FC Porto and Manchester United: two parallel paths (part 1)

• Portugal and England: The Background 

The historical relations between Portugal and England (later the United Kingdom) go a long way back. In fact, the alliance between the two countries (the Anglo-Portuguese alliance) is the oldest one in Europe and dates back to 1373. During most of this allegiance, Portugal was something of a protectorate of England, with the English helping Portugal several times - including the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century - and Portugal going into (I World) war for England, among many other examples.

During that period, Portugal and England celebrated numerous other (mainly economical) treaties, including one of the most important ones: the 1703 Treaty of Methuen that stipulated "English textiles and Portuguese wines were exempt from custom duties". It was one of the most innovative treaties between nations.

But a lot more than just economical agreements has endured the test of times and brought both nations a bit closer; while it is generally accepted that the Portuguese Catarina de Bragança introduced tea to the Brits, she was also critical to England's geopolitical ambitions, as her dowry included Tangiers and Bombay. In Portugal, the English presence is felt everywhere: the name of Port Wine companies line the shores of the river Douro, "snack-bar" is just another Portuguese word and the Portuguese tea-time snack (the Portuguese-spelled "lanche") is inspired by the English lunch.

On the other hand, the UK remains one of Portugal's key investors, focusing primarily on financial services and tourism. In fact, the Algarve (something of a British enclave) still accounts for nearly 70% of all destinations from the UK - so much so that anyone sitting at a restaurant in Portugal's southernmost region will probably be greeted in English and handed a menu in the same language.

• Porto and Manchester: The Common Thread

Steeped in centuries of history and tradition, the cities of Porto and Manchester have been somewhat accustomed to playing second fiddle to capitals Lisbon and London, respectively. The latter's economic and political power was (and still is) a factor in the former's dwindling influence in some spheres, which has lent itself as a perfect excuse to harbour some less positive feelings towards the South.

The similarities don't stop there. Even though Porto played an important role in terms of intellectual leadership (such as spearheading the Liberal Revolution of 1820), both Northern cities became even more important with the advent of Industrial Revolution. With it, they suddenly became densely populated areas as the city's factories drew virtually everyone from the surrounding towns and villages.

To this day, there remain in Porto numerous "ilhas" (Portuguese for islands) - a street door that opens into a group of subpar quarters with a common bathroom and kitchen for factory workers - near ruins of old factories.

Shorn of their roots and family, these workers often found themselves stranded. As the 20th century made its way, football clubs took the place of religion - still offering a place of weekly worship and a sense of belonging. Identities were forged and allegiances were made among many a football stand. It is absolutely no coincidence that one of the features both Mancunians and "Tripeiros" most take proud on is their resilience against all odds.

• Manchester United and FC Porto: Losing and Finding The Way

Up until a few years ago, the strongest football teams tended to hail from these sorts of places - industrial cities with clubs that had become so important that there was barely any space for any other teams of similar dimension (FC Porto, Manchester United, Juventus, Bayern Munchen, etc.). The local support was immense and the identities of these clubs and cities often blended together.

In fact, clubs from capitals often floundered, with the obvious exceptions of Benfica and Real Madrid, sides that clearly benefited of being standard bearers of dictatorial regimes (the difficulties both clubs went through when the Portuguese and Spanish regimes were overthrown should not be overlooked).

The fates of Manchester United and FC Porto have sometimes seemed umbilical tied to each other over the past decades. However, while FC Porto's history mirrors the country's political events (the club's drought took place between 1921 and 1976, an almost perfect parallel to the fascist dictatorship that ruled the country between 1926 and 1974), Manchester United were rather more successful during Sir Matt Busby's years.

The end of the both clubs' lean years was virtually simultaneous and coincided with the arrival of the two figureheads that have left their mark over the past 30 years: Pinto da Costa on the Portuguese side, Sir Alex Ferguson on the English side.

Both men were able to steer their clubs in the right direction and transform the clubs they lead into their country's dominant footballing force. During that time, the two clubs have won numerous domestic titles and twice conquered the Champions League (formerly European Cup) and one Intercontinental Cup - effectively imposing a new cycle on the national scene. Manchester United became one of the richest clubs in the world while FC Porto went from regional minnows to a force to be reckoned with on the international scene, albeit to a far lesser extent when compared to the Red Devils.

