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Football Tactics, Leeds United, Marcelo Bielsa

Attacking Inefficiency: Bielsa’s Prophecy Comes True.

Leeds United’s shot on goal statistics in the last 3 games make for uncomfortable reading:

28 shots vs Sheffield Wednesday

36 shots vs Wigan

18 shots vs Brentford

82 shots in the last 3 games. 2 Goals.

40+ shots per goal.

Leeds United’s inefficiency in attack has finally proved costly at the costliest of times.

The above statistic covering the last 3 games, at the business end of the season has seen the pendulum swing (almost definitively) back in Sheffield United’s favour in the race for 2^nd place and automatic promotion.

To say this has only been a decisive issue in the games against Sheffield Wednesday, Wigan and Brentford would be a considerable untruth.

After the defeat to QPR in the 3^rd round of the FA Cup, a time when Leeds sat at the summit of the Championship, two points clear of Norwich, it was clear that the inefficiency and lack of clinical edge in front of goal was concerning Marcelo Bielsa:

“Usually I do an exercise to try and verify what would have been the final result if we were as efficient as our opponent. How many chances does the opponent need to actually score a goal? I use this to measure our offensive play. It is a valid exercise.

In spite of the fact we are top of the league we have the same level of efficiency as the teams who occupy the last five ranks (in the table).

We have the efficiency of the teams at the bottom of the table, but in spite of that we are top.

The teams just behind us, the next six or seven, they score a goal with every two or three chances they have. We need five or six chances to score.”

These remarks from Bielsa are particularly pertinent following the disastrous Easter Weekend that Leeds United have suffered. Emotions were running high at Griffin Park with Pablo Hernandez having to be consoled on the pitch at full time. In many ways it was reminiscent of the images of an inconsolable Luis Suarez at Selhurst Park, where Liverpool ‘bottled-it’ in their bid for the Premier League title.

Whilst Bielsa cuts a distant figure, his words are thoughtful, analytical and most importantly true to his beliefs of the game. It would be easy to draw attention to the first half incident where referee Keith Stroud inexplicably failed to award Leeds a penalty, but Bielsa chose to discuss what he can control – the football:

“The game today looks like many games we played this year. We had offensive actions but without efficiency. This is the summary of our season. We have many chances to score compared to the goals we actually score and if we had a normal efficiency, we would have 10 or 12 points more now. But it’s not the case.”

Questions will be asked of Bielsa as to how this problem has not been resolved, having been highlighted earlier in the season, but a coach can only do so much, even if they will publicly assume the responsibility for shortcomings in their players .

As Pep Guardiola once told his players at FC Barcelona:

“My job is to bring you up until the last third of the field, and then the last third is instinct, that’s up to you”

Bielsa himself famously said

“if football was played by robots, I would win everything”.

Training sessions under Bielsa involve considerable amounts of repetition. Attacking pattern after attacking pattern. Finish after finish. Repetition to make it instinctive when his players arrive in the attacking third of the opponent and to equip them with the tools to improvise. Through his coaching, Bielsa has frequently got the players into dangerous attacking positions combining to create chances. Indeed, our attacking football has drawn plaudits from around the world this season.

When it comes to the lack of clinical finishing and attacking inefficiency then very simply the players are fully accountable.

Example of Attacking Pattern in Bielsa Training Session:

The most telling words from Bielsa today, came at the end of his press conference:

“But if there’s something I can say for sure it’s that our team was never affected by pressure. Really never. If we want to say why we don’t have 10 points more, we just have to take a look at how many chances other teams need to score and how many chances we need to score.”

Simply put, Leeds United are considerably limited in attacking situations because of the inefficiency of the attacking players compared to Norwich and Sheffield United. In the context of his remarks post QPR in January, the players have overachieved to find themselves in this position based on the statistics. In the context of the position his team actually found themselves in, the fact this issue has dealt a fatal blow to hopes of automatic promotion is a huge disappointment.

Yes, the defending has left a lot to desire, but as Bielsa himself said post QPR this is directly a function of the inefficiency in attack:

“That means we have to be very offensive. It is an obligation for us if we want to win games. That makes it harder to defend. That is why my final conclusion is that if we don’t defend well it is hard for us to win games.”

When Leeds have taken their chances first and gone ahead in games, their record is formidable. When Leeds are profligate, wasteful and inefficient and it becomes harder to defend the results are considerably worse.

