Waasland-Beveren were perhaps fortunate to even be playing first division football in Belgium when the league was brought to an abrupt end. It took countless meetings with officials before the league was extended to 18 teams and they were allowed to remain, even though they finished bottom of the shorter 2019/20 season.
Despite surprising in their first Pro League game of the season, they appeared to be back to their form of last year when they were dismantled by winless Zulte Waregem 4-1. Zulte, who have former EPL and EFL striker Saido Berahino in their side, were comfortably the better side as they got their first points of the season.
This tactical analysis will look at how Zulte were able to dominate the scoreline. This analysis will look at their attacking tactics, as well as how Beveren were unable to really impact the game. The data indicates that Zulte created better chances in the second half rather than the first. This analysis will therefore also look at what adjustments were made by either side for this to happen.
Formations
Zulte coach Francky Dury went for a 4-3-3 formation, with the young German goalkeeper Eike Bansen between the posts. In front of him were the centre-back pairing of exciting young talent Ewoud Pletinckx and experienced Olivier Deschacht, with Daniel Opare at right-back and Laurens De Bock at left-back. Ibrahima Seck was the deeper of the three central midfielders, with Jannes Van Hecke and Omar Govea playing further forward. Gianni Bruno, Jelle Vossen, and Saido Berahino were the versatile front three.
Beveren, on the other hand, went for a more defensive 5-4-1, with Lucas Pirard in goal and Aleksander Vukotic, Dries Wuytens, and Maximiliano Caufriez as the three centre-backs. Youngster Jenthe Mertens was at right-back, while Andrija Vukcevic was the left-back. Daan Heymans and Jur Schryvers were the midfield pair, flanked on the right by Brendan Schoonbaert and on the left by Aboubakary Koita. Stefan Milosevic was the lone striker.
Subscribe To TFA To Unlock All Posts - Free 7 Day Trial
Try TFA Free For 7 Days
Gain access to all of TFA's premium contents.More than 12,000+ articles.
