The Athletic Football Tactics Podcast
232 episodes - English - Latest episode: 4 days ago - ★★★★★ - 67 ratingsHosted by Ali Maxwell, revered football tactics writer Michael Cox is joined by more of The Athletic's brightest tactics and data analytics writers to break down the tactical and technical details behind the biggest footballing stories each week - assessing the latest trends, systems, players, managers and all manner of statistics in order to give you a deeper understanding of the game.
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Episodes
The Zonal Marking Euros Notebook - what we've noticed so far
June 16, 2021 05:00 - 37 minutesThe Athletic's Micheal Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell have been hard at work watching every second of Euro 2020 so far and have been noting down anything and everything they consider to be interesting enough to bring to your attention. From England's creative throw-ins, Sweden's flat pack four, France's surprising counter-pressing, a proliferation of alliteration, a Scotsman with a better xG than record-breaker Cristiano Ronaldo, and loads more, we've got every tactical and analytical angl...
Euro 2020 Preview - Groups D, E and F
June 09, 2021 05:00 - 52 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell are back with the second of our big Euro 2020 previews and this time we cover the second side of the draw with groups D, E and F Plenty to get stuck into here as England find themselves in group D with Croatia, Czech Republic and of course Scotland. Could Sweden be one of the tournaments 'dark horses' in Group E with Spain, Poland and Slovakia? And we've got the official Group of Death with France, Portugal, Germany and Hungary in Group...
Euro 2020 Preview - Groups A, B and C
June 08, 2021 05:00 - 1 hourThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell for the first of our big Euro 2020 preview pods and we kick things off with groups A, B and C. Michael has watched many hours of footage to bring you his considered take on every team and Worville has been scouring the data to try and unearth the key player to watch for each side. So if you want to learn more about the tactics and the players of Italy, Wales, Switzerland, Turkey, Denmark, Finland, Belgium, Russia, Austria, Netherlan...
Bonus Pod - England at the 2018 World Cup
June 01, 2021 05:00 - 53 minutesThis episode originally went out in March but seeing as we're having a week off to prepare for our massive Euro 2020 preview episodes next week we thought we'd kick this back up the feed for any of you who may have missed it first time round. Enjoy! The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell travel back to summer 2018, to the hazy days of waistcoats and wasted pints, as Gareth Southgate's England came within twenty minutes of a World Cup final. We all remember the penalty shoot-...
Pep v Tuchel - Champions League final tactical preview
May 26, 2021 14:55 - 41 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Mark Carey and Ali Maxwell look ahead to Saturday's Champions League final between Manchester City and Chelsea from a tactical and analytical perspective. Can we learn anything from the two games they've played against each other recently? Will City stick with their strikerless approach or throw in Jesus or Aguero? Which of Chelsea's array of attackers are best suited to exploit City's high defensive line? All this and more as we study the game from all manner of t...
The Alternative Team of the Season
May 19, 2021 05:00 - 51 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell gather to offer their distinctive take on football's traditional end of season awards Tasked by Ali with picking an alternative team of the season, with the stipulation being that they can't pick any players who got more than one vote in The Athletic's writers poll, Tom and Michael have picked the players they think have gone under the radar this season and were perhaps more deserving of a bigger share of the votes. As well as the teams...
How Guardiola made Man City champions again
May 12, 2021 05:00 - 46 minutesOn October the 15th, four games into the Premier League season, we released a pod titled 'How does Guardiola get Man City back on top?' - they were struggling and looked miles off the pace. Eight months later they have won the Premier League at a canter and have reached the Champions League final - so how has Pep done it and how does this side compare to the title winners of 17/18 and 18/19? The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell look at the tactics, the numbers, the key per...
What went wrong for Fulham, West Brom and Sheffield Utd?
May 05, 2021 05:00 - 55 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell have called time on Fulham and West Brom's stay in the Premier League and all but consigned them to the Championship for next season along with Sheffield Utd, so what went wrong for them this season? Why have they been the worst three teams in the Premier League and what are their respective chances of bouncing back next season? And we also look at whether Norwich and Watford's immediate return to the top flight could give this season...
The defensive glossary - half-backs, sweeper keepers, the libero and beyond
April 28, 2021 05:00 - 47 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell complete their quest to classify every possible position and role on a football pitch with the third and final edition of the ZM pod footballing glossary, this time focusing on defenders and goalkeepers. What's the difference between a libero and a sweeper? When is a back three really a back five? Should the outside centre-backs in a three man defence be called full-backs? Is Joao Cancelo the modern half-back? What is the opposite of a ...
We need to talk about crossing...
