Sabotage Times - Hulk

A new piece on Hulk and why he may never play where he dreamt of is already up on Sabotage Times.

Barcelona 0-0 Benfica - Eagles out of Champions League

After failing to score against Barcelona and following Celtic's narrow win against Spartak Moscow, Benfica are out of the Champions League. The Eagles' were penalised by their profligacy and will have to keep fighting for an European trophy in the Europa League.

On the wrong side of the odds and faced with an uphill battle, Benfica had to at least get the same result as Celtic against Spartak Moscow. Their task was made a bit easier by Tito Vilanova, who rested several key players (including Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Dani Alves and Piqué) and instead gave his second string valuable minutes in the Champions League without the inherent pressure of a result.

The feeling that that would play right into Benfica's hands was confirmed as soon as the match started. Unlike what they did in their own turf (oddly enough), the Portuguese team came with a intense pressing approach out of the gate, pinning Barcelona back. With Pinto in goal instead of Vítor Valdés and with a makeshift back four, Barcelona found it hard to play out from the back, particularly under the pressure of Rodrigo, Lima, Ola John and Nolito. Even the young tyro André Almeida was pushing high up, tracking Alex Song when he (or another midfielder) dropped back to try and provide an out-ball.

Benfica pressured Barcelona intensely for the entire first half.

Benfica were solid and defensively aggressive, managing to win numerous balls back, due to their intensity. The Catalans B team are clearly not as good or used to playing together and often misplaced passes. On top of that, Benfica were quite cleverly exploiting the space behind the centre-backs, who, according to the team's principles, remained deployed in a high defensive line - but often with little pressure from their midfield.

Benfica's first clear-cut scoring chance came on the 11th minute, with Rodrigo getting behind the defence and then selfishly choosing to shoot instead of playing the ball to Nolito, who was furious at his team-mate. The same Nolito provided a lovely cross for Lima to head wide ten minutes later. Barcelona started showing their teeth shortly afterwards when they successfully found their way out of Jorge Jesus' defensive maze: Matic would stick to the highest midfielder, André Gomes would track the one dropping back, but the third one (usually Sergi Roberto) was always free to collect the ball and break past Benfica's midfield, as proven by their opportunities on 23 and 24 minutes.

Barcelona were often able to break free
with a simple triangle-shaped move,
particularly during the second half.

Barcelona found acres of space behind Matic and André Gomes.

Benfica, however, kept their foot on the throttle and remained adamant at pushing forward - and almost got the reward for it, with Lima hitting the post on 31 minutes, after Adriano's well-timed tackle fortuitously found the Brazilian forward's foot. A few minutes later, Lima would become the provider of a beautifully placed long ball towards Ola John, who turned his opponent inside out, but allowed Pinto another good save. Whenever Jesus' men got the ball out wide, their opponents' knees buckled.

• Second half

The second half was a whole different game. Benfica started to tire out and their pressing was not as effective. Therefore, Barcelona found it easier to get into their usual passing rhythm and find chinks in Benfica's armour. With Ola John and Nolito offering less and less protection to their full-backs, Tello ran riot against Máxi Pereira, who seemed to lose his temper once or twice, but managed to keep it together. Also, Lima and Rodrigo remained high up, which meant that the trio of Song, Sergi Robert and Thiago Alcântara had the necessary space and time to pick their passes. Fortunately for Benfica, this group of players' timing for the through-ball was not as accurate as it usually is, allowing Benfica to successfully deploy the offside trap.

Messi came in after 58 minutes (with Villa going right) and immediately drew several fouls just outside the box - and he was also more dangerous at providing key passes for Villa or Tello. Messi himself would get into an excellent position to score, but Artur's brave save avoided the worst for Benfica, with the Argentinean being stretchered off after that duel. By then, Benfica had already changed into a 4x3x3 shape, with Matic behind André Almeida and André Gomes, and Bruno César and Ola John on the wings supporting Cardozo.

Benfica wasted a very good chance not only to win at Nou Camp, but to progress into the next stage. They benefitted from a perfect storm, with Barcelona fielding a team comprised of youngsters and second-string players. The Eagles have only themselves to blame for not scoring on (at least) one of the several opportunities they had to lock the score. The Europa League awaits - and with it another shot at an European trophy.

James' last-gasp goal gives Porto the win

Starting elevens

After Braga's last few seasons, this clash is already considered a clash of titans, and rightly so. Braga's insistence on fighting FC Porto and Benfica for the top spots means that the Estádio Axa is no longer a safe haven for any opponent. Benfica's win against Olhanense on Saturday was on the minds of both teams and neither one could afford to slip up, especially José Peseiro's team, who were also trailing their rivals by six points.

