2026 WC .

 now the world cup is in its concluding end. first off  in this world cup there isnt a single player who has set this tournament on fire. but lets continue with the matches . first off france vs morroco. now both teams would have preffered to have another team . the trouble is morroco were dominated in the game against canada . doesnt matters what the headlines say but they were culled in the first half and here it is france and i think morroco's time is over  . olise playing in the middle has made france very good and that is why they have the advantage. 

the second game is belgium vs spain . spain has this in the bad . no way doku is going to trouble llorenete . this one is easy . now the third game norway vs england . let me tell you but halland and company can beat england. first off elliot anderson is going to be worst than kalvin phillips . he is flat footed , immobile very bad positionally and a player who doesnt wants the ball is stupid . norway have every chance to beat england and should do so . the other one switzerland vs argentina is also a one sided affair with argentina reaching another world cup semifinal . 

 if spurs supporters thinks that the new manager can bring about a lot of changes in their fortunes then they should look the other way or take a very cold bath . he wasnt able to spot obvious mistakes his team was making and ratify it . so good luck to them.

MAN UTD .

 now lets continue with our managers . lets talk man utd . man utd had the worst season this year and they really struggled in the league although they reached the finals of the uefa league . they had ten had at the first then reuben amorin later . first off if you want to build a good team then you need to have good players in the team . man utd's players buying policy had been very bad . they had the worst and inflated transfers . i dont know but who is overlooking the transfers and they way they are throwing money on stupid and washed up players is just incredible . i am not going to blame the owners cause they had spent the money but if its not spent wisely on good players then how are they responsible . how come you buy players like mason mount,zirzkee even de ligt . i mean zirzkee come is even football . just look at his passing i mean the kids pass way better than him. what is mason mount forward,midfielder what is he . i mean if you buy players that too at inflated price then its just stupidity . 

lets talk the real issue . even after so many defeats in the premier league utd board had kept faith in amorin and are getting the players that he wants . utd struggled in the league but went the final europe  league . utd won against man city but struggled against low ranked side . the thing is that when team played european game utd won those game easily because utd are coached the european game but when they face teams who are counter attacking then utd struggled . let me give you an example utd won against athletic bilbao but struggled against lyon and too in the second leg . let me tell you why . athletic played the euroepean game they played the slow game trying to build from the back , get players in position and then have a good offense but consider lyon. utd struggled against lyon because what lyon did was that instead of building from the back especially in the second half . instead of trying to build they just tried to play ball from back to front very quickly and tried to release cherki behind the utd defense . they just accelerated the pace of the attack and played a quicker counter which the teams in the premier league do ( especially the lower rank teams ) . utd struggle against these kind of offense . 

the reason being that utd play 3-5-2 formation .now when you play a back three then you have spaces and in that is what the opponent try to explore and that is what utd needs to coverup for which they need to have very good central midfielders as well as a commanding presence in the back . one who can read the game and can direct his troops and execute the game plan . the troubel with utd is that is they some loose screws who let the game fall apart like casmeiro, mount ,  maguire and zirkzee  these need to be shifted asap . the offense style is not bad but its the defense which will take some working and there need to be addition of some good players to the squad and i think they need a good midfielder who can tick the game along side fernandes. 

as i was writing utd played a game against leeds and there was news that there was lack of pace in the utd team . to be honest the team needs cohesion rather than pace . players dont add the pace but its the ball who adds the pace and when it is moved crisply then automatically pace is added to the game .let me give you an example reasl madrid has the most speedy players in the world . but they play with very slow speed because the ball is not passed very crisply compare that with barcelona who dont have the speediest players but then the ball is passed quickly . what happens when you pass the ball quickly . when you pass the ball you change the angle of attack at every pass and you open new possibilities with every pass . the defense has to adjust with every pass because if they dont then they can get opened . so coming back to utd . utd needs to have somebody in the middle of the park who can really have that understanding of the game plus a good game reading cause let me tell you psg won the ucl because of the player they bought last summer . they bought jao neves and that little destroyer in the middle of the park just made psg dominant . that is what man utd want . man utd under amorin play european football and they need to have a player like joao neves who can do the job for them on both ends. i think amorin would have only 10- 12 game before his head is on he chopping block so it would be better to get the team performing or else somebody else will take the hot seat. 

  

my thoughts on indian football .

 first off let me just me get something off my chest . i will continue with managers series but first off let me just about my motherland bharat (english name india) . there was a afc qualifier that happened this month . the game was against hongkong . india was supposed to win the game but it lost and just like any other india i too am saddened in the defeat but let me tell you i am not here to criticize or defend anybody . 

after the defeat against hongkong bhutia legend of indian football accused the current incumbent of not doing enough for indian football. first off let me tell you i had been playing football my whole life and i had seen various stages of financial struggles to financial riches of indian football . there is isl and various competetions . indian footballers make a decent amount of money and they should admit . although its not like cricket but then let me tell you they make a decent living and have a good financial security compared to old times . 

now coming to problem i think the problem is not with the system but with the player themselves . the indian players lack the ambition to be big and do something on the world stage . i think they are satisfied by living in the pond and dont want to get out because there you will have to work hard and i think they dont want to do that . i was watching facebook clips and there were guys dicussing about the football infrastructure but let me tell you compared to other countries i think india has better infrastructure . the problem lies with ambition and the hard working mentality and looking about yourself in the mirror and finding ways as to how you can  be better . practice doesnt mean that you do the same thing everyday but doing better everday and getting better at things . compared to old times there are many a avenues available to get better and i think we need to do that . the isl had been going for last 10 or 12 years but had it contributed anything or made the standard better . i dont think so . so i think instead of blaming the system its time to get better and improve so that when the next generation come it gets into that habit and we reach some where better . 