After the pain of the results of the weekend, it is difficult to look ahead but the play-offs now surely await Leeds United (best season for 15+ years).

How the season ends? Down to the players. If Leeds can restore efficiency to the attack, then the Premier League will still beckon.

Football Tactics, Leeds United, Marcelo Bielsa

Rotherham Warne Down by Bielsa’s Relentless Leeds

A hard fought 2-0 victory over Rotherham saw Marcelo Bielsa become the first Leeds United Manager to win his opening four competitive games at the helm of the club. This victory also saw Leeds become the only club in the Championship with a perfect record at this early stage.

It must be said that the game plan that Rotherham boss Paul Warne opted for made this victory slightly less straightforward than a sold-out Elland Road may have initially expected. It is likely that other opponents will adopt a similar tactical approach to Warne against Leeds this season, but it was promising to see Leeds offer solutions to several of the problems posed when facing this style of football, particularly in an assured second half display.

Warne sought to nullify the threat of Samu Saiz with centre back Semi Ajayi deployed in a defensive midfield role. This was a move clearly in response to the damage that Saiz inflicted upon both Stoke and Derby when the Spaniard was allowed time and space on the ball between the midfield and defensive lines of the opponent. Despite the opportunities to exploit this space being extremely limited in transition given the low block from Rotherham and close attention from Ajayi, Leeds did attempt to work the ball to Saiz through the lines whenever possible. Unfortunately, with the compact lines from Rotherham holding firm, it was difficult for Bielsa’s side to maintain attacking momentum through central areas.

When asked what he felt had not gone as well as he would have liked in the first half, Bielsa stated:

“We built too much from the back. We built in a lateral way, it was not easy for us to go from defensive positions to offensive ones.”

The fortunate escape in the 26^th minute of the first half epitomised this overly lateral way of playing. Barry Douglas had an opportunity to make a vertical pass to Kalvin Phillips and break the Rotherham press, however, passed backwards to Liam Cooper who played a dangerous square pass across the penalty area. Fortunately for Leeds, Ryan Williams did not show the ruthlessness required to punish this mistake:

It must be said that the pass from Cooper was poor, however, although the initial pass Cooper received from Douglas wasn’t poor itself the choice to pass to the centre back instead of Phillips was. Similarly the starting position of Bailey Peacock-Farrell was perhaps too deep, but the goalkeeper was well positioned to block Williams’ effort.

In contrast, the way in which Leeds moved the ball out from the back for the second goal scored by Kemar Roofe epitomised the verticality that Bielsa demands in the game. From a similar position to the lucky escape in the first half Leeds played out in a way that drew Rotherham players towards the ball before Douglas played a precise vertical pass to Alioski. The Macedonian International combined with Phillips, who set Roofe free with a lofted pass into the channel, before the striker beat Sean Raggett for pace and expertly finished beyond Rodak.

It was notable that the visitors from South Yorkshire initially attempted to apply more pressure (particularly from Michael Smith) on Kalvin Phillips than in previous games. This direct pressure was a factor in Phillips misplacing a few early passes, however, the academy graduate was brave on the ball and constantly willing to attempt to make vertical passes (or slightly riskier lateral passes) to open passing lanes forward. It was particularly pleasing to see Phillips to continue to show for and demand the ball after a couple of early setbacks, which illustrates the increased level of accountability and responsibility that the players are assuming on the pitch under Bielsa’s tutelage. Phillips has assumed considerable responsibility on the pitch and against Rotherham he managed more passes, more touches and more inceptions on the ball than any other player on the pitch.

Gaetano Berardi played a big part in the build up for Leeds, stepping out with the ball beyond the defensive line into midfield. This became an increasingly common feature of Leeds in possession, with Berardi’s runs forward provoking Rotherham out of their midfield block of 5 to avoid giving the Swiss defender the freedom of Elland Road. Towards the end of the first half Rotherham were indeed lethargic in their closing down of Berardi, who stung the palms of Marek Rodak in goal. Berardi stepping into midfield continued to be a feature of Leeds possession-oriented play in the second half, with a 74% share of the ball being the highest enjoyed by the Whites’ under Bielsa so far.

In an attempt to find space between the Rotherham lines the positional rotation between Gianni Alioski, Pablo Hernandez, Mateusz Klich, Roofe and Saiz became more pronounced and apparent than previously seen. This movement was relentless and at times fruitless, however, over the course of 90 minutes this unlocked the door on a number of occasions, particularly with the contribution of Luke Ayling and Douglas on the flanks. Bielsa indicated that he felt Leeds were not particularly effective with crosses from the left. It is worth pointing out that the success Leeds have had from crosses in recent weeks have involved at least two players making runs into uncongested penalty areas – an opportunity Rotherham simply did not afford Leeds given their low block.

