February means two things, wet weather and Champions League football. This week was the return of the hallowed competition, where Atalanta met Valencia in the first leg of the knock out rounds. The San Siro played host to the fixture as the Italian sides home ground is undergoing serious construction work to keep up with the clubs flourishing success. The 51 km journey was no wasted journey for the devoted home fans who watched their side win in an entertaining 4-1 victory, seemingly putting the tie to bed already.
In this tactical analysis, we look at the tactical fluidity of Atalanta and how they penetrated Valencias tactics at will. We also provide an analysis of how Valencias defensive system suffered heavily and where their tactics need to improve.
Lineups
Gian Piero Gasperini lined his team up in his favoured dynamic 3-4-1-2 shape. This system allowed the wing-backs, Hans Hateboer and Robin Gosens to attack liberally as the additional man in defence covered their movements. The midfield was made up of Remo Freuler and Martin De Roon, who sat at the base, looking to collect the ball from the defensive third as they moved the ball through the phases. Mario Pašalić was positioned slightly in front of the base, using his position between the lines to connect the attack for the home side. The fearsome duo of Alejandro Gómez and Josep Iličić led the line for La Dea. The pair alternated between showing for the ball in passing channels through a rugged midfield line and running beyond the struggling backline of the away side.
Valencia started the game in a traditional 4-4-2 shape. This wasnt a system that was in any way similar to the one we saw Atlético implement against Liverpool the night before, however. Albert Celades, instead set his team up to be open and offensive, which was ultimately the Spanish sides downfall as they failed to adjust in the transitional phases, which we look at later.
Geoffrey Kondogbia and Dan