THIS IS A CONTINOUS POST ON MANAGERS . I AM GOING TO UPDATE IT REGULARLY .

 the season is over and the transfer market is open. first off what is the definition of the manager . in modern football a manager  is the one who is always crying, loathing and one who is always unsatisfied with his current squad and blames the board for not letting him spend . let me be honest but current football matches are so boring that i dont have the patience or heart to watch the boring football that is played .  i am chess student and in chess whenever a player losses or even when he wins he analyses the match and i wonder as to why these managers dont do that . from the sidelines you can see as to what is wrong and what are your pieces( players ) doing . you can correct there positions can tell that is why you are there . to be honest cant these managers look the play and see what is wrong . to be honest there had been not a single team who are pleasure to watch . they have brought the technology in the game but they havent been able to that technology properly . as i had said tactics means just defending for these managers and i havent seen anybody really put the work to coach their team as to what they need to do in the final third.  

the one thing that i had been saying is today's players are technically hopeless . there are very rare players who play from the middle of the foot and pass the ball with the perfect weight and the ball rolling sticking to the field . you always find the ball bouncing when they pass . let me tell you when you pass the player then the player receiving the pass should have to make the minimum effort to control the ball . most importantly if you pass correctly then he doesnt needs to make two touches . he can just pass the ball in one go and that makes the game more faster as well the opposition cant read the game since they dont have the time to read your pass . i can read the players foot and see where the pass is going and in that way can read the play . players nowadays are just atheltes not real players and that makes football boring . as cryuff had said playing football the easy way is the hardest thing to do . 

let me start with brazil . brazil has appointed ancelottti . i dont know as to what they see in him and what special quality  does ancelotti brings to the table . let me tell you from my experience ancelotti is a good man manager . but ancelotti is tactically great or his teams play attractive football is a dream . i dont know as to what they thought or may be they thought that since ancelotti had been lucky so may be they will get lucky . the problem with brazil is that there football is on the decline just tell me any good players from brazil after neymar. in the last two world cups the teams had all revolved around neymar and that is crux of the problem . football is a team sport and when you get depended on one player to carry the team then that becomes problem instead of a solution . there is no good midfielder nor any good flair player. vinicius is good but that stupid idiot just operates in one zone and just doesnt reads the game and is too selfish . ancelotti had not been able to correct him at real madrid then how come he can correct him in the brazil squad. let us see as to what magic ancelotti brings to the brazil team but dont get  head over heels and expect anything great . 

since i have talked about ancelotti its very correct to talk about his successor alonso . alonso is replacing amcelotti . he has already stated that he will be ditching the 3-4-3 system that he employed at leverkusen . it will be interesting to see as to what he will do with the team because let me tell you . just like his spanish roots alonso likes to control the game and play tiki taka possession football and that is what is being expected off alonso that his style will compete with alonso and that he can give a tough competetion to barca . now the trouble is that the players that he is inheriting are they able to adapt to the system . most of these players haved played on the counter with their previous managers . most importantly madrid dont have the midfielders which are required to control the game and set the tempo of the game . it would be very interesting to see as to how his team plays and the system that he deploys. the one important thing that everybody may think that mbappe will suffer from this system but let me tell you mbappe is very good technical player and having alonso in the dugout will help him .  

MAN CITY , REAL AND MUNICH.

 from last tuesday there were three big matches . wouldnt call them good matches because the level of play was very bad . i had not been writing and there is reason to that . i had posted a clip by michael owen as to how these modern footballers are not proper ballers . to be honest after doing this analyzing things for the last 15 years ( 10 years of blogging ) . when you watch the game it becomes so frustrating because so silly mistakes are made by the players and these players stand on the sidelines and dont do anything about it because i had been watching week after week . football is technical and tactical . if you not technically proficient the tactical sides makes no sense . as i had said that these players make mistakes and these so called coaches big coaches dont even try to correct it . had i been on the touch line i would be in fight every week if they made the mistake or that they would be straightened out . as i was saying if you are not technically proficient then the so called shape and combination make little sense . the most important thing is coaches take practice on how they will hold the team shape and what movement they will make but i had seen little effort being made as to how they will open up opposition defenses . i had heard from news that coaches have met with Grand masters to study tactics as to how they thing and what they do to unlock defense  . while watching the game the teams bring the ball in the final third and they just dont know on how to work and put it in the net . 

the first game i watched was the game between city and madrid . now in the first game city had everybody they wanted in their lineup . the first goal was grealish and most importantly gvardiol was amazing . he made the run and none of the two real midfielders who were in defensive positions tracked him . most importantly he used common sense which is rarely seen in footballers nowadays . i am not going to analysis of the game but talk what i feel . madrid has the front three of which vinicius operates on the left while rodrygo is on right . madrid's front three are not in cohesion . ancelotti had taught them the positional game but he hasnt fully orchestrated then offense so they have they have to improvise onfield . now gaurdiola should had looked at the game between barca and real madrid . where barca just isolated the individual player and shut him off . madrid's front three dont play off each other . let me give an example . whenever vinicius has the ball which he like to receives on the left flank. he like to run with ball and then try to find somebody in the box or do it himself . 

let me explain fully . defense is not a single person's game cause for one mistake can make the difference between winning and losing . on offense you are afforded the mistake atleast you dont loose . i was talking about vinicius . when you defend you want the opposition to cordoned and given minimum of space to work the ball ( unless they are very good at moving the ball and can play one touch football which is taught and played ). when you want to win the possession back or want to deny space to opposition then you need to make them get the ball on the flanks cause on the flanks there is little space compared than in the middle . so first make sure that the ball gets to flank and then just defend properly. in the first game city were up two goals to one and they should had killed the game but instead they  let vinicius scott free and paid the price . he had akanje against him who i rate one of the best defender in last 5 years .  

in the second game city were just poor . they didnt have a play . if you had read my earlier post then i had criticized gaurdiola . gaurdiola knows how to move the ball . he knows how to move the ball  but its the final third where he lacks the necessary creativity or say imagination because you need that . you need to analyse the players position their movement their reach. the space between the lines plus your players strength and weakness and then you have to take drills as to how what they will do when they are facing different scenario's . what i am saying about gaurdiola is also true about vincent company and every other coach .  

let me give you an example as to what i was saying . in the second game the CB asencio played a long ball to kylian mbappe . now how do you prepare for this because . if gaurdiola had prepared his players better then this would hadnt happened . when i used to play i could read the player . first thing when the player is going to pass . he has to make long pass then his body position and his posturing changes . it can be half second or less but then it is enough for me to read and correct my position as well as my team mates positions  around me . i should be able to call the play and read as to what the opposition is going and try to take measures correctly . get my team in formation and press them when the opportunity arises . i dont see that happening . there are times when i am frustrated by the lack of commitment by players and their failure to read the play . now just as you need practice about defense you need to drills about offense . you need to coach players as to what they need to do when they take the ball in the final third and how they move the ball as well as their positions . its not simple but then nothing is simple but practice makes it simple . last but not the least is the selfishness of the players is what makes me angry . when players are selfish then it teaches the younger players to be that which is not a good sign . 

