After securing their spot in the knockout round of the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, RB Leipzig took on Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga on Saturday. While Werder has put in a much better performance this season compared to last year’s, they still were no match for Leipzig, who saw most of the possession and were able to grind out a 2-0 victory.
This tactical analysis will examine the tactics used by both Florian Kohfeldt and Julian Nagelsmann for their respective sides. The analysis will look at Leipzig’s use of the back three in Werder’s half, Werder’s struggle to progress up the pitch, and a quick analysis of what makes Leipzig so good in transition.
Lineups
Nagelsmann sent Leipzig out in a 4-2-3-1 with Péter Gulácsi in goal. Dayot Upamecano and Willi Orbán started as centre-backs with Nordi Mukiele and Marcel Halstenberg on the right and left flank defensively. Kevin Kampl and Marcel Sabitzer started as defensive midfielders, with Dani Olmo in front of them in the centre of the park. Amadou Haidara started on the right flank as Justin Kluivert started on the left; both players looked to support Yussuf Poulsen, who started the match as Leipzig’s striker.
Kohfeldt started Werder in a 3-4-2-1 with Jiří Pavlenka in goal. Marco Friedl, Ömer Toprak, and Christian Groß started as centre-backs. Kevin Möhwald and Maximilian Eggestein played primarily as defensive midfielders, supporting Romano Schmid and Leonardo Bittencourt, who started as attacking central midfielders. Ludwig Augustinsson started on the left flank as Theodor Gebre Selassie started on the right. Werder’s lone striker was the young American Josh Sargent.
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