(to be continued)

FC Porto and Manchester United: two parallel paths (part 2)

• A season to forget - or the typical Northern stubbornness

Last season's biggest journalistic scoop was clearly Sir Alex Ferguson's departure and the arrival of David Moyes, formerly of Everton. Moyes was handed a six-year contract as a sign that any poor results that might surface as a result of the changing of the guard would not do him any harm. Things were done differently at Manchester United, or so the saying went.

As the season went on, both top management and supporters showed huge constraint by not sacking the manager or booing him - the odd fly-by incident notwithstanding. United were adamant that the Ferguson-backed Scot was there for the long haul and that that wasn't the first hard spell they had endured.

A squad that had comfortably won the Premier League the year before suddenly looked like a withering set of players not good enough for a better standing that 7th. Adding insult to injury, the team's displays never seemed to improve. The manager's tactical grande scheme seemed to be to replicate what had previously worked at Everton, i.e. defending compactly, attacking down the wings and crossing the ball into the box. For a club of Manchester United's stature, it was clearly not enough and Moyes didn't even make it to the league's final round. So much for the "being different" credo.

Back in Porto, the Dragons were making history of their own by parting ways with the man that had brought them one of the best, hardest, most satisfying titles in the club's history - a victory over Benfica at the Dragão with a 92nd minute-goal on the 29th of 30 rounds when, just two weeks earlier, FC Porto trailed their arch-rivals by 5 points. Vítor Pereira would be replaced by Paulo Fonseca, a young tyro that had excelled at Paços de Ferreira and led them to a Champions League playoff berth.

As it turns out, the story that was unfolding at United virtually repeated itself in Portugal. Fonseca was never able to dominate the dressing room (contrary to usual proceedings, rumours flew about with the greatest of ease) and the tactics he tried to implement were baffling. More proactive than Moyes, Fonseca insisted that the team attack relentlessly, but apparently without any order or collective ideas. The poor results came pouring in and a 3rd-place finish was all FC Porto could muster.
Like at United, however, the club were doing everything they could to preserve their image of moral leaders, twice declining Fonseca's request to resign. The third time would be the charm, however. The results certainly didn't help, but, like Moyes, it was the evident inability to steer things in the right direction and take centre stage as the emotional leader that was Fonseca's undoing.

• A similar line of reasoning

For this season, both FC Porto and Manchester United seem once again to go hand in hand. The Red Devils seemingly threw away the notion of everlasting continuity and hired Louis Van Gaal, a tried and tested victor that will, on one hand, certainly bring much-needed order to the dressing room. On the other hand, the Dutch is one of the most revered coaches as far as tactics are concerned and bears the knowledge and ability to create drills that allow players to imbibe his ideas. An European-style coach is considered to be the way forward.

As far as the Dragons are concerned, the chosen coach was Julen Lopetegui, the former leader of Spain's U21 team. Club president Pinto da Costa wanted someone who had clear ideas on how to move forward, based on a possession-based brand of football. Even though Lopetegui's career includes precious little experience at club level, his results and work methods have clearly impressed those around him.

As it turns out, both Manchester United and FC Porto will be relying on managers who are willing to bet on young players, who are on the cutting edge of the game (at least in tactical terms) and who are direct heirs to the notions of Total Football/tiki-taka - two concepts that are often blended and blurred. The clubs have also opened their cheque books as if to vindicate their respective managerial bets by any means necessary, as the signings of Luke Shaw and Ander Herrera on United's side and Adrían, Óliver Torres and Bruno Martins Indi on FC Porto's side have confirmed.

In conclusion, it remains to be seen whether the fates of Manchester United and FC Porto will go on hand in hand and whether the huge investments made are really the thing that lacked from Moyes and Fonseca's time at the helm. On the other hand, the arrival of a Dutch and a Spanish coach brings some curiosity as far as the results of both sides are concerned, at a time at a time where possession-based football looks like a concept from the past. Will it be a case of too much too late?