JUST SOME THOUGHT.

 first off let me congratulate  my bahrat chess teams for winning the chess olympiad . both the mens and womans team did us proud and it was very warming to see the legend vishy to present the award himself . now football is known as beautiful game but let me tell you the beauty is all lost . let me talk in terms of chess them the coaches are not thinking beyond 2 moves in the game . the game is beautiful because of you want to see crisp passing ,dribbling and some amazing shots but nowadays i dont recall that i am glued to the matches anymore . there are so many mistakes made in the game that i get frustrated watching . i was reading news the other day and i was seeing  luis enrique teaching or coaching mbappe his tactical position . he had a big screen in the background just like the ones that they use in american football . to be honest had enrique been that good tactically and created a better then he wont be losing matches . 

first off bayern appointed vincent company as their manager . just as i am writing the article i think his honeymoon period is over . he has a very talented squad and he just has to get it working . there are one or two things that i want to get off the chest . first off in this world of football stupid statistics is given very much importance . secondly the term dominating possession is stupid . you dominate the possession but you are not able to make it count the what is the use of that . that means that your manager or the coach whoever he is is useless and has no footballing brain. let me tell you this at the end of the day what matters is no. of goals that you score and that wins you the game not the amount to time you keep the ball or pass the ball or how accurately you pass the ball . the first thing i think that when he was appointed bayern manager then i think he needs to dominate teams . not only does he needs to score goals but also to play dominating possession game .i think i would praise a manager if he knows as to how he can open up opposition defenses. 

let us take the game between bayern and leverkusen . leverkusen has studied bayern and they just sat back and invited bayern to open them up . there are many a lacuna in bayern's offense . your offense works when all the players are working in tandem. kane was hardly seeing the ball was not involved in the build up or i can even say that his role on offense  is just not defined properly . you need to define role of each and every player on offense. i think kompany has a lot of work to do or else just like oliver kahn the current ceo too has to resign with kompany. 

i had been reading about man utd . the managerial situation is up for debate now since the results havent come the way as expected . i think there are idiots who are working in the sports media because the way they attach these names to the managers position is just idiocracy . let me tell you some names . first off touchel . touchel had been nuisance to every club which he managed always fighting just short of ideas and always unsatisfied by the transfers . second is southgate who in the sane world would ever think about southgate as man utd manager . i mean there are idiots there who write articles about that . to be honest for me the person who should had succeded fergusson should had been carlos queiroz . utd played there best football under him in 2007-08 season  . 

MY TAKE ON THE UEFA S/F .

 semifinals were played in the euro 24 . in the first game france played spain . france played 4-3-3 while spain too started with the same formation . france brought in dembele in place of griezman . the thinking about bringing dembele in the squad was to use his pace and most importantly he is good in one on one situations but hopeless in positional reading and most importantly is extremly one dimensional . spain brought in olmo in place of pedri ( how many times had i recommended this kid ) . the game started with spain dominating the possession and france trying to break on the counter . the trouble was with the midfield and the no. 10 position . first off france's midfield three were not able to compete against the spain middle three . the reason being that there was no cohesion in the team . france is the team of superstars but there is no cohesion in the team. they play like individuals and i am sorry to say but they had been carried by mbappe's brilliance ( the reason i am calling him brilliant is because he is just not good running with the ball but very good technically ) he needs a proper no. 9 in the form of giroud  who is severly missed by france . the tr4ouble with france was that they couldnt compete with the spain's midfield . the cohesion that the middle three of spain ( rodri,fabian and olmo ) was way better than france's middle three . still france took the lead . now i had been telling this in past posts as the body position that the centre backs take when they defend and thats what happened there. laporte lost kolomuani because his body position wasnt correct . mbappe showed that he is just not a good dribbler but also very crosser of the ball . 

the trouble for france was that they just couldnt compete with spain the midfield most importantly they were just not able to pick up runs from olmo . there was always a question as to whom will pick him whether the centre backs or the midfielders picked him . i think it was tchoumeni's job but he failed miserably in that . spain had flat two in front of the back four but france had kante and rabiot high up the pitch and not along side tchoumeni and that was causing a lot of trouble . i think deschamps should had put on midfielder besides his holding man for cover . secondly he should had just started griezman instead of demebele who is wastes chances .

spain responded very nicely . yamal equalized for spain . now just look at the way spain were  defending against  mbappe . as soon as mbappe received the ball there would be the right back  navas and luiz who would drop on mbappe helping navas to deal with mbappe . now i dont know why france didnt use mendi who is much better defender compared to hernandez who is good at going forward but cant say that about his defense . now the second goal .everybody is talking about the second goal as to how he fooled tchoumeni but still in the that half just look at the the flick that olmo did to put ball at morata's feet . i had said that the striker should be always ready to pull the trigger . he didnt expect the ball but that just shows olmo's reading of the game and his ability . france chased the game in second half but since there was no game plan and cohesion spain were just comfortable . he brought giroud but it was little too late . i think its time france bid goodbye to deschamps it would be stupidity  to waste such talents cause a good coach can gel them together and can create a very good winning team 

england started the game with 4-3-3 while netherlands started with 4-2-1-3 . many call saka and watkins the hero of the game but for me the kid mainoo was the hero of the game. england started the game better the reason being that england had 3 against 2 in the middle of the park and the were able to defend very nicely the reason why england dominated is because simmons who was suppose to playing no.10 was very poor . dutch took the lead when simmons who was just hopeless ( i wonder how he is 50 mil player) dislodged rice another hopeless england player off the ball and had a shot which he will remember for the lifetime . on the other hand mainoo was just dominating the england midfield the kid was running the game and very good on the ball . had there been a better coach then he would had asked him to play him no.10 atleast no.8 and asked others to play around him . his passing ability and game reading ability is very good and will only improve . 

i think that palmer should had been brought earlier his passing ability is similar to me . seeing the angles and most importantly passing the ball right to the feet with proper weight . watking just finished what palmer served him i think he should start in the final game . last but not the least if tripper keep his place for the finals then we will see a drubbing by spain . 

last but not the least but the game has got ugly and to be honest coaches just dont think about the offensive game anymore they are just concerned of not conceding rahter than scoring . 

snippet.

 euro's had started from 14th of june but there hadnt been a single game that was a standout who deserves mention . yesteday england played slovakia and got lucky . let me tell you you play the same game in the match as to what you practice on the field . the coaches thinking is seen through the way team plays .

one thing that i want to write is that if you had seen the swiss goal then you would had seen that konsa failed to close down ndoye where on he should had closed down and got much closer that he did . if you watch the play closely then ndoye had a losse touch before the cross and he ball was slightly away from him . that is the moment that konsa should had seized and closed him down  and get much tighter . this is what is taught on the field and not on the board . 