With little time remaining on the clock, Rotherham rolled the dice for a final time and switched to a 442 formation. In response Leeds adopted a 3313 formation with seamlessly with Phillips dropping in as a third central defender between Berardi and Cooper, highlighting Bielsa’s rigid belief that the spine of his side should have one more defender than the opposition has attacker. This change in formation from both sides gave Leeds the ascendancy in the final exchanges of open play with Lewis Baker able to receive the ball and drive forward with some menace between the lines.

Next up for Leeds is a visit to Swansea for Bielsa’s first experience of Tuesday night Championship football. Judging by their opening performances, it would be a surprise if Swans boss, Graham Potter, moves away from his preferred 433 formation. There are quite a few similarities between the style of play that Potter is attempting to implement at the Liberty Stadium and the style of Frank Lampard’s Derby. This should represent an opportunity for Leeds, with more opportunities and space presenting themselves in transition. Against Birmingham, the Swansea midfield struggled with middle block pressing and conceded numerous chances leaving the back four exposed, which, on another day could have quite easily resulted in a heavy defeat. That midfield consisting of Jay Fulton, Tom Carroll and Bersant Celina seems relatively lightweight for the rigours of Championship football and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Potter opts for the greater physicality of Leroy Fer on Tuesday.

Leeds have already demonstrated this season that they possess the flexibility and mentality to find solutions to win games by ruthlessly exploiting transitions and the Rotherham game demonstrated Leeds also have the patience and guile to wear down their opponents with the ball, waiting for the right moments in the game to see off their prey.

As Bielsa himself as intimated, nothing is won after four games, particularly in the Championship but the football being played is imperious at times, the type of football consistently played by those teams challenging at the top of the division come May.

Football Tactics, Leeds United, Marcelo Bielsa

Demolition Derby as Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds United Build on Opening Performance

Marcelo Bielsa expressed his feelings post-match that Frank Lampard had “a good taste for attacking football” however over the course of 90 minutes, the rookie Derby coach received a schooling in ruthless, structured and penetrative attacking football from his Argentine counterpart. Lampard set his Derby side up in a 4-3-3 shape looking to play expansive, possession-based football but the lack of structural security when in possession was a vulnerability exposed by Leeds United’s vertical football.

In many ways it was kamikaze football from Derby, with their naivety affording Samu Saiz the freedom of Pride Park in the space between the defensive and midfield lines where the Spanish midfield maestro is most effective. On several occasions the entirety of Derby’s central midfield committed to running beyond the ball. The addition of Bielsa’s much fabled high press into this mix was tantamount to Derby playing a game of Russian Roulette and it would be safe to conclude that chance wasn’t in their favour on Saturday. The opening three goals for Leeds came from situations where Derby would have expected to have been enjoying secure possession. The ability of Leeds to hunt in packs, identify pressing triggers, recover the ball and play forward quickly to break the lines.

The dynamic of Leeds in midfield, with Kalvin Phillips playing deep as the destroyer, Mateusz Klich playing from box to box as the engine and Saiz playing as the technician (with increased intensity off the ball), looks much more effective and much more capable of dealing with the varied range of playing styles seen in the Championship. The combination of these roles in midfield (the destroyer, the engine and the technician) is an essential ingredient for success, even if the recipe must be varied slightly to account for the traits of the opposition.

It was no surprise that Lampard elected to change his shape to match Bielsa’s 4-1-4-1 and introduce Bradley Johnson to attempt to mark Saiz out of the game at half time. Although this switch was effective in limiting the instances Saiz was able to get on the ball between the lines, his ability to manipulate the ball in tight areas enabled him to contribute to the attacking play as the following example, where the Spaniard got on the ball and created space on the edge of the penalty area, illustrates:

This example also demonstrates one other notable feature of Bielsa’s Leeds United so far, being the willingness to commit bodies forward into the penalty area when attacking. It is worth pointing out that in this instance, there is a 3vs2 situation at the far post and within this scenario Fikayo Tomori being overloaded 2vs1, with both Roofe and Hernandez in proximity. One would have expected Richard Keogh to assist his young defensive partner with greater authority, however, the explosive movement of Gianni Alioski away from goal saw the Derby Captain follow his runner and leave a gaping space directly in front of goal. This is one of several instances in both games so far of opponents being drawn to the ball or movement towards the ball, leaving critical expanses of space unguarded behind them.