Manchester United's defensive frailties

Much has been said and spoken about Manchester United and their faltering form. The transition from Sir Alex Ferguson to David Moyes was bound to include some bumps along the way, but the former Everton manager is bound to be found scratching his head while reviewing some recent results and displays. Moyes was considered to be a reactive, reliable, safety-first manager, but his credentials have left much to be desired so far. And while reading through most of the English football press might lead one to believe that it is all a matter of simply adding a few players to the squad, it is hardly the case.

Case in point, the first goal Swansea scored at Old Trafford last weekend for the FA Cup. Manchester United are picked apart smack down the centre by 4 simple touches from Swansea, starting from their centre-back. Since the match is pretty much in slow motion, it is difficult to accept such bad defensive positioning from the current English champions.


1.

Swansea's centre-back Chico Flores has the ball and already United look out of position. Javier Hernández is contributing nothing defensively and Danny Welbeck is trotting backwards. Oddly enough, it's Tom Cleverley - one half of the midfield duo who comes out pressing the man on the ball. Darren Flatcher is not providing any sort of coverage for his defence either. A simple vertical pass down the middle bisects the entire United team and overcomes six players in one sitting.


2. 

Swansea perform one of the most run-of-the-mill movements in football, with the striker Wilfried Bony dropping back to support the build-up play and left-winger Routledge exploiting the space vacated by the Ivorian forward. Bony passes it back to Pozuelo who immediately tees up Routledge. Rio Ferdinand's lack of pace is only made worse by his odd decision to half-press Bony when he has little protection from up front (yellow circle) and there doesn't seem to be any support from his team-mates in defence.


3.

Jonny Evans does not come unscathed from this defensive debacle, as he takes ages to adjust his positioning according to Ferdinand's decision and Routledge's movement. It is indeed Chris Smalling (deployed here as right-back) who tries to make up for his team-mate's rash decision. In acres of space, Routledge found it easy to lob Lindegaard and score the first.


4.

Looking at the play from a different perspective, the situation looks even more baffling. United's back four are clearly left exposed (again, this is not in any a counter-attack or a quick-paced transition). Cleverley is almost in line with his forwards and Fletcher cannot track anything that is going on behind him (yellow circle). The almost ubiquitous 4x2x3x1 formation often seems to lead coaches and players to believe that forming two banks of four is enough, often forgetting that movement and coverage are key in order to avoid opponents from pouncing on such vulnerabilities.

The zonal occupation of spaces is apparently on the wane in England, as it becomes ever more frequent watch the full-backs in the Premier League worrying about their direct opponent, rather than concerned with providing coverage for their defensive team-mates. In this particular case, both Smalling and Büttner offer barely any contribution for United's width control - thus making the team wider and more open to this sort of penetrations.


5.

Here, Ferdinand's delay is even clearer, as well, as Smalling and Büttner's removal from where the action is taking place. Watching Ferdinand pass by him, Evans does not adjust his feet accordingly and remains facing forward.


6.

Evans has just finally realised something is not right and starts turning (rather slowly). He was easily outsprinted by the quick Routledge and only Smalling is in a position to bother the left-winger.

• Conclusion

"Hindsight is a wonderful thing," some may say. While that is certainly true, the lack of defensive organisation in most Premier League sides should offer some food for thought. The return of the once thought to be outdated 4x4x2 (in some shape or form) has brought about more goals and scoring opportunities, but does not bode well for coaches (in a purely coaching sense) nor for clubs - European competition will certainly be less forgiving about this sort of mistakes.

Manchester United x Arsenal - Tactical notes

In a match that could have offered the visitors a very comfortable lead, Manchester United and Arsenal met at Old Trafford and offered a quite interesting display - for loads of reasons. Below we'll be looking into some specific issues.

• Arsenal struggle against a more physical United

Tomas Rosicky was bang on the money when he offered "resiliency" as one of the key factors for Arsenal's win at Dortmund last week, something that according to the Czech might have been missing over the past few seasons. In fact, while the tactical improvements in Wenger's side cannot be overestated (namely the failure to unbalance the whole team while attacking), the steelier heart of the team has to be taken into consideration - something that an older, more experienced eleven might help explain.