FIRST LEG MATCHES .

 two semifinals were played this week but to be honest i am frustrated about the way game is played . let me just put my point there is book called similarities between chess and football . yes definitely there are similarities but football i think has many a way to catch . in chess we analyze the game from start to finish but most importantly in chess we analyze every position and try every iteration in every direction . to be honest i am not very pleased with the way coaching is done . you know of the strength and weakness of your and the opposition . you have to devise a plan and improvise it but most importantly you have to look at the smallest of the details because in the first game  between  bayern and madrid i dont think that none of the coaches took it under consideration . the reason why i say that football needs to have proper analysis is becasue when these guys dribble then you need to have proper analysis of the play . there are players who have started to be over smart air has gone in their head and coaches need to bring them on the ground and tell as to where they need to use there ability and where not . players like 

first off  bayern vs madrid . madrid started the game with 4-2-3-1 formation while bayern too started with the same formation .before the game started  i was apprehensive of kim's pace and i thought that he could be the weak link in the bayern's defense and i was not wrong . bayern won the initial exchanges and put madrid on the back foot and i think ancelotti was just guaging his opponent and was happy sit back and defend . after the first 15 min madrid took control of the game and scored first . the way madrid scored should had be an awakening to touchel because madrid carved them open through the middle and i think for that particular goal touchel held groetzka responsible because he was the left sided midfielder and it should had been his job to close down kroos but to be honest the way madrid were operating and changing positions . valverde was coming inside and kross was going made closing more difficult but then the way kim cam out was disastarous . while coming out he should had realized the space he was leaving behind and others not closing down that space leaving him exposed .  while madrid closed bayern were just too poor .their whole offense was based on solo dribble by sane and musiala . there was lack of cohesion in the bayern team in the first half . they were kept at bay by madrid and were made to shoot in and around the box . this is where coaching seen because he can tell the players to slow down the game or can change the movement of the players but touchel was just hopeless and if any man utd are thinking of appointing him then there is nobody stupid than them . 

bayern changed groetzka in the second half and bought guerrero in the second half . bayern immediately came in the game not because they made the substitution but because their fullbacks the most common mistakes . for the first goal the ball was switched from left to right . the ball ended at sane's feet . now the madrid's fullback should had known that he just needed to show him on his weaker foot and let him get down the line instead of letting him  cut inside . the second goal was nothing but the same mistake was done again . instead of letting him tumble with his own dribble he stuck his own foot which cost the goal . bayern were gifted two goals madrid because of their simple mistakes . 

to be honest i am not very impressed by ancelotti . he should had got much better cohesion in the madrid ranks . most importantly he needs to get player like vinicius on the feet because he seems to be floating in air . air has gone in his head . he is decent but his ability to read the game and most importantly his choice of shots is questionable . the other thing is that the offense is just constituted of three players namely vinicius , bellingham and rodrygo but i think he need to bring valverde in the offense . 

i cannot write anything about psg vs dortmund because for me luis enrique is a stupid coach . he won the league because he had the best player at his disposal . there is no cohesion in his team . to be honest i would be surprized if he is kept in the psg job but then he may win the ucl cause stranger things have happened in football . 

MY TAKE ON REAL MADRID VS MAN CITY.

 man city played real madrid in the return leg of the ucl q/f .man city did everything right in terms of defense and offense but they just didnt do one thing right and that caused them the tie . this is the game that you can show to anybody as to how you press the opposition but not in terms of offense . i am not impressed with real madrid they knew that they were going to press back and will have to play on the counter so they should had been better prepared . they should had devised a plan to counter the man city press because man city really did their job when they lost the ball . they pressed real madrid very well . 

man city started the game with 4-3-3 formation while real madrid started the game with 4-2-3-1 formation . vinicius started the game upfront . he led the line beautifully but he never really got the support that was wanted by him. man city started the game with 4-3-3 . they brought in walker to deal with either vinicius or rodrygo whoever tries to use the right hand side. both of them like to use that same flank . the game started with similar note with man city dominating the possession and real madrid sitting back and hitting on the counter . here bellingham was used more deeper and behind vinicius rather than with him . he had the had in the first goal where on he released vinicius behind the back four which eventually led to the goal . it was the only shot real had on the goal. man city played a perfect game after that . they just real madrid back . they pressed madrid very well .when real madrid beat the press they just denied the press upfront and made them move the ball back or loose possession . what i was unimpressed by real was that when they were trying to counter they were just one dimensional . they should had tried different ways on trying to open man city defense . it was always vinicius who was always upfront trying to take on the man city defenders instead it could had been rodygo or valverde or even bellingham who could bomb beyond vinicius . secondly some of the players were just not aware of the man city's press and how good they were pressing and denying space to madrid . they kept the ball when they should had passed it . vinicius and rodrygo keep hold of the ball and dont pass the ball when they should do . they try to overdo and lose the possession . i would say that ancelotti is guilty for that because that is what training is that for to explain as to when they should pass the ball and when they try to go solo . the inverse is also true for defense as to when to press and when to hold back . 

man city played the perfect game at least on defense . this game is the perfect example as to how they should defend and then use the ball . man city did very well but they lacked one thing . while opening up opposition defense you had to find the weak spot and then improvise it because once you make the move for that the opposition closes that zone and you need to improvise on your plan . man city were very good with their positioning and even on offense but they just did one thing less i would say . i would try to explain that with the graphic . man city pass the ball but they didnt move with the ball . when you play on offense you need to do something special . either you beat the defender in one on one situation or beat them with your passing . man city passed well but then in the final third they were just not having proper ideas to open real's defense . when the ball is passed to you the others surrounding you need to the cue to make themselves open or have that eye where on the ball needs to passed . i will shot that in pics. i think man city lacked that necessary cohesion around the box and for that they paid . most of the players dont have that necessary sense as to whether they can take a touch and try to do things as the ball arrives at their feet . they should try to coach themselves as to when they can take a touch so that they can have better chance of passing or shooting the ball . 

