After a terrible start to the 2022/23 Belgian Pro League season, when the club sat bottom with only one win from its opening nine matches, Austrian Dominik Thalhammer was sacked by Cercle Brugge.
His replacement came from within, with Thalhammer’s assistant and compatriot Miron Muslić, who had been promoted from assistant manager, taking charge at the Jan Breydelstadion.
The 40-year-old Austrian has had immense success so far, dragging the club from the bottom of the table to 8th place, which is the last spot in the European playoffs.
This tactical analysis will examine Miron Muslic tactics more in-depth.
The Austrian has lost only four of his 19 matches in charge of Cercle Brugge so far.
Miron Muslić Tactics & Preferred Formations
The image above shows the formations that Miron Muslić has used so far while in charge of Cercle Brugge.
The Austrian has alternated between various formations during his 19 matches in charge, but in recent matches, he has seemed to settle on some form of a back-three system.
In the last few matches, the Austrian started with a 3-4-1-2 formation, which proved to be fluid.
At times, it will transition into a 3-4-3 or even a 3-4-2-1 formation, with Muslić’s side aiming to defend from the front, utilising their high-octane counter-pressing ability to regain possession in the attacking half of the pitch.
Miron Muslić Intense high-pressing system
Much like his predecessor Dominik Thalhammer, one of the main principles of Miron Muslić’s game model is intense high pressing, with the Belgian side being the best in the country at both pressing and counter-pressing moments.
The Austrian has greatly improved upon this full-throttle pressing system that Thalhammer implemented when he was appointed.
This is one of the foundations on which Muslić’s style of play is built.
Under Muslić, Cercle Brugge is not a side that holds the majority of possession in a match, so this intense counter-pressing helps them win back possession in the advanced areas of the pitch.
The image above shows Cercle Brugge’s high regains since Miron Muslić took over from Thalhammer late last year.
During that time period, the Belgian side was statistically the best counter-pressing side in the Belgian league, with the Bruges club having 251 high regains.
They also have 472 counter-pressing recoveries, with 77 of those being dangerous and leading to a shot.
The image above shows an example of the pressing style that Cercle Brugge utilises under Miron Muslić coaching style.
As the phase of play shows above, Club Brugge are in possession, with the fullback in possession on the far touchline.
As the ball reaches this player, two Cercle players work to quickly close down the fullback and force him into a rushed decision.
The ball is then played back to the centre-back, who is again immediately pressured by the Cercle Brugge striker.
This pass back is a cue for the two deeper Cercle players to push up. In this pressing moment, they are 6v3 against Club Brugge.
This immediate pressure and numerical advantage allow Cercle to win possession back just outside the penalty box, resulting in an attempt on goal that goes just wide of the former Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet’s post.
Another interesting thing to note is the numbers that Cercle push forward in these pressing moments.
They do not look to settle and drop back in a defensive shell when they either lose possession in an advanced area or when the opposition is looking to build out from the back.
The image above again shows another example of team pressing, which allows Cercle Brugge to regain possession in an advanced area.
The phase of play above is not a counter-pressing sequence.
Instead, it comes off of a Gent throw-in from inside their own defensive third.
The throw-in is played back to the centre-back, who is closed down quickly by Kevin Denkey.
In the central space, Ayase Ueda can recognise the potential passing lane and quickly jumps into it, preventing a pass to either the goalkeeper or the opposite centre-back.
As a result, the Gent player in possession is forced to play the ball long to the opposite fullback.
Only a few seconds later, the Cercle Brugge wing-back is closed down, allowing the Belgian side to gather possession again in a very advanced attacking area.
When it comes to pressing cues and the negation of spaces in certain areas of the pitch, the entire side are on the same page, which allows them to consistently have success winning back possession in these advanced areas of the opposition’s half.
The image above shows a pressing sequence similar to that of the same match against Club Brugge.
In the phase of play above, which is a build-up phase from the Belgian league champions, Cercle do well to force the ball to one side.
This pressing movement of the forwards means that the centre-back can only realistically play to one short option: the fullback on the far touchline.
As a result, the furthest advanced Cercle Brugge players who are pressing the ball already know where it will be played.
This allows them to lock the ball to one side, with the Cercle wing back also pushing forward, giving them a 4v3 pressing advantage in this phase of play.
As this play develops, Club Brugge looks to play through the press instead of going long to escape it.
This again allows Cercle to regain possession in an advanced area, as Club Brugge pays for attempting to play through the pressure.
The use of this high-intensity pressing and counter-pressing system is one of the building blocks of the style of play that Miron Muslić has attempted to implement during his short time in charge of Cercle Brugge.
This has enabled the Belgian club to punch above its weight in the Belgian league this season and has helped it rise up the table from bottom to inside the European playoff places.
Miron Muslić Direct style of build-up
As mentioned previously in this tactical analysis, Cercle Brugge under Miron Muslić playing style does not typically aim to hold the majority of possession in a match, nor do they often attempt to build out from the back.
They often look to play directly from the goalkeeper, and they play for second balls inside the opposition’s half.
While they also look to win the initial header as much as possible, the Cercle Brugge players tend to position themselves in favourable positions to give them the best possible chance of winning the second balls and gathering possession.
The image above shows the direct style of build-up that Cercle Brugge typically uses during matches.
In this phase of play, the ball is played back to the goalkeeper after Cercle gathers possession, with all of the Belgian side’s outfield players pushing forward.
We can see how tight and compact both sides are and can make out the three-at-the-back variation that Muslić prefers to set his side up in.
As mentioned, Cercle aims to attack both the first and second balls, with attacking players typically positioning themselves to increase their chances of winning the second ball.
This is exactly the scenario pictured above in the phase of play.
As Warleson plays the ball long, the Cercle attacker circled drops a bit deeper to try to win the initial header.
This movement draws the defender out, marking him and allowing the striker to position himself behind to receive a flicked-on attempt.
The image above shows the Cercle Brugge shape during attacking build-up phases of play, with the Belgian side looking to dominate aerially to win the first and second balls.
As the goal kick is taken long from Cercle Brugge’s goalkeeper, the players are around the midfield line position to prepare for the second ball.
As the ball reaches its intended target area on the pitch, Gent are able to win the first ball in the air.
However, due to the compactness of the Cercle Brugge shape, they can swarm the Gent players as the ball is in the air, which allows them to quickly close down, as they often end up not being the first to the second ball.
As a result of this quick closing down, Gent are forced to knock the ball forward, allowing Muslić’s side to relieve pressure and attempt to play long again into the attacking half of the pitch.
A common trend for Cercle Brugge under the Austrian manager is using constant pressure on the opposition while they are in possession.
This direct form of building works well in partnership with it, especially when they are not first to the second ball, as it allows them to quickly put pressure on the opposition and win possession back in the attacking half.
Conclusion
As this Miron Muslić tactical analysis and scout report have shown, Cercle Brugge has become a much better side since Miron Muslić took over.
Though he has only been in charge for 19 matches, he has drastically improved the side, taking them from the bottom of the table to the European playoff places.
With Muslić’s intense pressing system, similar to the style Thomas Tuchel used at Chelsea and PSG or Ralph Hassenhüttl at both RB Leipzig and Southampton, the Belgian side has been very good and is continuing to improve under the tactics of the Austrian manager.