However, while United's physical approach lasted, Arsenal found it quite hard to get into their passing rhythm, a flaw that has been found many times over the past seasons, particularly against stronger sides. The two teams' different approaches was evident, with the physical, defensively disciplined Jones, Valencia and Jones all getting the nod from David Moyes, while Arsène Wenger kept his trust in the soft-shoed Arteta, Ramsey, Cazorla and Özil.

Arsenal struggled to progress to more advanced areas while United were able (and interested) to keep their pressure up.

 

During the first half, the attacking threat offered by Wenger's charges was restricted.

• Özil goes missing in action

As so often has been the case, the German wizard was anonymous for most of the match at Old Trafford. Even though no player has accrued more assists than Özil during the past five seasons, his contribution is frequently small when he's faced with opponents that insist on being physically aggressive and that leave little space to exploit. Arsenal's no. 11, so important to the team's displays thus far, was a shadow of himself and failed to give the team the world-class boost he so often brings in most matches.

• United prove faithful to Moyes

For all that has been said and written about David Moyes' time at the helm of United, the players' dedication and commitment seem not to have wavered. The Scottish manager finally got a win against top-calibre opposition by reverting to several of his methods while at Everton. The intense physical pressure in order to stifle Arsenal's midfield gave way to his preferred expectant two banks of four, with Rooney and Van Persie (particularly the former) putting in impressively hard-working displays as far as defending was concerned.

On the other hand, the resort to long balls (more frequent than usual under Sir Alex Ferguson) also seemed to show that United will be looking increasingly like a gritty, result-oriented team, rather than the side that so often threw caution to the wind and attacked in successive waves.

It is hard not to detect some patterns as far as United's building-up stage is concerned.

There is a stark contrast between United's approach before and after Van Persie's goal.
Even though Arsenal surely improved as the match wore on, it was clear that United were will to soak up pressure.

• Centre-back vs midfielder: Who's more effective in the middle of the pitch

Phil Jones' deployment alongside Michael Carrick was surely meant as a strategy to keep Cazorla and Özil from dominating the centre, by making sure the centre-back got stuck to the skilled midfielders and stopped them from facing United's goal. Moyes' strategy effectively worked for the better part of the first half, but things changed when Jones had to replace the injured Vidic in defence, with Tom Cleverley taking his place in midfield.

While Jones' defensive contribution might have looked far more intense to the naked eye, a quick look at Cleverley's dashboard shows how important the English midfielder was in such a crucial position.

• The Rooney conundrum

One of the hardest things of being your nation's most promising footballer for ages is that his every move, shot, word and mood swing are analysed under a magnifying lens. Wayne Rooney is no exception and he alone has put food on the table of many a reporter. 

In spite of all of that, he managed to put in a monster of a display, working tirelessly and selflessly, effectively resembling the version of Rooney that every football fan seems to remember. He pressed, he defended, he kept his passing crisp and simple, he vacated the space for his team-mates to exploit - in short, he was United's spirit personified, leading the team from the front. After all the reports of his less than warm relationship with Moyes, it is encouraging to see him give so much of himself to the cause.  

Play's anatomy: 2) Arsenal vs Manchester United

Robin van Persie's return to the Emirates hogged most of the headlines of last April's meeting between Arsenal and Manchester United, where Arsène Wenger's men offered a guard of honor to the new champions.

Even though Manchester United's newfound linchpin ended up scoring a goal, it was Arsenal's goal that showed some of the frailties in Sir Alex Ferguson's team - which leads up to a sub-question: is the midfield pairing of Michael Carrick/Phil Jones enough to bring United the victories they crave, especially in the European stage? Let us then break Arsenal's goal down and see what Manchester United did and didn't do.

• 1. Van Persie misplaces the pass

In this picture, the ball gets to Van Persie after Manchester United had just won it back. Van Persie almost immediately tries to get the ball to the other side, but the pass goes astray (kids everywhere, this is why your coach is always insisting that you do not try this sort of pass) and eventually arrives at the feet of Arsenal left-back Kieran Gibbs.