MY TAKE ON REAL MADRID VS MAN CITY.

 real madrid played man city in the q/f of the champions league . real madrid started the game with 4-4-2 formation . real madrid had vinicius and bellingham in the false no.9 role . man city started the game with 4-2-3-1 . why i would say 4 at back even though stones would play as a midfielder while man city had the ball was because that when on defense he would slot back besides dias as the centre back . gaurdiola will always try to put the opposition in quandary. he will try to put something new but still i am not so impressed with him. stones movement will always try to create some chaos in the oppostion ranks most importantly he gives one option in the middle which make the ball movement very easy . even though he has moved stones in the middle pep is still not able to exploit or say exploit the advantage that stones creates in the middle of the park he is just there to help move the ball and press the opposition higher up the pitch but his role still needs to be refined which i hope he will . 

whether it be attack or defense it has to be like a well oiled machine where on all the parts are working in tandem with each other then only can perform to the maximum can cause the maximum effect . i remember one famous quote from johan cryuff" playing football the easy way is the most hard way . the other thing is that i often wonder as to why the coach cannot look at what is lacking in terms of the shape or what is the trouble with the formation and what is lacking . madrid were playing with bellingham in no.9 role . the trouble with madrid was that whenever he was coming deep to come help move the ball there was nobody who would bomb beyond him. madrid had rodrygo and valverde as wide players while vinicius likes to operate from the left . he was linking up with rodrygo but they too had a shortcoming which i will discuss later . ancelotti being a veteran tactician that he is could see that there was nobody in the no.9 position and that was hampering his attack . there was nobody around whom they could play or who would be at the end of the crosses or passes in the box . vinicius like to operate from the left and he and rodrygo were combining very nicely . they exploited the space behind the back four for the second goal . but after that they were not that effective . ancelotti too much time to introduce a no.9 in the attack which he should had done very early . 

why was i not happy with vinicius and rodrygo's movement . they were combining beautifully to take the ball deep but they were not doing that in the final third . i am presenting some pics with that . first off when rodrygo or vinicius would combine with each other on the left flank but whenever one would pass the ball the other one would stop . what i would like is i would like him to continue with this movement because his movement would create flutter in the opposition flank . his movement distracts the opposition and i think that this where they lacked . had they done that then their pace and ability on the ball can create a lot of problems and most importantly they can take the ball deep and can really a problem for opposition . 

man city like to keep the ball and pass it around and just mask their offense as to when they will try to pierce opposition defense . they would push the opposition back so that even when they loose the ball they could press the opposition and win the ball back . in the first half both the team were patient and tried to build up the play and pushed each other back . most importantly the second real goal made gaurdiola think because he had to get his back line a little deep . he moved the back four 10 yards back . in the first half when both teams were patient with their offense . 

in the second hand man city were able to press madrid better and were able to pin them back in their half or around their box . they just kept on passing the ball and made madrid lose concentration and that is why both foden and gvardiol got the space at the edge of the box and could punish madrid . kross is very good at distribution of the ball but is not very mobile . he should had been substituted earlier and tchoumeni or modric should had taken his position his position earlier . most importantly i failed to understand as to why ancelotti didnt lash at bellingham as he was slowing down the game . he needed to much more mobile and not walking pace . he should had realized that man city were never going to give him time and space on the ball so he should had just increased the tempo of his game which would had benifited his team . in the second phase ancelotti has to do some major work and if needs to win this tie then he needs to change the players and bring joselu in the team or atleast make bellingham play better . 

BAYERN AND DORTMUND GAME .

 bayern munich played dortmund in the bundesliga game . bayern are already behind in the title chase and yesterday's result was nail in the coffin of their title hopes . before i write about the game let me talk something if you had been following my blog then touchel was appointed as bayern coach somewhere during this time only . i had already predicted then only that it was a stupid decision . he won the title because dortmund bottled it . bayern had already announced that touchel will leave at the end of the season . this is another stupidity by bayern . touchel knows that he is going to leave at the end of the season and so he has no passion for the result as well as the team . he is just going through the motions of completing the contract . bayern should had held the decision and not announce it so early . 

bayern started the game with 4-2-3-1 formation while dortmund started with 4-3-3 . bayern had to accomodate kimmich and groetzka in the line up so kimmich was asked to play out on the right while groetzka and laimer were in the middle in front of the back four . i had written this several times and i will write it again . small things make big impact in every sports . you have to seize the moment . the other thing is the cohesion . you need to have cohesion between players who are around you . this helps in creating spaces and you can just change the tempo of the game at any time you want . what is coach's job is to practise and get these players to gel and make them understand the importance of position as to how they should take and how they can create space with their movement and open the opposition . bayern were the dominating team and dortmund were sitting back and trying to hit on the counter . whenever a team plays on the counter it sits deep and opposition does tends to close them down high up the pitch and try to wrestle possession as soon as they loose the ball . in the game dortmund were sitting back and trying to hit on the counter . the best chance that dortmund had was adeyemi against kimmich . 

as i had said earlier in my post that you need to atleast  have cohesion with players around you . bayern under touchel and bayern under nagelsman are two different things . bayern under nagelsman were fast aggressive and direct . under touchel he has made them slow dependent on certain players . bayern started the game as the possession team but bayern with ball are too much dependent on musiala and sane to open up opposition's defense . now this is where the coach comes in . he needs to have cohesion between musiala and kane so that both can benifit and untimately the final beneficiary is the team . both musiala and sane have this attitude of staying too much on the ball and wasting the moment where on they can pass or slip the ball and miss the opportunity . the coach should be telling them or rather get them to gel in the practice or how they should work for each other or create spaces for each other . touchel hasnt done any of that he is there just sitting in the dug out . secondly laimer was preffered to kimmich in the middle . kimmich is one of the best midfielders in the world. if given the freedom he can be very good . thirdly groetzka's was very bounded he was used specifically for defensive work but his best quality is that he can be very good around the box and if allowed to go beyond the striker is a very good header of the ball . 

bayern were just too impatient around the box . as i had said earlier kane wasnt involved much in the offense which he should had been secondly bayern should had passed the ball more around the box and tried to take it deeper .instead they were crossing the ball which was what dortmund wanted . if you want to cross the ball then you need to have groetzka in the box who is better header than kane and muller . on the defensive front you could see that adyemi was going to be problem against kimmich or de ligt. touchel should had seen the danger because dortmund were trying to release him in the space that was left by kimmich who was allowed to bomb forward since sane time and again kept on coming inside but with any positive outcome. 

