Tactical notes: Asensio’s positioning, Valverde’s arrival, Mendy in the middle space and pressure absorption

The first round of the La Liga Classic that takes place at the Camp Nou has found difficult victories to achieve in recent years. In fact, thirteen years have passed, since Real Madrid last beat the Blaugrana at the Camp Nou when they first visited their rivals. After two consecutive defeats, Zidane had to make some tactical adjustments to secure the three points. Some of the most important tactical plots are outlined below:

Asensio’s defensive positioning

Marco Asensio was started on the right wing, a position that in recent years has failed to keep any Real Madrid player clinging to the position consistently. Needless to say, it was a great opportunity for Asensio and a huge vote of confidence from Zidane. The role that Zidane wanted for Asensio was almost a replica of the one Gareth Bale played in the same match in December 2019. The Mallorcan played as a two-way winger with great defensive responsibilities. Asensio, in essence, played as an auxiliary right back when Real Madrid moved into the defensive phase of the game. His work? Cancel Jordi Alba and track his exits without the ball. Asensio struggled, but many times he had trouble executing:

Barcelona’s goal was a good example of Asensio’s “disconnection”. Defensive instincts don’t come naturally to the Spanish playmaker, but they can be taught. Against a player like Alba, at the highest level of the game, you will be punished. Asensio is caught watching the ball instead of tracking Alba’s career, who measures her career perfectly and stays in play. That lapse of concentration saw Madrid yield.

Alba’s movement and her connection to Messi have always worried Zidane in preparing his Classic tactics. Asensio began to improve as the game progressed, but there were still moments when Alba slipped in:

In the clip above, Asensio is caught between two minds and is out of position. He is not sure whether to go in and score Coutinho or fall deeper to follow Alba’s run. Given his instructions for most of the match, the safest option would have been to drop and track Alba’s run. His body shape was off and he was again caught on the ball looking completely unaware of Alba’s run.

This piece is not meant to be overly critical of Asensio, who improved as the game progressed on both offense and defense. However, his body shape, defensive tactical awareness and general ability to track back runners still have room for improvement if Real Madrid is not to be exploited in future games.

Arrival of Fede Valverde – Arrival from the second line

Fede Valverde once again trusted Zidane over Luka Modric in a great match. The Uruguayan still has a lot to perfect in his game, but he is an elite in arriving late from the midfield line, winning his duels 50/50 and pressing relentlessly in the rival field. Valverde had 6 recoveries of the ball in the opposite field in the first 45 minutes alone. His decisive moment of the match came in the fifth minute, where he crossed the right half space to dispatch the first goal:

None of Frenkie De Jong, Busquets or even Piqué recognized or tracked the run that came from midfield. Fede’s physical attributes give him the advantage in the first 5 yards and if his run isn’t picked up and tracked right away, then his ability to get through right half space will only reap more goals down the road. The key to his career is Benzema’s movement. The Frenchman moves away from the Barcelona baseline to link the game, allowing Valverde to break through the space left by the Frenchman.

Ferland Mendy improving in the left half

As noted many times on this season’s podcast, Ferland Mendy was instructed to push higher in left half space when Real Madrid are in possession of the ball. Arguably, Real Madrid’s best moment of possession and control came at the end of the first half. During that time, Mendy was pushing high into the left half space, forming a triangle, with Kroos and Vinicius on the left flank.

Follow Mendy’s movement while Madrid circulates possession. As soon as the ball heads to the left side, it is positioned even higher than Vinicius Junior. That positioning helps give Real Madrid numerical superiority and the ability to combine through the form of Barcelona.

Again, as soon as Ramos takes the ball, Mendy moves quickly to the center rather than wide. This tactical evolution has helped improve Madrid’s game, but as Kroos’s misplaced pass shows, it can leave them somewhat vulnerable on the counterattack if they don’t recover quickly.

Madrid’s low block in the second half absorbs the pressure

After scoring the lead goal from the penalty spot, Madrid deliberately began to sit deeper and absorb pressure from Barcelona, ​​seeking to counter-attack knowing that Barcelona was going to commit numbers to attack. Madrid often played with a flat back of five, a midfield of 3 and many times four, and Benzema was the only forward at the top, occasionally joined by Vinicius Junior. The most important thing is that the shape was compact, quite narrow (ready to give wings to Barcelona) and deep. This meant that no matter how many offensive weapons Barcelona tried to launch, Real Madrid had the numbers to keep that Barcelona line in front of them. Once Koeman made all those substitutions in attack, Barcelona lost control and Madrid, despite playing in a low block, knew how to absorb the pressure and create more chances on the counter.

Summary

There were multiple phases to the game, and Zidane handled those phases better than Koeman. Barcelona’s best run came early in the second half. Real Madrid scored their penalty against the march. Zidane then modified his tactics to absorb pressure from Barcelona and trap them in the final stages of the match. It was that recognition in the game that gave Madrid more control and saw their xG explode:

Understat.com

With the personnel selection, particularly the choice to use Valverde and Asensio, Zidane outlined clear tactical instructions and styles of play that helped Madrid reap the benefits at the scoreline. Although Asensio struggled with some of his defensive responsibilities, the application and attitude were exemplary. And in a noteworthy attempt to help Madrid prepare, Zidane has continued to use Mendy in an attacking role in the left half space when Madrid are in possession and that tactical role continues to improve. Real Madrid were not perfect against Barcelona, ​​but they handled many phases of the game better and were a deserved winner.