Eternity RPC Board
04-16-2017, 08:16 PM
Testing the Fight Squad Against Blac
![[Image: mgtsu0J.jpg?1]](http://i.imgur.com/mgtsu0J.jpg?1)
Me and Blac hadn't played against each other for a while because we've been busy and our internet connection was often too shitty. In the meantime, Ive been experimenting and working on some new tactics and formations. One of those was a classic Italian 4-3-1-2 formation that I adjusted to fit Inter Milan.
Inter Milan's 2015-16 season squad was often criticized for lacking in mentality, technique, and tactical intelligence. Their squad consisted of a few tall central defenders, some mediocre full-backs, a Chilean and a Brazilian criminal in midfield, some more mediocre midfielders, and a couple of talented attackers such as Mauro Icardi - himself also an Argentine troublemaker. Inter was in many ways the Suicide Squad of the Serie A. No wonder then, that when former Ajax manager Frank de Boer was appointed to get these players to play smooth possession-attacking football, the team lost again and again until De Boer was fired after less than three months.
But why play attacking football and a collective pressing game if the players are the exact anti-thesis to such football? I wanted to make a strength out of Inter's mean attitude.
The formula is simple: a four-man defense shielded by three hard-tackling, physically strong midfielders. The attack consists of the Trequartista, the architect of the team, and two strikers. One striker is an out-and-out striker, focussed entirely on scoring, the other is a runner, a velocista, who needs to create chaos for the opponent's defenders. The full-backs push up the field, but their task is only to provide width and stay available as passing options when necessary. Even the mediocre full-backs of Inter Milan can deal with such a task.
Against Blac, the midfield three consisted of Kondogbia, Medel (the Chilean pitbull), and Felipe Melo - the Brazilian hitman. They were given more or less free license to kill, chase the ball, harass opponents and disrupt the attacks of Blac's silly team: Schalke 04. Jovetic functioned as my Nr. 10, the creative mind of the team. The striking partnership consisted of the Argentine duo Mauro Icardi and Rodrigo Palacio. The aim was to defend aggressively, use physical power in midfield, and rely on a simple attacking style that was based on quick, vertical transitions. The strikers made runs behind the defense, and Jovetic gave the pass. The style was perhaps a bit similar to the one of Jose Mourinho when he was the manager of Inter Milan - although his central midfield three were less physical and had more technique.
The games against the silly Blac were extremely tight. The first game I was behind 1-0, but I also missed quite some scoring chances. The game crashed in the second half. After our restart, I won twice in a row with 1-0. The first time it was due to a major error by Schalke defender Höwedes, whose pass to his goalkeeper was intercepted by one of my strikers. In the second game, my Inter was more clearly the dominant team. Schalke failed to even get any shots on goal, my Inter Milan dominated ball possession with about 55% or more, and when a Schalke defender missed a ball from a free kick, Icardi was there to score. The score could've been bigger because my team missed some more chances.
Then it was Blac's turn. He won with 1-0 too, and I struggled to get my team's effectiveness in attack up. Our final game was the only game with more than 1 goal being scored. I believe it was Sane from Schalke who opened the score. Sane is one of Blac's favorite wingers, and I hate him and had hoped that Medel or someone would've broken his ankles before he dribbled into my box. As I took more risk to force an equalizer, Blac's Schalke scored again and sealed my fate.
Mourinho vs Guardiola
![[Image: N409D8f.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/N409D8f.jpg)
The Blac also wanted to try a new tactic of his. He wanted to try his Guardiola inspired tactic against me, which was a good opportunity to try out my own emulation of Mourinho's 4-3-3.
I was Chelsea, Blac was Arsenal. I deployed a 4-3-3, which I seldomly do. Blac deployed a 4-1-4-1, which he seldomly does. In the first few games, I got wrecked. I believe the first ones were 3-0 and 4-0 or something. But then I discovered I had been making a wrong choice. Every time I got into trouble, I instructed my players to defend ever more aggressively, but this played right into Blardiola's hands, because it gave his players even more opportunities to run past my players.
Then I made some subtle adjustments to avoid Blac's players getting an easy dribble, and in our next game I believe the scoreline was 1-1 when it crashed. We then restarted and I was 1-0 in the lead when it crashed again and we called it a day.