April 21, 2021 05:00 - 34 minutesThis week's Zonal Marking pod is a European Super League Free Zone, come shelter from the storm with The Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville as they take a deep dive into that most quintessential part of the English game - crossing. Tom has scoured the data to look at how effective crossing is in the modern Premier League, how many teams focus on it as a main source of attack, which players are best at it, and the best positions to cross the ball from. You won't believe how many time Auba...
The race for the Champions League - analysis & predictions
April 14, 2021 16:48 - 47 minutesThe race to qualify for the Champions League looks set to be the most exciting thing about the run-in as we approach the end of the Premier League season. Leicester, West Ham, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham and Everton are all still in contention with eight games remaining. The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell have studied the form and the data to give you their considered take on each team's chances of making it into those sought-after top 4 spots Learn more about your ad ...
What makes an entertaining football match?
April 07, 2021 05:00 - 50 minutesWhat makes an entertaining football match? Loads of goals? Tactical battles? Tension? The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell pick five games from the Premier League this season with the highest and most evenly balanced xG they could find to see whether they can crack the code and determine the key ingredients needed for the ideal crowd-pleasing game. Game 1 - Arsenal 3 - 1 Chelsea Game 2 - Leeds 1 - 4 Leicester Game 3 - Manchester United 6 - 2 Leeds Game 4 - Liverpool 3 ...
The Championship Run-In Rundown - stats and players to watch for every club
March 31, 2021 05:00 - 1 hourWhen Michael Cox is away... The Athletic's Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell will delve into the Championship and pick out the most interesting stats and best players to watch from each of the 24 teams as we prepare to head full-steam into the business end of the season Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
How good were England at the 2018 World Cup?
March 24, 2021 06:00 - 52 minutesWith the international break upon us The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell thought it would be the ideal time to travel back to summer 2018, to the hazy days of waistcoats and wasted pints, as Gareth Southgate's England came within twenty minutes of a World Cup final. We all remember the penalty shoot-out and the Trippier free-kick, but were England actually any good in that tournament? Cox and Worville have looked at the footage and the data to determine whether Southgate'...
The goalkeeping blind spot - why is it so hard to measure the performance of keepers?
March 17, 2021 06:00 - 46 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Ali Maxwell are joined by our new analytics writer Mark Carey to tackle the thorny issue of how we measure the performance of that most unique of positions - goalkeepers. Taking the lead from Mark's recent pieces on Kasper Schmeichel and Vicente Guaita we look at the various metrics we use to analyse goalkeeping performance, how useful they are at accurately assessing their performance, and we try to dispel some common myths around the importance of save percent...
Quite Unique FC - finding Europe's unicorn players
March 10, 2021 06:00 - 58 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell set out to select an XI from across Europe's top five leagues consisting of players who are unique in their positions - whether it be a curious tactical style, strangely high or low stats compared to what you'd expect, or just the fact that they are ridiculously tall, this is Quite Unique FC See if you can guess who we've picked from these clues: A veteran keeper who keeps it simple and is the best cheerleader around A right-back who ...
The Attacking Glossary - Striker, Centre-Forward, False-9, Second-Striker and beyond
March 02, 2021 19:04 - 54 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to bring you the definitive guide to the many, many roles and positions you may find among attackers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
West Ham & Leicester - the top four gatecrashers
February 24, 2021 06:00 - 53 minutesAre West Ham genuine top four contenders? Can Leicester do what they failed to last season and hang on to a Champions League spot? The Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to examine the contrasting tactical approaches of the Premier League's gatecrashers and assess whether either side is the real deal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Champions League knockout phase - every team analysed
February 16, 2021 06:00 - 55 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to preview the Champions League knockout stages which get underway on Tuesday night. Coxy has studied the tactics, Worville has mined all the data, and Ali will guide us through all the ties as we look at every single game and every single team left in the competition in detail. The Champions League last 16 in full: RB Leipzig v Liverpool Barcelona v PSG Sevilla v Dortmund Porto v Juventus Atletico Madrid v Chelsea Lazio v Bay...
Europe's biggest outliers - from Leeds, to Montpellier, to Berlin and back again
February 10, 2021 06:00 - 38 minutesWhat do Leeds, Nîmes, Montpellier, Union Berlin, Elche, Nice, Freiburg, Brighton, Burnley, and Benevento all have in common? They're all mixing it with the big boys of European football in areas you might not expect. Punching well above their weight or standing out like a sore thumb when it comes to a whole host of different metrics. In this week's ZM pod The Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to look at why these clubs and their players are among Europe's biggest statis...
