 will be the first time that this independent republic competes at a major tournament since its secession from Yugoslavia in 1991. This summer’s North [...]
Copa America 2021: Argentina – tactical analysis
Argentina is expected to win every tournament they play regardless of the squad, situation or rivals and this year’s Copa América won’t be any different. For a country that hasn’t won anything since 1993, it always seems like the next trophy will be the one and they’ll face massive pressure to raise the trophy at [...]
Euro 2020: Spain – tactical analysis
It is safe to say that in the World Cup in 2018, the last major international tournament, Spain massively underperformed having been one of the favourites to win the entire competition prior to it starting. The Spaniards got out of Group consisting of themselves, Portugal, Iran, and Morocco, and were then knocked out of the [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP A: PLAYERS TO WATCH
Since making the Euro 2016 quarter finals, the Italian football team has gone through some turbulent times. Having failed to qualify for World Cup 2018 in Russia under Gian Piero Ventura, Roberto Mancini was appointed head coach. Since then the former Manchester City manager has begun to change the Azzurri’s fortunes. Mancini takes his youthful [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP B: PLAYERS TO WATCH
The current Belgian side - Belgium’s Golden Generation - is the number one ranked team in the world right now. Belgium are also the overwhelming favorites to win the tournament this time. Even though the Red Devils made the 2014 World Cup quarter finals, it’s when they reached the Euro 2016 quarter finals that they [...]
EURO 2020: Croatia – tactical analysis
The 2018 World Cup was the greatest tournament in Croatian football history, as they finished as runners-up to France - an outcome that very few people would have predicted at the beginning of that tournament. That team was packed with some world-class players at their peak, and it is therefore only natural that there has [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP C: PLAYERS TO WATCH
After failing to qualify for two straight major tournaments - Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup - Netherlands have had quite an exciting few years under Ronald Koeman. Now that he has left to manage Barcelona, under manager Frank de Boer, The Dutch, grouped with Austria, North Macedonia and Ukraine, will be looking to [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP D: PLAYERS TO WATCH
There have been few happy moments for the English national team in recent history, however, reaching the 2018 World Cup semi final was a sign of progress. Fans were eager to know if this team and manager were capable of getting into the final and actually winning a competition. So, the next big test for [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP E: PLAYERS TO WATCH
Since winning Euro 2012, Spain have been below average in all the international competitions they have partaken in. Luis Enrique will be looking to take his team deep into the tournament and it is fair to suggest that this squad is the best Spain have had in recent years. Grouped with 2018 World Cup quarter [...]
EURO 2020 GROUP F: PLAYERS TO WATCH
After their disappointment in the 2018 World Cup Germany will be looking to go all the way in this summer’s European Championships and give a winning send off to their coach Joachim Löw. But that won’t be an easy task as they are grouped with World Champions France and defending European Champions Portugal. Underdogs Hungary [...]
Copa America 2021: Venezuela – tactical analysis
Venezuelan football is going through a rather fruitful period of time, where many of the players in their Copa America squad are playing high level football outside of Venezuela. In fact, the likes of Wuilker Farinez, Josef Martinez, Yangel Herrera, and Salomon Rondon are well known players across the globe, whilst much of their squad [...]
Euro 2020: Austria – tactical analysis
Austria were drawn with the Netherlands, Ukraine and North Macedonia for UEFA Euro 2020, and this will be a big chance for Austria to aim at qualifying for the knockout phase for the first time ever. In fact, this would only be their third-ever appearance at a European Championship finals, and they went out at [...]
Euro 2020: Portugal – tactical preview
Euro 2016 was a transformational tournament for the Portuguese. Ever the bridesmaid, the squad finally broke through the glass ceiling, conquering Europe to claim the country’s first senior international trophy. In previous tournaments, the prevailing theme was hope. Hope that the Golden Generation would break the deadlock. Hope that Cristiano Ronaldo could lift the squad [...]
Euro 2020: Sweden – tactical analysis
Euro 2020 will mark Sweden’s seventh appearance in this competition, with their best finish coming at their debut campaign in 1992, where they reached the semi-finals and finished third. Sweden made it to the quarter-finals at Euro 2004, and this, along with their 1992 appearance, is the only time that they have made it out [...]
Copa America 2021: Chile – tactical analysis
Chile's Golden Generation is one of the big storylines of the Copa America, but not for the same reasons as in previous years. These legendary players helped Chile to their first two Copa titles in the nation's history, the first in 2015 and the second in 2016, each featuring a shootout victory over Lionel Messi's [...]
Euro 2020: Hungary – tactical analysis
As the 2020/21 season draws to an end, We will be witnessing the Euros 2020 take place this summer after it got postponed from its original date due to the pandemic. The shift meant that every team had exactly a year to get prepared for the bigger stages especially for those who qualified just a [...]
EURO 2020: Finland – tactical analysis
When the 2020 European Championship was moved back to this year, it gave every team extra time to prepare and plan for their confirmed matches. This has been particularly beneficial to countries who have never played in major tournaments before, such as Finland, whose qualification for the finals was their first success in a major [...]
Copa America 2021: Peru – tactical analysis
It has been a mixed recent history for the Peru national football team. Surrounding the build-up to the 2018 World Cup was a narrative around a potential dark horse Peru side. Wins against Croatia, Uruguay, Ecuador, amongst others, built up hype for a team led by Ricardo Gareca since 2015, who had finally moulded a [...]