for me dortmund didnt do anything great . bayern were just poor and all over the place on both offense and defense . fullkrug was played upfront but apart from his part in the first goal where on he did a good pass he was just poor and i would not play him upfront . even though dortmund won i think i would change terzic who lost the league last year because of his ego because he wont play bellingham just because he was leaving . 

the second game between arsenal and man city . it was a boring game . why does gaurdiola expect his opposition to play good football against him.the opposition is there to make it hard for him. it is his job to find a way past them . he is paid those big bucks to solve the riddle that is presented by the opposition . he has the best players at his disposal and if he cannot open opposition then there is something wrong with his coaching . possession doesnt wins you a game . just like gaurdiola  arteta's arsenal were poor . the team has no killer instinct . most importantly he has the habit of picking wrong players for the game . he choose jorginiho who cannot control a fast tempo game and requires time and space on the ball to be effective in the game . he choose havertz who is just poor . at chelsea havertz had kante and pilisic who are one of the hardest workers in the game . i think arteta needs to have that killer instinct if he wants to win something or it will always be second or third . 

there are two players that i wanted to write about first is liverpool's maccalister who if given the chance can be a really good no.10 . proper mid foot player and really simple techinque plus has a very good eye for pass . the other one is akanji . everybody talks about de bruyne and rodri and others but for me akanji was one of the most underrated performers last and his signing for the club made a big difference and you can see that gaurdiola trust him . 

BAYERN AND MAN CITY.

 in the past two weeks there were two big games first was bayern munich playing against leverkusen and man city playing against chelsea . first off i will try to analyze man city chelsea game . before i write about the game let me talk about something first . i dont give stats any meaning but one stat is there which is very important is the rate of complete passes by each team and you could see that man city had the highest percentage of passes completed in the game . you can see in the game the type of chances that chelsea missed because the weight on the ball was not perfect and that is why the chance which was there was wasted . i had already said that to  be tactically efficient you have to be technically world class and that is the difference between enzo fernandez and gallagher. 

chelsea started the game with 4-3-3 while man city started the game with the same formation .there was news in the midweek where on gary neville called gaurdiola team not that pleasing to the eyes . to be honest although gary neville is stupid but i do concur that gaurdiola's atleast man city is not that pleasing to the eyes . man city are technically very good and are very good at keeping the ball but let me tell you they dont know as to what to do in the final third or near the box . gaurdiola's team can keep the ball but i havent seen them just open opposition defense at will or murder teams . the game started with man city dominating the possession and chelsea sitting back . there is isnt much in the game to write except cole palmer's performance . this kid was able to keep the ball and play some very good balls to release players in the space . had these chances been taken properly then the result would had been different . 

while watching the game i was intrigued with some points which i want to write over here . chelsea must had practised as to how they are going to play against man city . just as they had practised defense didnt they practised offense so when they practised offense cant they get the players to practise proper weighted passes so as to make the play simpler and enable them to create more chances or finish the chances that were created . just look at the number of chances that chelsea created and how many were wasted because of the wrong passes. secondly there are instances where on players try to overdo things particularly the wingers and forwards . they could see that they could get close down by two players then they should just pass the ball instead of just trying to overdo it and trying to dribble those two players . there are many a things that need to improve for chelsea if they are to achieve something .

bayern played leverkusen, lazio and bochum in a week and lost to all . the idiots in the media had be questioning about kane's curse but none had been talking about touchel's tactic's . bayern under nagelsman was feared in europe . they were playing a very direct game and it was quite effective . touchel had just abandoned it altogether they are slow and one dimensional under touchel . he is struggling on both ends . let me just give you an example in match vs leverkusen adli was continously exploiting the space left by kim . touchel should had made the necessary adjustment as to close that gap that was left by kim . these are little adjustment that need to be done . he has not delivered on that and i am just reading the news that they are going to replace him next season. 

SOMETHING OFF MY CHEST .

 i had not been writing for last 3 months . the reason being that when it comes to tactics its always defensive its never offensive . players are shown in positions as to how many are there in front, middle and back but there is never a question about cohesion . what matters on the football field is what you do with the football . it doesnt matters as to whether you play possession game or counter attacking game . what matters is your ability with the ball . it is always said that offense is the best form of defense. you can put the opposition on the back foot if they know your ability on the ball . football is beautiful game but what johan cryuff said is very true . playing football very simple is the most difficult thing . in the recent years football has been very defensive and i havent seen a team who when plays football that you are glued to the screen and cant miss the game for a second . there were two teams that is liked that one the barca team under frank rijkaard and another one was the 2007 man utd team who were just joy to watch . if you ask me as to what is football then let me tell you that football is a mix of physics , mathematics and human intelligence . why physics because when you pass then your mind calculates the pass where to pass and many other parameters . the most important thing is the human intelligence as to when you use the opponents momentum against him and how you outsmart him and out wit him . 

now i had to talk about mouriniho and xavi .why do we practise and what is the importance of a coach . a coach is there to think of the tactics like a chess player who with second prepares for the game . they prepare for their approach as well think about the oppositions approach and think about how they will stop the opposition . they try to go through all the possible anamalies that they can think off and try to find the answer . first off mouriniho he had been at every club for alteast 2 years and more but he had never been able to create a team which had been effective and good on defense and is very effective in the final third . what do you say about xavi . he had played under raijkaard and gaurdiola and very versed with the possession game but let me tell you as coach he is lacking something . his team is struggling in the final third . they just dont know as to what to do when the ball comes in the final third . as a coach its your job to put your team in to paces as to what they should do in the final third . he is coach there for a reason to find a way and teach the team as to how they can put the ball at the back of the net . he had been poor and its time for him to step down . 