Interestingly, the one game where Leeds managed to perform the action of pushing the full backs into the opposition box with any real kind of consistency last season was the 5-0 home victory over Burton Albion. During his press conference after the game, the Argentine referenced this as being an action that he expects his players to undertake naturally:

“When the offensive action is from the left Pablo and Ayling go to the box and when the offensive action is on the right, Alioski and Douglas go to the box.”

As per the Stoke game, the contribution of the Leeds No.7, Kemar Roofe, was again magnificent in setting the tone for Leeds defending from the front. Intelligent movement, awareness of his surroundings and a killer instinct saw Roofe deservedly bag a brace in this fixture and it was clear that Bielsa appreciated the contribution from his striker:

“It’s always important when a player scores goals. In the last game he worked more than today and in the last game he made the offensive actions of his teammates easier.”

Doubts have previously been expressed regarding Roofe’s capability to lead the line on his own, however, two consecutive man of the match performances illustrate that intelligent positioning, movement and link play can more than make up for the lack of presence one would ordinarily expect from a more conventional target man leading the line for a Championship side.

In the build-up, the striker has frequently made diagonal movements that create uncertainty between the two centre backs and full backs which have ultimately lead to instability in the back four and opened space for teammates. It is particularly interesting that most of these movements are across and in behind the defensive line, when under previous coaches it was apparent that Roofe had been instructed to drop deep to receive the ball or indeed played off the sides, which inhibited his goal threat to a certain extent. Although these movements may not seem to take Roofe towards goal in the first phase, they position him closer to goal in the second phase, where his sharp movement and goal poaching instinct can come to the fore.

When Leeds have looked to cross the ball into the box, Roofe has also taken up intelligent positions in relation to the opposition defenders and identified the space where he is likely to be afforded the best opportunity of scoring to run into:

In addition to the movement from Roofe, it is noticeable that Bielsa is looking to have at least one other player positioned in proximity to make runs into the box when the ball is out wide. Should the ball miss the first runner, or be flicked on, another player is moving in anticipation of a chance coming their way, which is considerably more adventurous than some of the attacking endeavours of last season.

There is a growing sense of anticipation at Elland Road and the fact that this performance from Leeds United built upon all of the solid foundations and good footballing habits seen in the opening game was particularly promising, especially when the appalling run of form on the road since Boxing Day is taken into account.

The next League fixture against Rotherham represents an excellent chance for Leeds United to continue to build momentum. This may appear the most straightforward fixture of the season so far given Stoke and Derby have already been overcome but following a chastening 5-1 defeat away to Brentford on the opening day, it is likely that the visitors from South Yorkshire will set up in a bid to not give anything away at Elland Road.

Encountering a low defensive block, with limited space between the lines and limited opportunities to catch the opponent out of balance in transition may require a slightly different approach and variation in patterns to those seen in the opening two games and it will be intriguing to see how Bielsa’s Leeds attempt to overcome this.

Football Tactics, Leeds United, Marcelo Bielsa

Bielsa’s Leeds United Explode into Life – Stoke City (H)

Perched upon his upturned big blue bucket, Marcelo Bielsa will have been left encouraged by the first competitive outing of his Leeds United side. In terms of Bielsa’s demands, it may not have been a perfect performance for 90 minutes, however, this was 90 minutes of purposeful, high octane football with moments of high quality that has seldom been seen at Elland Road in recent years. The carefully constructed rehearsed patterns, movements based on certain actions at certain times allowed Leeds to get players in positions to attack by making consecutive forward passes, dribbles and intricate but penetrative combinations in the final third.

There has been much discussion surrounding Bielsa’s 3-3-3-1/3-3-1-3 formation in pre-season, however, this formation was only used against Las Palmas in the final pre-season fixture. With Stoke opting to play Benik Afobe up front on his own, the 4-1-4-1 formation deployed was to be expected. Had Stoke sprung a tactical surprise, pushing Tom Ince into a more central attacking role close to Afobe it is likely Kalvin Phillips would have dropped deeper with Leeds changing their shape in that instance. The work in pre-season converting Phillips to a centre half gives Leeds a new found tactical flexibility that was lacking during the last mediocre campaign.