EURO 2020: Slovakia – tactical analysis
Many of the teams in the 2020 European Championship are tournament regulars, with Slovakia just about fitting into that category, based on their success over the last eleven years. Having qualified for the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2016, expectations of them were raised and hopes were high that they could reach their third major [...]
Euro 2020: Switzerland- tactical analysis
Euros 2020 will be the 5th time that Switzerland will make their appearance in the tournament, having made their first one in 1996. Despite missing out on the tournament in 2012, they came back in 2016 to qualify for the knockout stages. Despite being huge favourites to beat Poland in the Round of 16, they [...]
Euro 2020: Ukraine – tactical analysis
Ukraine have experienced a rollercoaster of highs and lows under Andriy Shevchenko’s tenure, much like the 44-year-old’s playing career. From the towering heights of Milan to the dream-cum-nightmare that was his time at Chelsea, since 2016, his first steps into a managerial career have been somewhat unsteady. He took over a squad that finished rock [...]
Euro 2020: Germany – tactical analysis
After the previous European Championships in 2016, many people probably would have predicted Germany to be one of the main favourites for both the 2018 World Cup and this year’s European Championships. Germany though as a national side have had probably one of the most interesting few years since that tournament, with the beginning of [...]
Euro 2020: Poland – tactical analysis
Poland have been drawn with Spain, Sweden and Slovakia for the upcoming UEFA Euro 2020 and this group E will certainly not be easy for either team and especially Poland. Nevertheless, this team has got what it takes to compete for one of the two qualifying spots and why not qualify to the knockout phase. [...]
Copa America 2021: Uruguay – tactical analysis
Uruguay are a national team who are very much at the end of a golden generation. In the previous decade they returned back to some of their former glory across many competitions, with some of their highlights including a fourth-placed finish in the 2010 World Cup, reaching the Quarter Finals of the 2018 World Cup, [...]
Copa America 2021: Brazil – tactical analysis
Due to the global pandemic and the postponement of Copa America by a year, Brazil played just four games in 2020. The team’s last outing was in November 2020, against Uruguay, and while their players have been on duty with their clubs, Tite’s side have not had the chance to work together to prepare for [...]
Euro 2020: Czech Republic – tactical analysis
The Czech Republic has been a frequent participant in the European Championship, having appeared as part of Czechoslovakia until 1992, and they have qualified for every edition of the tournament since then as well. The Czechs are part of Group D at Euro 2020, along with England, Croatia and Scotland, for which they qualified by finishing [...]
Euro 2020: France – tactical analysis
In the 2018 FIFA World Cup, France showed the entire planet what they are capable of, winning the trophy for the first time since 1998. Not many teams have the longevity and quality to win back-to-back major national tournaments i.e. Spain between 2008 and 2012, but this France team may be able to challenge that [...]
Euro 2020: Denmark – tactical analysis
It is almost 30 years since Denmark last lifted the European Championship trophy, winning the competition in 1992. In truth, they’ve struggled to get close to those levels since that triumph, but their squad going into this European Championship is arguably more talented than it has been in recent years – the likes of Christian [...]
Euro 2020: England – tactical analysis
After a positive 2018 World Cup campaign where England reached the semi-final of the competition, there is an ever-high expectation at home for the national side to put together an equally impressive run at the Euros. Since September last year, England have put together some impressive performances, with wins over Belgium, Poland, as well as [...]
Euro 2020: Wales – tactical analysis
Despite missing out on the 2018 World Cup, Wales will have fond memories of their previous Euros, in 2016, where they went as far as the semi-finals and proved to be the tournament’s surprise package. They looked all set to repeat their heroics this time around, having been put in a very underrated and open [...]
Euro 2020: Netherlands – tactical analysis
Euro 2016 was the first time a European Championship was held without the Netherlands, with the side failing to qualify for the tournament just two years after reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup in Brazil. Their road back has not been easy, with the side missing out on the World Cup in 2018 as [...]
Euro 2020: Italy – tactical analysis
Write off Italy at your peril. Tournament after tournament the Italian national team seem to raise the game at the biggest stage and they have a reputation for being extremely difficult to beat in the games that really matter. That was until they failed to qualify for the last major tournament, the 2018 World Cup [...]
Euro 2020: Scotland – tactical analysis
The wait is finally over. After 22 long years Scotland have once again qualified to play in a major international tournament. As ever with Scotland, however, they had to do things the hard way in finally overcoming familiar foes Israel in the playoffs. The final act came thanks to goalkeeper David Marshall who threw himself [...]
EURO 2020: Turkey – tactical analysis
Despite a fanatic love of football in the country, Turkey have long been underachievers on the international stage. They have only played at two World Cups in their history, with their most recent appearance in 2002 seeing them reach the semi-finals and achieve third place - an indication of what this nation is capable of. [...]
Copa America 2021: Ecuador – tactical analysis
Ecuador are a proud footballing nation, but amidst the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia and Chile, they have always been relative minnows in South American football. La Tri are currently in 53rd place in the FIFA World Rankings, which makes them the second-lowest South American team, only ahead of Bolivia in 81st place. This [...]