india played in the asian cup and lost against australia and uzbekistan . there were some journalists who were saying that india was shown the mirror . he is talking as if india is in an elite category . no they are not . i had been critical of the current indian coach stimac and let me present to you as to why i am critical of this man . first off had stimac been this coach then he wouldnt be coming here he would be in europe or some other place on earth than in south asia . first off what has stimac brought to the team . he has brought the european organisation which is very necessary in team sports . his contribution on the defensive side of the thing had been good . he had helped the team to organise better on defense . the trouble is when we have the ball . there is a lack of cohesion on the offensive front . to be honest there are lot of things that needs to be done before we can make the leap . the team still not techinically proficient as the other teams are . just look at the physical appearance from that you can guage the work that is put out . to be very honest there is lack of ambition in the players . just look at the japenese players . nakata had the ambiition to go and play in italy( 90's belonged to italy) . the others had followed the suit . people will criticize me that japan has many a resources compared to india then look at africa ( they will point out to genetics) . we have to start somewhere and just cant be sorry for ourselves . first we have to be techincally good to execute the tactics . 

there are many a things in which the team is lagging . you cannot have tactics unless you are technically efficient . let me start from the start . bharat is not a rich country and playing as a proffession is still not seen as a viable option . let me come to the national team first now when  stimac took over he should had seen as to what the players are lacking and should had asked them to improve themselves . the players are not physically strong just compare them with other asian teams . he should had asked them to work on their physiques . had the seniors worked on it then it would had percoaled down below and the bottom would had started getting better by looking at their seniors . in india education is given more importance over game and we loss very good players by the time they get to class 10th . we need to have a proper scouting structure to select good players and we need to bring them to coaching centres so that will drastically improve the level of our game . there are many a things that can be done and these are a few of them .

MY TAKE ON EL CLASSICO AS WELL AS ON MAN UTD .

 on saturday's barca played real madrid in the el classico . the tie is called el classico but there is no classic about this match . there was poor showing in terms of the play. whenever there is talk of tactics it is about how the team stops the opposition not how the team puts the ball in the back of the net . the beautiful game is not beautiful game anymore because of the defensive nature of the game . the opponent will only respect you when you show quality with the ball . the teams just dont know as to what they should do in the final third and how they should work the opposition . 

real and barca both started the game with 5-3-2 formation . now i dont know why real started the game with 5 at the back and why is valverde underrated with his offensive game . valverde's ball retention and his ability over the ball is very good . barca had set themselves up to dominate the possession but that domination never culminated in chances . to dominate the possession barca played a high line and pressed real . there were some key battles and xavi had rightly noticed that if real need to be stopped then they need to stop kross and vinicius . so whenever real had the ball kross was pressed but the player near him either by gavi or lopez . they know that kross is not that mobile and can be pressed . barcelona had specifically congested the middle of the park but the trouble was that they didnt a plan to open real's defense. barca had 2 uptop and three in the middle . out of the top two joao felix would come inside while torres would stay uptop . both barca and real wanted to the other to press then when they had the ball so that they can play around them but to be honest nor one of them did had the plan a as to how they are going to open up the opposition . barca scored in the first half but it was all luck plus a stupid decision making on the part of alaba who should had cleared the ball . 

just as barca's front two were not combining the real's front two were just miles apart . while rodrygo was playing on the right vinicius was playing on the left side . barca were quite susceptible about vinicius's pace . they had araujo tightly marking him .the commentators commented that vinicius needs to do something different .  but didnt ancelotti saw that why did he let him do that or tried to change anything . real were struggling with possession and bellingham who was asked to play as a no. 10 had to come deep to collect possession . real were just poor in the first half they just didnt had the plan when they had the ball . they were relying on vinicius pace to create chaos in barca's defense and try to score from that but there was no plan . 

in the second half real had to change things so right players were introduced . kross was replaced by modric who is much more mobile while mendy was replaced by kamavinga . real changed from 5-3-2 to 4-3-3 . they brought joselu who would be a target man in the middle . to be honest bellingham's first goal was nothing but a lucky or desperation or frustration shot ( but a very good shot ) . real were  not having offense till they scored the first goal. after the first goal with modric and kamavinga's substitution real started to dominate the possession but the second goal was nothing but a bit of luck as well as bellingham's reaction's for which he is very good at . he has shown great reactions which the other player lack . but now i am going to disappoint you . 

as i watching these news and interviews claiming that bellingham is the best player in the world . let me ask as to whether bellingham wasnt playing in the first half . i wouldnt say he was poor but he needs to polished . he still needs to learn to control the tempo of the game . he needs to rally players around him and read the game better . he needs to be involved more in the build up than just the finishing just as modric does . he should just ancelotti as to whether he can play deeper alongside tchoumeni or kross and the control game from there .  he is a diamond who needs some polishing . needs to play more with the middle of the foot . his finishing and positional understanding and reactions are very good . 

man utd lost man city and immediately roy keane was calling for ten heg's head . sadly i agree with that . man utd were just played around . your ability is seen when you have the ball and the opposition respects that but at the same time you need to defend well and have a good tactical plan to stop the opposition . man utd were just played around . you cannot press with eriksen in the middle . secondly you do a lone some press rather than a team press . most importantly utd need to show their quality when they have the ball which is just bad because they just dont have any cohesion in the ranks . 

the other thing is that i was reading daily mail there is podcast by chris sutton that were talking about mason mount . i had already said in one of my earlier post that signing mason mount was a mistake . players like mason mount are never no.10 no defensive abilities and are just waste of money. instead of mount they could had signed better players  . 

MY THOUGHTS ON MAN UTD.

 right of now man utd are down . they have lost 3 games in a row and everybody is gunning for their throats . people like to kick anybody who is down. they cannot point out as to what is wrong and what needs to be improved . i will get straight to the point . man utd are a counter attacking team and the teams have studied that . just look at the game against arsenal . man utd could score against arsenal when they  countered quickly and found the space . what was man utd doing in the game against arsenal . they had pushed back arsenal and arsenal were happy to sit back and invite man utd to come and open up their defenses . man utd were having problems playing through them . they were struggling to play through . what they wanted was that arsenal should come out and close them down so that they can close them down and use that space for their advantage. it doesnt works that way . you should be able to play when teams are sitting back as well as trying to close you down . 

man utd like to close team down and they like to do a quick counter as soon as they recover the possession . man utd like to close from the front but they dont have leg for this .they are playing fernanades and eriksen in the middle of the park . they are not that mobile and that is where this tactics fail. in trying to close team down they have to play higher defensive line. just look at the game between munich and utd . how many times sane and gnabry came deep or between the lines picked up the ball and suddenly man utd were back tracking . third had been that players had been bad in one on one situations or that they just made stupid decisions . in the game against arsenal most of arsenal's attack were from the left with martnelli against wan bissaka . wan bissaka was giving too much time and space for martnelli . he should had just dealt martnelli the way antonio valencia dealt with sterling. he would just sterling  come closer and just use his strength to dilodge him off the ball . another was the way dalot messed up against gnabry. he should had done better . man utd need to be better in one on one situations and the positioning should be better . 

the next thing i am going to write will not go down very well with utd fans but rashford needs to have a reality check . yes he is good but he thing he can do everything by himself . if needs to be more effective then he needs to pass the ball . at this time air has gone in his head and ten heg needs to cool rashford down . he needs rashford to use his team mates . 

in all this dust there is a silver lining for man utd. look at the third goal against munich . if they could just do the same what they did against munich in that goal then they can get back to winning ways and can still turn the season around . 

