The final of the UEFA Youth League produced a dream matchup, pitting the academy powerhouse of Benfica against a highly regarded Real Madrid side.
For those unfamiliar with the tournament, the clubs represented are the U19 teams of clubs represented in the UEFA Champions League group stages, as well as the youth champions from the top-ranked national associations.
To give an idea of the matchup, Benfica’s U19 UEFA Youth League squad has a listed Transfermarkt value of €6.23m, far surpassing the €$837,000 of Real Madrid’s tournament team.
Given the many gems the Lisbon club has produced in recent years, their romp to the final saw them score at least three goals in each knockout round match, holding Liverpool, Dinamo Zagreb and Ajax to a single goal. Real Madrid’s path included wins over Juventus, Inter Milan, and Red Bull Salzburg.
In this tactical analysis, we’ll take a deeper look at Real Madrid’s asymmetric pressing tactics, Benfica’s positional play and the Spanish club’s right-sided overload.
Lineups
Benfica’s manager, Luís Castro, played a 4-1-4-1 formation. Leobrian Kokubo started in goal with a backline consisting of Filipe Cruz, Tomás Araújo, Morato, and João Ferreira. Henrique Jocú was the lone pivot while Gonçalo Ramos and Tiago Dantas played in front of him in central positions. Umaro Embaló operated on the right wing while Tiago Araújo played on the left, leaving Henrique Araújo up top.
This Real Madrid side is coached by Raúl González, the legendary Madrid striker who was the club’s all-time leading goal scorer before Cristiano Ronaldo arrived. Luis López earned the start between the pipes. From right to left, Sergio Santos, Pablo Ramón, Víctor Chust, and Miguel Gutiérrez formed the backline. Iván Morante and Antonio Blanco were flanked by Marvin Park and Carlos Dotor in midfield, leaving Sergio Arribas and Pablo Rodríguez as the forwards.