• 2. Gibbs quickly passes the ball to Cazorla

Gibbs delivers the ball to his team's chief orchestrator, Santi Cazorla, so that the Spaniard can initiate the attack. While Van Persie picks himself up, there is no one around Cazorla, Arteta or Ramsay.

• 3. Poor positioning from Manchester United midfield

Cazorla has all the time in the world to pick his pass. Both Phil Jones (red) and Michael Carrick (orange) have their eyes on the ball - Carrick having Ramsay on his radar -, apparently oblivious to Rosicky. 

• 4. Poor positioning from Manchester United midfield

Cazorla's simple vertical pass immediately bypasses Manchester United shield comprised of Carrick and Jones. Podolski, somewhat similarly to Higuaín, drifts away from his markers unchecked to get the ball, which means that, in Rosicky and Podolski, Arsenal now have two unmarked players in between the lines.

• 5. Where's Evra?

Patrice Evra was for the better part of the last decade one of the finest left-backs in the world, if not the best. However, he is no longer able to command the touch line as he once did and - to add insult to injury - his defensive abilities seem to be deserting him as well. In this particular case, notice on one hand how Evra is far away from the action. On the other, notice how Podolski and Rosicky are allowed to wander between Manchester United lines. Not surprisingly, that's the space from where Rosicky will provide his assistance.

• 6. Evra's man-marking does not work

Assuming Evra was on a man-marking job (hard to envision), he still did a shoddy job of it. He looks distracted by what is happening in the centre of the pitch and not paying enough attention to Walcott. As your abilities start declining with age, game-reading skills become ever more important - one of the reasons why Giggs, Beckham or Zanetti are still able to play the game. In his case, Evra seems to rely excessively on his speed and recovering ability, which has left him wanting in numerous occasions before. Here, he neither closes the space between him and Evans nor does he mark Walcott convincingly.

• 7. Walcott too quick to catch

With that much space in the centre and facing forward, Rosicky only had to wait for Evans to commit to him and spray the through ball for Walcott to run on to. As stated earlier, Evra is poorly positioned and his stance does not help either, which means Walcott's speed will only be harder to stop.

• 8. Arsenal score

Afforded acres of space, Walcott capitalised on his speed and managed to beat David de Gea with a well-placed low shot. Despite being the man marking him directly, alienated from the game, Evra is not even the first one to arrive at the "scene."

In case the breakdown was too confusing, take a look at the play and see for yourself.

Manchester United - Stoke City: Worlds apart

Starting elevens

The match between Manchester United and Stoke City promised to be one of the most interesting tactical battles of the weekend, with two predictably different approaches. There were even some doubts as to whether Manchester United would be able to counter Stoke's aerial threat.

The most obvious way (and a cliché by now) of telling Stoke City apart from almost every other team is by analysing the passes in the attacking third. With Peter Crouch on his side, Tony Pulis doesn't have any second thoughts about whether to stick to route one football, even more so against stronger opponents. As for United, their intricate passing eventually worked out and ended up determining the result.

Passes in the attacking third

Stoke's approach was rather simple - but effective: get the ball out to Crouch (particularly on Ferdinand's side), who would then flick it onto Kightly or Walters - Crouch's knack at linking up play is often underrated. Most likely aware of both Ferdinand and Evans' difficulties in the air and Scholes and Carrick's lack of pace to win second balls back, the away team insisted on executing that play time and again. Pulis' men would remain compact in a 4x1x4x1 - not too withdrawn, unexpectedly - and sought to pounce on United when they tried to bring the ball into the centre, and break quickly.

Stoke city's tackles and interceptions, mainly down the left.

Besides, with Valencia and Welbeck lingering up front and Rooney higher than usual, Stoke's wingers came inside at will, confusing even further United centre-backs. In fact, just before Sir Alex Ferguson's charges equalised, Stoke City could have gone two goals up and hardly anyone would be surprised. While they enjoyed only 36% of possession, they were much more incisive for the better of the first half.