Running stats explained: Pace, intensity and the Premier League 'plodders'
February 03, 2021 06:00 - 38 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to delve into the world of running stats and explain the many different ways in which they are used in the modern game. We'll look at whether the 'distance covered' stats actually mean anything, at how intense pressing sides may end up running less than you think, and the role of tracking data in the recruitment process. Plus we consult the data to reveal which players top the sprinting, jogging and walking charts in the Premier Lea...
What Chelsea can expect from Thomas Tuchel
January 27, 2021 06:00 - 43 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to tell us what Chelsea can expect from Thomas Tuchel, the tactical chameleon. We'll study his career to date starting with his first job causing a scene at Mainz, his first big gig at Dortmund where he pushed Bayern close but not close enough and then on to PSG who he guided to the Champions League final last season. There's a look at how Pep and Klopp influence his tactical style to differing extents, his preference for using his ...
Mesut Ozil's Arsenal legacy
January 19, 2021 19:20 - 39 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to assess the legacy that Mesut Ozil leaves behind at Arsenal as his seven and half year spell at the Emirates comes to an end. We remember the excitement which greeted his arrival, the way Arsene Wenger had to adjust to fit him in to a playmaker-laden squad, and of course all those assists. There's also plenty of discussion of how it all unravelled for Ozil at Arsenal, when and why did his numbers start to decline? Should he have l...
The midfield glossary - 6s, 8s, 10s, Enganches and beyond...
January 13, 2021 06:00 - 58 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to bring you the definitive guide to the many, many roles and positions you may find in midfield. What's the difference between a 6 and an 8? What makes a true holding midfielder and is it different to the 'Makelele role'? Why do Argentineans love no.5s so much? What's the difference between an Enganche and a Trequarista? And what on earth is a shuttler? All these questions and more answered as the ZM pod goes box-to-box for the nex...
What's going wrong at Chelsea?
January 06, 2021 06:00 - 42 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to explain what's going wrong with Frank Lampard's out-of-form Chelsea side from a tactical point of view. Why have they struggled to beat anyone above them? Why are they so easy to pass through? Is it all down to poor finishing from Werner and bad goalkeeping at the other end? What would be the ideal midfield with the players they have? What's the best role for Werner and Kai Havertz? These are just some of the questions being aske...
An interesting stat from each of the 20 Premier League teams
December 30, 2020 06:00 - 45 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell round off 2020 by looking at all 20 Premier League teams and picking at least one interesting stat, observation or quirk for each of them. You'll find out which team has taken the most throw-ins, the player has had zero touches of the ball in his own penalty area, which team is best at 'winning' offsides, and how about the team who have scored the most goals from outside the box but taken the second-most touches in it? All these and loa...
Is Big Sam more than just a long ball merchant?
December 23, 2020 06:00 - 39 minutesIs Big Sam really just a boring long ball merchant? The Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell gather to look at the stats, the data and the evidence from Sam Allardyce's career in the aim of answering that very question. From his days as a pioneer of Pro-Zone at Bolton, to 'out-tacticing' Jose Mourinho with West Ham, through to his more recent great escapes with Sunderland and Crystal Palace, whatever you think of Big Sam there is certainly a bit more to him than the caricature...
Do Arsenal have a problem with the 'big games' in the WSL?
December 16, 2020 06:00 - 34 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Ali Maxwell are joined by our women's football writer Katie Whyatt to look at why Arsenal are struggling in the big WSL games this season after they lost to Manchester City at the weekend, a result which followed up failures to win against Manchester United and Chelsea earlier in the season. We look at how manager Joe Montemurro is responding to increased scrutiny in the face of these disappointing results There's also a look at the WSL more generally as we asse...
Why have Arsenal become obsessed with crossing the ball?
December 09, 2020 06:00 - 42 minutesWhen Mikel Arteta recently referred to Arsenal putting in 33 crosses in one game as "pure maths" it piqued the interest of The Athletic's resident analytical gurus Michael Cox and Tom Worville - what could Mikel mean by such a phrase and is this really a good idea? The pair join Ali Maxwell this week to look at why Arsenal have recently become obsessed with slinging the ball into the mixer and to take a broader look at the various problems besetting Arteta's side at the moment as they find th...
What kind of player is 2020 Cristiano Ronaldo?
December 02, 2020 06:00 - 32 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell take an almighty leap into the stats to work out what sort of player Cristiano Ronaldo is right now in 2020 as a 35-year-old at Juventus. We know his game has changed dramatically since his early days coming through as a brilliant dribbler and speed merchant at Manchester United, and the assumption is that he's even changed quite a bit since his days as a ruthless goal machine at Real Madrid, but if you look at the numbers it seems that...