Fig 1. Leeds United Starting XI and Formation

In my previous article, I had talked about how regaining balance on the left would be an early priority for Bielsa to lay his football foundations. The partnership between Barry Douglas and Gianni Alioski (both natural left footers) allowed Leeds to maintain width stretching the play, maintain speed of pass when in possession and maintain forward momentum. Compared to the square peg in a round hole partnerships of recent seasons, there is some promise that like the combination of Luke Ayling and Pablo Hernandez on the right, the partnership of Douglas & Alioski can evolve to instil fear in opposition full backs week after week.

It was therefore noteworthy that both Mateusz Klich and Hernandez scored goals from chances engineered on the left-hand side. Bielsa and his coaching staff spend a considerable amount of time on the training ground equipping their players to exploit 1vs1, 2vs1 and 3vs2 scenarios and the intelligent movement and coordinated patterns for the opening goals was testament to this. The first goal from Klich was a textbook example of a player making a diagonal run to receive a straight pass and finish with precision.

Fig 2. Example of Bielsa Training Practice working on diagonal movements to receive straight pass to finish.

Although the second goal from Hernandez was fortuitous given the error from Jack Butland, there was a clear pattern at the end of the 15 pass move of Douglas and Alioski combining to beat the full back in a 2vs1 scenario before Hernandez drove into the space to unleash his shot at goal. These movements may seem complex at first glance but are in fact incredibly simple and intuitive to integrate into training sessions, whether you are playing for the Leeds United first team or in the park on a Sunday morning.

Fig 3. Example of 3 Player Combinations to Finish Movement Practice

The high pressing game that Bielsa is so renowned for was key to stopping Stoke from breaking the lines, thus forcing them to play backwards and sideways, the ball often being forced all the way back to the feet of Jack Butland so effective was the press. It is said that when out of possession the Argentine Coach wants his team to be vertically compact, with no greater than 25 metres between the defensive line and striker. When pressing Stoke high, the Leeds defensive line had to therefore step up and adopt a noticeably high line. The starting position of Bailey Peacock-Farrell was often outside the box (considerably higher than last season) and on one of the very few occasions Stoke managed to play a ball in behind, the young goalkeeper confidently swept up with a clearing header.

Liam Cooper was impressive in his defensive work and marshalling of the high line. His best performances last season came when Thomas Christiansen played a relatively high line and attempted a possession-based game. I had previously expressed my concerns at Cooper’s ability to play with enough swagger and reliability to deliver passes that penetrate the lines. Given the first class line breaking pass Cooper made to Alioski in the build up to the first goal (that took 5 defenders out of the game), I walked away from Elland Road with the belief that Cooper can thrive under Bielsa’s tutelage.

Fig 4. Positive starting position adopted by Leeds United Goalkeeper, Bailey Peacock-Farrell, behind high defensive line

The energy and dynamism of Klich and Phillips applying pressure from the front coupled with the impressive efforts of Samu Saiz and Kemar Roofe applying pressure from behind the Stoke central midfield was one of the key areas in the press that allowed Leeds to emerge victorious. This frequent doubling up by Saiz and Roofe allowed the Spaniard to recover the ball quickly in transition, with opportunities to drive forward and pass the ball wide. Joe Allen, Badou Ndiaye and Peter Etebo were not given the time to pick passes through the lines, their only threatening forward passes being made on the occasions Leeds lost possession cheaply in midfield. On the occasions that Stoke worked the ball out wide from the central areas, Hernandez and Alioski doubled up well to protect the full backs sufficiently.

Peter Crouch and Bojan being introduced off the bench late on enabled Stoke to pin Leeds back in their own half more consistently and threaten to break the lines although the necessary finesse and guile to unlock these scenarios was missing from midfield. When the Leeds team started to display signs of tiredness, it was interesting that Bielsa elected to replace Mateusz Klich with Stuart Dallas, deploying the Northern Ireland international in a central midfield role. This was clearly an attempt to inject some energy back into the press but given Dallas (understandably) did not appear entirely comfortable in this new position, Leeds struggled to retain possession more than Bielsa will have intended. It is perhaps unsurprising that given this the likes of Oliver Norwood and George Saville have been linked with moves to Elland Road before the transfer deadline day.

Prior to kick off, Gianni Alioski had said that Leeds “were like a bomb ready to explode” and this most impressive of performances suggests that with Bielsa’s philosophy taking hold, Leeds United have the potential to challenge at the top end of the Championship consistently this season.