Manchester United started to pick up their stride when their attack became more fluid. With Van Persie, Rooney and Welbeck on the side, the three of them may exchange positions almost at will, something that they failed to do for 30 minutes. Van Persie gave the example by drifting more and more to the left, leaving the middle for Rooney to come up from behind, which would end up yielding the first goal.

Van Persie and Rooney's passing chalkboards

These three players would end up scoring and providing the assists for every Manchester United goal (except Valencia's assist for Van Persie' goal). Of these, the Dutch forward was the most dangerous and harder to mark, since he kept wandering through various positions, forcing his team-mates to seek other areas. Welbeck proved once again he is better when coming inside and Rooney proved once again that he is an all-around player, with the talent to play anywhere he wants.

There is still time for one final thought for each team. Stoke City's second goal showed once again that Manchester United have to address the need for a better, more competitive defensive player in their midfield and to work on covering their frailties down the middle - Stoke's second goal is oddly similar to how Tottenham destroyed United a few weeks ago. As for Stoke, while this approach may bear fruits against stronger opponents, a more elaborate plan will be needed if they are to climb up the table.

What would Barcelona be without Messi? Check out Bilbao

Starting lineups

Athletic Bilbao's triumph over Manchester United was nothing short of a fairy tale. With no Messi and a coach that arrived less than a year ago, a team traditionally used to long balls aiming at their target man was able to radically change their style of play thanks to the manager's attention to detail and ability to sell his ideas. The Spaniards' display against Man Utd on both legs made it plain to see that it is indeed possible to play positive football, even if you don't have Xavi, Messi and Iniesta.

United had an almost impossible task on their hands and turned to experience to try to beat the odds - Giggs, Park, Ferdinand and Rooney all got the nod. Faced with an uphill battle, the red devils tried to take it to Athletic Bilbao and exert pressure in advanced areas of the field.

United tried to stifle Bilbao, at first

Nevertheless, United are not used to this sort of strategy and Bilbao seemed more than confident about how to best bypass it. It was however an incredibly open match and both teams seemed to want to provide an goal-fest. Marcelo Bielsa's team could have just waited it out, but their DNA doesn't allow it, apparently.

Just like it had been the case during the first leg, Bilbao was almost man-marking Manchester United out of the game, confident in their coordination, speed and intensity - starting with the excellent (former midfielder) Javi Martínez marking Wayne Rooney everywhere he went. Giggs looked lost for most of the match (Sir Alex Ferguson has yet to realise that his team rarely win important matches with Giggs in central midfield) as he wasn't sure if he was supposed to drop back and help out or stay up and try to overload his opponent.

Bilbao were pretty much man-marking their opponents

Carrick was heroic in his holding role, but he was essentially alone. Park and Cleverley often exchanged positions, but both failed to help the Englishman in his efforts to stop their energetic rival. Bilbao's midfield provided enough of a challenge, but Javi Martínez's surges forward were just more than United could handle. The first goal of the game came on Patrice Evra's side - his defensive positioning is becoming more and more questionable. As in Dirk Kuyt's goal in the match against Liverpool, Evra seemed to forget to close the space between him and the centre-back and Llorente had no mercy. United's dream was all but over.

From then on, there was virtually nothing left but to watch Bielsa's perfectly-drilled side in their magnificent pressing - the coordination and solidarity are impressive - and triangle-shaped combinations, creating scoring chance after scoring chance. In the end, the result was more than flattering for United, considering the numerous clear-cut chances Bilbao had to get a historical win.

The man on the ball always had at least two passing options

After easily getting out from the back, Bilbao get ready to create yet another chance

Another example of how to bypass your opponent

Two perfect triangles

In a time where player power is king, it's almost impossible to believe that a coach can change a team so set in their ways in such radical fashion. Bilbao are living what seems to be an unforgettable season and their showdown against Barcelona for the Copa del Rey's final should be wonderful to watch. In conclusion, I would like to add how reassuring it is to see Iturraspe and Javi Martínez leading and instructing their team mates - perfectly aware of their ideal positioning and always ready to lend a hand, if necessary.