Project 3-4-3
![[Image: p5tE2GN.jpg?1]](http://i.imgur.com/p5tE2GN.jpg?1)
One of the things I want to try out against the Silly Blac is my newest baby, a 3-4-3 system with AC Milan. The 3-4-3 formation is the latest trend in the Serie A. Its the trademark of AC Fiorentina for some years, but Genoa, AS Roma, Atalanta, Inter Milan, and Palermo have all used it as well this season. Antonio Conte has also developed a 3-4-3 system with Chelsea in the Premierleague. The 3-4-3 is in some way a natural evolution of the fact that a few years ago, many teams player 3-5-2 in Italy. The three-man defense is perfect to defend against teams with two strikers, so many teams want to preserve their three-man defense, but they seek to attack alternatively through wide attackers. This would make a 3-4-3 a logical solution.
But the 3-4-3 formation in itself is beautiful. It offers perfect symmetry, with an almost mathematically perfect distribution of players around the pitch. It is a flexible formation that can both attack and defend. It seems almost perfect to develop the artistic and stylish Italian brand of football and to provide defensive solidity.
The functionality of the system lies in its flexibility. In the defensive phase, the two ''mezzali'' drop deep and the team sits in a deep 5-4-1 shape. I have only tested this in the Serie A so far, and in the first 5 games of the season Milan only conceded 1 goal - against AS Roma. My defensive line is made up of Abate as right wing-back, Mexes as right side-defender, Zapata as Libero, Romagnoli as left side-defender, and Antonelli as left wing-back. The two central midfielders in front of it are Riccardo Montolivo and Andrea Bertolacci.
In the attacking phase, the team morphs into a 3-2-5. The three defenders function as the pivot, the wing-backs push up as wingers, the Mezzali cut inside and roam the spaces near the lone striker, and the two central midfielders connect the two flanks together.
In my test season so far, Riccardo Montolivo, the ''Regista'' or playmaker, excels exceptionally well in this system. Montolivo loves to collect the ball and send those long diagonal balls across the pitch, switching the play with his magic feet and vision. Those qualities come out well with him being the central director within this symmetric formation.
When the ball is moved to the flank, there are many ways to create space. The Mezzala and the wing-back could use combination plays to get past the defender, but usually the striker is nearby as well, and central midfielder stands close-by, and they can always play it back to the side-defender. There is always a way to drag an opponent out of position and to create the space needed to advance the attack.
But in my test season so far, I noticed that the greatest quality of this team lies in their ruthlesness before the goal. This team can throw off an entire defense by surprise, and create goals out of nothing at the right time in the game. This is an ancient quality of Italian football, ''Fantasia'', that I worship. Against Frosinone, a stubborn defensive team, Milan simply exploited two set-pieces to get away with a spotless 2-0 victory. Away against Palermo, Montolivo passed the ball to his left on the edge of the penalty box in the 42nd minute. The Palermo goalie moved to the left as well, but suddenly Bertolacci blasted the ball into the upper-right corner of the net, putting the goalkeeper on the wrong foot. The scoreline remained 0-1.
Against Roma they had bad luck when Salah fired a shot in our goal from distance after 7 minutes. But then, in a moment of brilliance by Montolivo, he surprised the entire Roma defense with a back-heel, putting Bonaventura 1on1 with the goalkeeper and he scored 1-1. With ten minutes on the clock, Zapata received the ball just outside Roma's penalty box. His shot was blocked, but Honda gave the ball back to him to try again. Zapata blasted it in the lower right corner.
Sampdoria was another patient waiting-game of two tactically organized sides. In the 82nd minute however, Milan forced Sampdoria to give away several corner kicks, and Romagnoli was left unmarked and could score a late goal. In the 93rd minute, while Sampdoria was putting everything on offense, Carlos Bacca exploited a mistake by a Sampdoria defender and put in the 2-0. Then they had to play against Chievo a few days later. There was not much spectacular action, until Abate received the ball from Montolivo on the right flank in our own half. Abate cut inside, and suddenly sent a deep vertical pass towards Bacca, cutting through the Chievo defense. Bacca, 1on1 with the goalkeeper, scored. That game too ended in 1-0.
