UEFA Champions League 2021/22: How PSG’s commanding midfield controlled the contest vs Real Madrid – tactical analysis

One of the most tantalising ties of the UEFA Champions League’s Round-of-16 draw kicked off its first leg on Tuesday evening, as Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain played host to LaLiga table-toppers Real Madrid in Le Parc des Princes. Mauricio Pochettino’s star-studded side — with a starting XI consisting of (GK) Gianluigi Donnarumma, (RB) Achraf Hakimi, (RCB) Marquinhos, (LCB) Presnel Kimpembe, (LB) Nuno Mendes, (RCM) Danilo Pereira, (CM) Leandro Paredes, (LCM) Marco Verratti, (RW) Ángel Di María, (CF) Lionel Messi, (LW) Kylian Mbappé — earned a 1-0 victory thanks to main man Mbappé’s 94th-minute winner.

Despite winning the game by just one goal, and only managing to score that winning goal in the dying moments of the game, PSG produced a dominant performance that had Madrid hanging on by their fingernails going into second-half stoppage time, as is highlighted by their accumulation of 2.39 xG to Madrid’s 0.18 xG, per Wyscout. PSG’s 2.39 xG was generated from their total of 22 shots in this Round of 16 tie, while three-time UCL-winning mastermind Carlo Ancelotti’s Madrid — with a starting XI of (GK) Thibaut Courtois, (RB) Dani Carvajal, (RCB) Éder Militão, (LCB) David Alaba, (LB) Ferland Mendy, (RCM) Luka Modrić, (DM) Casemiro, (LCM) Toni Kroos, (RW) Marco Asensio, (CF) Karim Benzema, (LW) Vínícius Júnior — managed just three shots all game in a toothless attacking display.

Granted, Madrid were away from home on Tuesday and with the away goals rule being scrapped for 2021/22, Los Blancos didn’t have much of an incentive to approach this game with a gung-ho attitude but it’s clear even solely from the aforementioned stats that they failed to contain Les Parisiens to an adequate extent and were lucky to leave the French capital with just a one-goal deficit to overcome in the second leg. It’s difficult to imagine Ancelotti’s side producing as dominant a performance at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu in the return leg, though stranger things have certainly happened in this competition, notably against PSG in Spain.

This tactical analysis piece aims to highlight the key role that PSG’s midfield played in their dominant performance on Tuesday evening. In the wake of their impressive display, Verratti has rightly been showered with praise, along with the game-winner Mbappé. However, the strategy and tactics on display from the get-go by Pochettino and Paris were interesting and effective both in controlling the game and denying Ancelotti’s side opportunities to execute their own game plan, pinning them in their own half and relentlessly posing the Spanish side problem after problem. I hope that this tactical analysis shines a light on the crucial yet contrasting roles that the three members of PSG’s base midfield line played in their side’s first-leg victory on Tuesday, as well as the intelligent game plan produced by their renowned Argentinian strategist.

Leandro Paredes and Marco Verratti

The first and main topic I’m going to discuss in this tactical analysis is the link-up between Leandro Paredes and Marco Verratti, and how crucial it proved to be for PSG on Tuesday. Wyscout registers the number of passes made in one way or the other between every set of two players on the pitch as ‘passing links’. Versus Real Madrid, PSG’s top passing link was Paredes and Verratti, with a whopping total of 50 passes made between the two midfielders, primarily moving from Paredes to Verratti (28) but with plenty moving from Verratti to Paredes as well (22).

For reference, PSG’s next top passing links were Paredes-Messi with 32, Paredes-Kimpembe with 29, Verratti-Messi with 28 and Verratti-Mbappé with 26. So, with 50 of PSG’s passes being played between Paredes and Verratti, it’s clear that the link-up between the two men was a common theme in PSG’s game on Tuesday. Additionally, the remaining four links making up PSG’s top five further highlight the progressive nature of Paredes’ and Verratti’s respective games in Le Parc des Princes, with Paredes also frequently finding Messi between the lines via progressive passes, while Verratti frequently linked up with both Messi and Mbappé in more advanced areas, putting his press-resistance and ability to make lots of clean, deep completions to good use.

Paredes typically operated as the central, deep-lying playmaker in PSG’s 4-3-3 in possession — a role that he performs to the highest standard you’ll see in world football today. Paredes’ positioning, spatial awareness, scanning, ball reception, decision-making and execution of the pass are routinely top-notch, hence why Pochettino entrusts him with this crucial role at the base of PSG’s midfield just in front of the backline. Figure 1 shows an in-game example of Paredes receiving in this position while his team is building their attack just inside the opposition’s half, aiming to progress into the final third at this moment.

Just before this image, Marquinhos drove forward with the ball from his right centre-back position, attracting Real bodies towards him and freeing up space for Paredes to receive a lateral pass once positioned right beside him at the base of midfield, essentially forming a temporary double-pivot. By attracting bodies towards him via his carry, Marquinhos didn’t just create space for Paredes to receive but also created a clear path for Paredes to pass the ball to Verratti between the opposition’s backline and midfield line — a very threatening position, especially for a player like Verratti who’s extremely comfortable under high pressure with both carrying the ball out of pressure thanks to his mobile hips and overall agility as well as coolly playing pinpoint passes under pressure, linking up with the likes of Mbappé and Messi just outside the penalty box after attracting opposition players towards him, thus creating additional space for Mbappé or Messi. This ability in tight spaces is why Verratti is so good in the more advanced ‘number 8’ role within this system.