Half-backs, inverted centre-backs and more unusual positions we're seeing this season
November 26, 2020 06:00 - 36 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox, Tom Worville and Ali Maxwell are back with another tactical masterclass, this week casting their eye on some of the more unconventional roles and positions we've seen a host of players taking up this season in the Premier League and beyond. Has Nuno turned Wily Boly and Max Kilman into the first ever pair of inverted-centre backs? Pep Guardiola loves to conjure up interesting roles for his players and Joao Cancelo has gone from conventional right-back to what we're...
Javier Mascherano: the accidental centre-back
November 18, 2020 06:00 - 46 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Ali Maxwell are joined by Argentinean football expert Rupert Fryer to celebrate the career of Javier Mascherano as he announced his retirement this week after an outstanding 17-year career. We chart his career starting with the early days coming through at River Plate, his move to Corinthians in Brazil, that bizarre spell at West Ham before establishing himself alongside Gerrard and Alonso at Liverpool under Rafa Benitez. Our focus then turns to his time at Barc...
The top five overachievers across Europe this season
November 12, 2020 06:00 - 51 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell for a whistle-stop tour across Europe to look at five unheralded teams who have found themselves in unexpectedly lofty positions in the league table so far. Starting on home soil with high-pressing Southampton. We also head over to Italy to look at a swashbuckling Sassuolo side who find themselves second in Serie A, before crossing to Spain to look at the surprising top two of Real Sociedad, who we think could be the real deal, and ...
Surviving the difficult second season in the Premier League
November 04, 2020 12:18 - 44 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell for the second part of our series looking at the challenges of staying up after being promoted to the Premier League. This week we look at the various ways teams have gone about trying to establish themselves in their second season. Looking at how Leicester famously managed to win the league in 2015/16, back-to-back 7th placed finishes for Wolves, to Burnley's less heralded Europa League clincher in 2018, we examine what you need to...
How to survive your first season in the Premier League
October 29, 2020 05:00 - 48 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to debate the various 'do's and dont's' for a maiden season in the top flight of English football... Is it better to sack or stick with the manager who brought you up? Discard the playing style and sure things up at the back? Splash the cash in the market or trust in the players who won so many games last year? The Zonal Marking team delve into the Premier League archives to find out... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megap...
Bad Stats - where we are all getting it wrong when talking about football
October 22, 2020 05:00 - 45 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to get a few things off their chests about the use of statistics in the general conversation around football. Do assists really tell us anything about creativity? Why do we harp on about manager win percentages? Does it really matter that Team A haven't won at Team B's ground for 27 years? And don't get us started on pass completion percentage. All these and loads more sloppy statistics are picked apart, but it's not just one big mo...
How does Guardiola get Man City back on top?
October 15, 2020 05:00 - 52 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Sam Lee join Ali Maxwell to look at Manchester City's start to the season and assess the ways Pep Guardiola's side have changed their tactical approach since they last won the title. Why did they come up so short so often last season? What went wrong in the Champions League? Are there early signs of the same problems being an issue this season? Have we underestimated the loss of Leroy Sane and David Silva? Are we too quick to pounce on Pep at the first sign of a...
Why have there been so many goals in the Premier League this season?
October 08, 2020 13:42 - 32 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox joins Ali Maxwell to assess what has been a goal-tastic start to the season in the Premier League as we head into the international break. They look at the numbers and the tactics to try and understand why there have been so many goals, high-scoring games and a distinct lack of 0-0 draws in the opening weeks of the season. Sign up to The Athletic now for just £1-a-month and get access to Michael Cox's unrivalled tactical analysis of the Premier League, Champions L...
AC Milan: the history and reawakening of a sleeping giant
September 30, 2020 05:00 - 45 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and James Horncastle join Ali Maxwell for an in-depth look at one of the most iconic clubs in world football: AC Milan. Taking the lead from James recent behind-the-scenes piece on the club we cast our eye back through the history books to examine the great sides and coaches that built the legend, before examining the past decade of disappointment, and finally looking at whether the present day set-up is poised to bring restore the Rossoneri to its former glory as t...
Every Premier League squad profiled
September 23, 2020 05:00 - 53 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to profile every Premier League squad by average age, depth of quality and numerous other quirks along the way. Who is well-stocked across the pitch? Who are the unsung players who could have good seasons? Who could yet dip into the market for a bit more depth? All this and more answered in this week's ZM pod. Subscribe to The Athletic for access to Michael Cox and Tom Worville's unrivalled tactical & technical analysis including t...