Milan's games with this 3-4-3 system are sometimes rather sterile (not to say boring), and they don't create a lot of spectacular scoring chances. But they don't need to. And that's the beauty of it.
Me and Blac hadn't played against each other for a while because we've been busy and our internet connection was often too shitty. In the meantime, Ive been experimenting and working on some new tactics and formations. One of those was a classic Italian 4-3-1-2 formation that I adjusted to fit Inter Milan.
Inter Milan's 2015-16 season squad was often criticized for lacking in mentality, technique, and tactical intelligence. Their squad consisted of a few tall central defenders, some mediocre full-backs, a Chilean and a Brazilian criminal in midfield, some more mediocre midfielders, and a couple of talented attackers such as Mauro Icardi - himself also an Argentine troublemaker. Inter was in many ways the Suicide Squad of the Serie A. No wonder then, that when former Ajax manager Frank de Boer was appointed to get these players to play smooth possession-attacking football, the team lost again and again until De Boer was fired after less than three months.
But why play attacking football and a collective pressing game if the players are the exact anti-thesis to such football? I wanted to make a strength out of Inter's mean attitude.
Inter Milan 4-3-1-2:
![[Image: yGhnqYt.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/yGhnqYt.jpg)
The formula is simple: a four-man defense shielded by three hard-tackling, physically strong midfielders. The attack consists of the Trequartista, the architect of the team, and two strikers. One striker is an out-and-out striker, focussed entirely on scoring, the other is a runner, a velocista, who needs to create chaos for the opponent's defenders. The full-backs push up the field, but their task is only to provide width and stay available as passing options when necessary. Even the mediocre full-backs of Inter Milan can deal with such a task.
Against Blac, the midfield three consisted of Kondogbia, Medel (the Chilean pitbull), and Felipe Melo - the Brazilian hitman. They were given more or less free license to kill, chase the ball, harass opponents and disrupt the attacks of Blac's silly team: Schalke 04. Jovetic functioned as my Nr. 10, the creative mind of the team. The striking partnership consisted of the Argentine duo Mauro Icardi and Rodrigo Palacio. The aim was to defend aggressively, use physical power in midfield, and rely on a simple attacking style that was based on quick, vertical transitions. The strikers made runs behind the defense, and Jovetic gave the pass. The style was perhaps a bit similar to the one of Jose Mourinho when he was the manager of Inter Milan - although his central midfield three were less physical and had more technique.
The games against the silly Blac were extremely tight. The first game I was behind 1-0, but I also missed quite some scoring chances. The game crashed in the second half. After our restart, I won twice in a row with 1-0. The first time it was due to a major error by Schalke defender Höwedes, whose pass to his goalkeeper was intercepted by one of my strikers. In the second game, my Inter was more clearly the dominant team. Schalke failed to even get any shots on goal, my Inter Milan dominated ball possession with about 55% or more, and when a Schalke defender missed a ball from a free kick, Icardi was there to score. The score could've been bigger because my team missed some more chances.
Then it was Blac's turn. He won with 1-0 too, and I struggled to get my team's effectiveness in attack up. Our final game was the only game with more than 1 goal being scored. I believe it was Sane from Schalke who opened the score. Sane is one of Blac's favorite wingers, and I hate him and had hoped that Medel or someone would've broken his ankles before he dribbled into my box. As I took more risk to force an equalizer, Blac's Schalke scored again and sealed my fate.
Mourinho vs Guardiola
The Blac also wanted to try a new tactic of his. He wanted to try his Guardiola inspired tactic against me, which was a good opportunity to try out my own emulation of Mourinho's 4-3-3.
I was Chelsea, Blac was Arsenal. I deployed a 4-3-3, which I seldomly do. Blac deployed a 4-1-4-1, which he seldomly does. In the first few games, I got wrecked. I believe the first ones were 3-0 and 4-0 or something. But then I discovered I had been making a wrong choice. Every time I got into trouble, I instructed my players to defend ever more aggressively, but this played right into Blardiola's hands, because it gave his players even more opportunities to run past my players.
Then I made some subtle adjustments to avoid Blac's players getting an easy dribble, and in our next game I believe the scoreline was 1-1 when it crashed. We then restarted and I was 1-0 in the lead when it crashed again and we called it a day.
