Back in May, Heerenveen made an exciting decision about who would replace the previously announced outgoing Kees van Wonderen as their new head coach.
They appointed Robin van Persie, a Dutch footballing legend and the nations all-time leading scorer.
Although van Persie had been coaching at youth level with Feyenoord for the previous three seasons, this was, in fact, his first senior-level head coaching gig, which made it all the more interesting that Heerenveen was the club willing to offer him that platform.
Eight rounds into the Eredivisie season, and so far, its been a gamble that thus far hasnt paid off for Heerenveen or RVP.
The club currently sits in 15th place in the standings, just one point off the relegation play-off spot.
Offensively, theyve been performing at a league-average level with 10 goals, but whats really been alarming is their abysmal defensive record.
With 17 goals allowed, Heerenveen currently has the third-worst defensive record in the league, only worse than the two teams at the very bottom of the Eredivisie, Almere City and Waalwijk.
To make matters worse, Heerenveen has already suffered its worst league defeat in club history, a 9-1 reverse at AZ in Alkmaar in mid-September.
This tactical analysis and scout report will provide an analysis of some of the tactics and reasons behind Heerenveens atrocious defensive stats this season and look at why van Persies men have shipped in so many goals already.
Heerenveen High Pressing Strategy: The Good And Bad
Robin Van Persies coaching style has also prioritised an attacking approach with Heerenveen thus far.
One element that has been a crucial part of his team is their high pressing approach.
The data viz above looks at the high regains from the last eight games of last season under van Wonderen and the eight games this term under van Persie for an even comparison.
We can see that although Heerenveen did press high up under their previous manager, theyre more aggressive under Robin van Persies tactics.
The telling number is in the bottom left corner, with 12