Explained: Why left-footed centre-backs are so in demand
September 16, 2020 14:45 - 35 minutesRight now we're offering listeners of this show the opportunity to try out The Athletic for just £1 a month You can enjoy all of Michael's great tactical analysis, including a recent article on how Bielsa's Leeds approached their first game back in the Premier League and another looking at why Chelsea repeatedly went route-one against Brighton Just go to theathletic.com/zonalmarking to sign up for just £1 a month Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Breaking down the Champions League final - PSG's pressing & Bayern's switching of possession
August 27, 2020 05:00 - 32 minutesRight now we're offering listeners of this show the opportunity to try out The Athletic for FREE. You can enjoy all of Michael's great tactical analysis, including a recent article on how Pep's decision to field a 'Mourinho Team', saw City crash out of the Champions League to Lyon. Just go to www.theathletic.com/zonalmarking to sign up for a 30 Day Free Trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Champions League Special
August 20, 2020 13:00 - 38 minutesRight now we're offering listeners of this show the opportunity to try out The Athletic for FREE. You can enjoy all of Michael's great tactical analysis, including a recent article on how Pep's decision to field a 'Mourinho Team', saw City crash out of the Champions League to Lyon. Just go to www.theathletic.com/zonalmarking to sign up for a 30 Day Free Trial. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Lionel Messi - how many things is he the best in the world at?
August 12, 2020 05:00 - 46 minutesSign up to The Athletic now for access to Michael Cox's tactical musings and Tom Worville's statistical masterpieces - including recent pieces breaking down the tactics that lead Arteta's Arsenal to triumph over Chelsea in the FA Cup final and why ball retention actually does matter a lot more than you may think Head to theathletic.com/zonalmarking for a 30-day free trial Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Big Champions League & Europa League Preview
August 04, 2020 16:57 - 57 minutesThe Athletic's Raphael Honigstein, James Horncastle and Dermot Corrigan join Ali Maxwell for a comprehensive look ahead to the return of the Champions League - looking at every single game on the schedule and all the potential storylines that could emerge from this truncated single-leg knockout format. It promises to be a furious festival of elite football and we've got every angle covered. We also dive into the Europa League with teams like Manchester United, Wolves, Inter, https://dashboard...
Evaluating the managerial changes in the Premier League last season
July 30, 2020 05:00 - 56 minutesThere were seven managerial changes in the Premier League last season, three of them at Watford, but did Tottenham, Arsenal, West Ham, Everton and the Hornets make the right calls in sacking their managers? The Athletic's Michael Cox joins Ali Maxwell to evaluate those decisions, to look at what's happened since the likes of Mourinho, Arteta, Moyes and Ancelotti took over at their respective clubs, and also to look at what lead to the departures of Pochettino, Emery, Pellegrini and Marco ...
The resurgence of the three-man defence
July 23, 2020 05:00 - 40 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox joins Ali Maxwell for a look at the tactical increasingly fashionable trend of playing a back three this season after Arsenal, Man Utd and Chelsea all used the system last weekend in the FA Cup semi-finals. 13 of the 20 Premier League sides have tried a three-man defence at some point this season, some like Sheffield Utd and Wolves have used it in different ways but to great success, and others like West Ham and Southampton found it more difficult, so we examine the...
Judging Sarri's impact on Juventus and Ronaldo
July 15, 2020 13:47 - 41 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox and James Horncastle join Ali Maxwell to assess Maurizio Sarri's first season at Juventus. On the verge of leading Juve to their ninth straight Serie A title, we look at how Sarri has measured up to expectations in Turin, how he has impressed his tactical philosophy on the squad, as well as how he's used key individuals like Cristiano Ronaldo, Aaron Ramsey, Matthijs de Ligt and Miralem Pjanic. Sign up to The Athletic for James Horncastle's unrivalled coverage of S...
The tactics behind Manchester United's resurgence
July 08, 2020 14:53 - 42 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox & Laurie Whitwell join Ali Maxwell to look at Manchester United's recent transformation from a struggling mid-table outfit into the Premier League's form side with attacking options aplenty.They look at how Solskjaer has managed to fit Rashford, Martial, Greenwood, Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba into the same side, and how the individual roles they are all playing all knit together so well Elsewhere we study the re-emergence of Nemanja Matic as a crucial part of the...
Liverpool's underappreciated passing game
July 01, 2020 05:00 - 31 minutesThe Athletic's Michael Cox & Tom Worville join Ali Maxwell to look at a perhaps underappreciated aspect of this all conquering Liverpool side - their possession game. We dive into the data to analyse how Liverpool use the ball and the passing combinations they most rely upon. Looking at how crucial Alisson is to starting the moves, how Van Dijk's passing differs from Matip & Gomez, how Trent Alexander-Arnold is able to dictate the play from right-back, the changing role of Henderson, the ...