MY TAKE ON THE CHELSEA VS LIVERPOOL GAME .

 the new seasons has started . liverpool played chelsea also there were other games also . i will take one game at a time . before i write about the game i will continue with my prelog as i had done i the past . what is the similarity between badminton and defense in football or positional awareness in football . in the game between liv vs chelsea two goals were scored and both were because of the lack of understanding of positions on defense . what do they do in badminton . badminton player tries to be in the centre after any shot he plays . that is the same in football on defense you should be aware of your position and it is not respect to your team but also with respect to opposition . i will try to explain in coming para . 

chelsea started the game with 3-5-2 while liverpool started the game with 4-3-3 . for chelsea james was the difference maker while for chelsea salah and diaz's pace were the ones causing chelsea problems . both teams lacked some things first off  chelsea they should had seen that liverpool like to counter thrrough salah  . disasi or colwill was marking him . now he was left exposed by chelsea . first off silva should had moved closer to either of them to better salah . secondly both silva and colwill should have the awareness and reading as to what salah can do . it not what salah can do but also which team mate he can link up with  and the way he can exploit the defense . for the first goal disasi was going to mark salah he cannot get too close to him but still remains near him. at this time chelsea were playing a bit too high defensive line . first off silva and colwill should had checked their body shape as well as their defensive positions . they got it all wrong and ended up one goal down. colwill should have that awareness not only of the players around him but also the spaces around him. 

the game continued and chelsea equalized . chelsea's goal was the reason as to why i am writing this post . chelsea were having the corner . what is the first thing that the defensive team should do when they are facing the corner . they should try to nullify the threat . starting the counter is second thing  and it comes only when you can safely deal with the corner . when the oppostion takes the corner at that time special positions are taken by players depending upon the height . the goalkeeper needs to take control of the situation and should ask his players to first defend the corner and then think of starting the counter attack . what had been seen is that the players just leave the positions as soon as they clear the ball on the first instance but the ball is in oppositions possessesion and its is coming back . the goalkeeper needs to shout to his players to keep their shape and deal with it till the ball is out of play on the possession changes. 

i would had loved that mudryk started the game instead of sterling also if i am pochettino i wouldnt ever play childwell . hopeless english player spends too much time on the ball hasnt got the positional awareness more interested in his hair than his football skills . now that chelsea had signed caicedo so enzo will have more freedom to go forward . 

there were other games that were played amongst them were psg and bayern games were there . i really cant understand the footballing world . i had been shouting about danny olamo. he was superb in this game i still baffled as to why his name is not at the top of the desired player in every top clubs wish list. i had already said when touchel was oppointed that bayern had shot themselves in the foot. just as bayern have shot themselves in the foot so has psg by appointing luis enrique as their coach . unless psg can keep mbappe and have one or two more flair players in their squad or else they will struggle . 

i think there is lot of transfers left and we can expect to see lot of players changing clubs . 

TRANSFERS .

 let us start conversation on transfers . i want you guys to contribute and i will also express my opinion on it . hope you keep me busy. 

both liverpool and man utd are interested in romeo lavia but i think he is still a work in progress . he is young athletic and strong but his first touch still needs to be sorted out and that is one of the most important aspect for whoever wants to be a good player. liverpool releasing fabiniho was a mistake they should had kept him . i think for utd amravat can be a better signing compared to lavia . 

TRANSFERS .

 since the season has completed or will get complete in a week or so . the teams had started looking for players that improve their squad and can add depth and quality . i will start with man utd since i had posted about man utd in december of last year . man utd are linked with mason mount and declan rice . first off mason mount a player who cannot secure place in his own team and is more interested in his hair than his football . what is his position isnt a wide player hasnt got pace hasnt got the creativity and wont do the defensive work that is required of midfielder utterly hopeless .  ten heg should remain clear of this player . on the other hand rice is quite decent . the only drawback is that he will need carving out by ten hag but has good defensive sense so can be a buy is absolutely require is  not the case . if declan rice has some sense then he should sign up for utd . the other player that is linked with utd and will be hot this summer is kane for who madrid will too try to sign him . kane is definitely the player whom utd should sign because he is quite a good alround player and good striker but dealing with daniel levy is big headache and i think kane will have to force a move to sign for utd. utd dont need centre backs or full backs but they can cull the squad wan bisaka is better than dalot and he can be sold with maguire lindelof and many others . man utd need a midfielder and can they pursue 

lets talk about chelsea what had happened at bayern has happened at chelsea . the result of this chaos was at the start of the season when stupid players were brought in where as they just needed one or two players they brought one too many. why was sterling purchased while he is just washed out player. to add to that misery they brought a lot in december . some of the players are ok but it takes time to gel plus a good manager not some one like lampard who is idiot . pochettino should do good . he has a good squad and if he makes proper choices and keeps proper players and releases medicore ones then i think next season chelsea can challenge the title which will be expected of them . 

i like to talk players . now messi is leaving psg and whether mbappe will follow the suit is there to be seen . first off i think if psg are wise then they should not pursue and get head over heels for him to play next season for them . instead they can get some very good players for his price like randall kolo nuani or rafael leao who are good . atleast kolo nuani had impressed me and he can be player that real madrid will go after if they cant mbappe . i think there is a season or two with benzema but they need to have a good player in place who can do things for them and kolo nuani or rafael leao can be one of them . there are some good players who should be looked at is salemackers of ac milan and strasbourgh striker habib diallo. 

i think that the reason dortmund lost the title was because there is something wrong between edin tedric and bellingham . why didnt bellingham played in the last two matches . he wasnt even brought on as the substitute . i think he could be the next one to be fire just as touchel has . i had already called for kahn head which has happened . if tottenham have any sense then they will appoint potter at the next manager .