Project 3-4-3
One of the things I want to try out against the Silly Blac is my newest baby, a 3-4-3 system with AC Milan. The 3-4-3 formation is the latest trend in the Serie A. Its the trademark of AC Fiorentina for some years, but Genoa, AS Roma, Atalanta, Inter Milan, and Palermo have all used it as well this season. Antonio Conte has also developed a 3-4-3 system with Chelsea in the Premierleague. The 3-4-3 is in some way a natural evolution of the fact that a few years ago, many teams player 3-5-2 in Italy. The three-man defense is perfect to defend against teams with two strikers, so many teams want to preserve their three-man defense, but they seek to attack alternatively through wide attackers. This would make a 3-4-3 a logical solution.
But the 3-4-3 formation in itself is beautiful. It offers perfect symmetry, with an almost mathematically perfect distribution of players around the pitch. It is a flexible formation that can both attack and defend. It seems almost perfect to develop the artistic and stylish Italian brand of football and to provide defensive solidity.
Milan 3-4-3:
![[Image: KYeOw5G.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/KYeOw5G.jpg)
The functionality of the system lies in its flexibility. In the defensive phase, the two ''mezzali'' drop deep and the team sits in a deep 5-4-1 shape. I have only tested this in the Serie A so far, and in the first 5 games of the season Milan only conceded 1 goal - against AS Roma. My defensive line is made up of Abate as right wing-back, Mexes as right side-defender, Zapata as Libero, Romagnoli as left side-defender, and Antonelli as left wing-back. The two central midfielders in front of it are Riccardo Montolivo and Andrea Bertolacci.
In the attacking phase, the team morphs into a 3-2-5. The three defenders function as the pivot, the wing-backs push up as wingers, the Mezzali cut inside and roam the spaces near the lone striker, and the two central midfielders connect the two flanks together.
In my test season so far, Riccardo Montolivo, the ''Regista'' or playmaker, excels exceptionally well in this system. Montolivo loves to collect the ball and send those long diagonal balls across the pitch, switching the play with his magic feet and vision. Those qualities come out well with him being the central director within this symmetric formation.
When the ball is moved to the flank, there are many ways to create space. The Mezzala and the wing-back could use combination plays to get past the defender, but usually the striker is nearby as well, and central midfielder stands close-by, and they can always play it back to the side-defender. There is always a way to drag an opponent out of position and to create the space needed to advance the attack.
But in my test season so far, I noticed that the greatest quality of this team lies in their ruthlesness before the goal. This team can throw off an entire defense by surprise, and create goals out of nothing at the right time in the game. This is an ancient quality of Italian football, ''Fantasia'', that I worship. Against Frosinone, a stubborn defensive team, Milan simply exploited two set-pieces to get away with a spotless 2-0 victory. Away against Palermo, Montolivo passed the ball to his left on the edge of the penalty box in the 42nd minute. The Palermo goalie moved to the left as well, but suddenly Bertolacci blasted the ball into the upper-right corner of the net, putting the goalkeeper on the wrong foot. The scoreline remained 0-1.
Against Roma they had bad luck when Salah fired a shot in our goal from distance after 7 minutes. But then, in a moment of brilliance by Montolivo, he surprised the entire Roma defense with a back-heel, putting Bonaventura 1on1 with the goalkeeper and he scored 1-1. With ten minutes on the clock, Zapata received the ball just outside Roma's penalty box. His shot was blocked, but Honda gave the ball back to him to try again. Zapata blasted it in the lower right corner.
Sampdoria was another patient waiting-game of two tactically organized sides. In the 82nd minute however, Milan forced Sampdoria to give away several corner kicks, and Romagnoli was left unmarked and could score a late goal. In the 93rd minute, while Sampdoria was putting everything on offense, Carlos Bacca exploited a mistake by a Sampdoria defender and put in the 2-0. Then they had to play against Chievo a few days later. There was not much spectacular action, until Abate received the ball from Montolivo on the right flank in our own half. Abate cut inside, and suddenly sent a deep vertical pass towards Bacca, cutting through the Chievo defense. Bacca, 1on1 with the goalkeeper, scored. That game too ended in 1-0.
Milan's games with this 3-4-3 system are sometimes rather sterile (not to say boring), and they don't create a lot of spectacular scoring chances. But they don't need to. And that's the beauty of it.