FC Porto coach Vítor Pereira made a few changes, bringing Alex Sandro and Fernando back into the team, instead of Abdoulaye and Defour. Other than that, his selection was as expected, particularly in light of both players' appearances midweek against Dynamo Zagreb. José Peseiro's only change from their heavy defeat at the hands of Cluj was the choice of Mossoró ahead of Ruben Amorim.

The first half was extremely entertaining and offered further evidence on the merits and qualities of both teams. Whether they were being purposefully more cautious than usual or their latest results were in the back of the players' heads, Braga went down a very different path. In fact, they were hardly similar to anything they have shown over the past few months under José Peseiro. Instead of pressuring, they stood off; instead of attacking in numbers, they tried a more direct style. Apparently, this Braga may well have been Domingos or Leonardo Jardim's.

FC Porto came on strong out of the gate and created several clear-cut chances in the opening minutes, Otamendi even hitting the woodwork on the third minute. The Dragons' blueprint did not deviate much from their standard procedures and involved James Rodríguez drifting inward, with Lucho (or Danilo) occupying the Colombian's space. With Mossoró (usually less adept at defending) deployed on the left and Ruben Micael too close to Éder, FC Porto dictated the tempo for the opening 20 minutes, giving the impression the goal would be a mere formality.

However, Braga managed to settle down, started showing what they are capable of, and made their first shot 20 minutes into the match - FC Porto would in fact not muster a single shot after Braga's first one until the half-time whistle. Micael dropped further back goalside of Fernando and hindered the away team's passing rhythm.

José Peseiro, in turn, read his opponent well. Mossoró's deployment on the left was not an accident, nor was Éder's insistence on drifting to the left wing. James' forays in the middle mean that Danilo (or the centre-backs, whenever Danilo doesn't make it back on time) is often exposed. With Mossoró on the left wing, the team had a clear out-ball and looked to take advantage of FC Porto's known weak spot. The final 25 minutes of the first half would belong to Braga.

The second half was far less entertaining, with both teams misplacing numerous passes and apparently too wary of each other. Thanks to Peseiro's tweaks, FC Porto were now unable to find their precise passing to carve Braga's defence open. On the other hand, Braga looked dangerous on the break a few times, but the fear of a loss seemed to mean that the draw was something both teams could live with.

To prove just that, José Peseiro did not make any bold changes, opting to rotate his central-midfielders - Amorim for Viana and Djamal for Micael -, since he knew that, despite playing with width, FC Porto are deadly through the centre and he wanted to stop them in their tracks.

Ironically enough, that was the area from which the Portuguese champions would grab their late goal. Danilo drifted inward, James got the ball and was quite fortunate with his shot, which hit Douglão (who was at hist best today) and deceived Beto. The goal came only a few seconds before the 90th minute. The fate would be even more cruel to Braga, who would concede their second on the 93rd minute, after an unfortunate clearance from Salino and Jackson Martínez's well placed shot.

In conclusion, FC Porto may count themselves lucky, since a draw looked like it was all they were going to get out of the match. Analysing the flow of play from both teams and the opportunities they created, a draw would indeed be a more truthful result. Both Braga and FC Porto tried to win the match on their own, very specific terms and had the chances for it - on periods they clearly dominated. The hosts might have said goodbye to any title hopes, but José Peseiro might have realised that a gung-ho approach is not necessarily the only way to hurt other teams.

Topic of the day - Chelsea

How can the reigning European champions be such a lost cause?

Any analysis of last night's match I might have thought of doing is now tragically informed by the knowledge that Roberto Di Matteo was sacked by Chelsea. The question now remains: which manager is bold enough to go where so many have failed before him?

It is often hard to understand what goes on in the minds of today's CEO, presidents, directors, managers or voters. It seems that people dedicate less and less time to assess processes, rather focusing on results and results alone – ignoring that results may sometimes be random, whereas processes are not.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich fired José Mourinho in September 2007, a few months into that season. The precedent for sacking coaches in the middle of the season had been established and only Carlo Ancelotti managed to see out two full seasons (even if he was fired by the end of the second after winning an unprecedented double in his first year in charge). After that, Luiz Felipe Scolari, André Villas-Boas and now Roberto Di Matteo have all been axed before the end of the season.

The Italian manager was André Villas-Boas' assistant coach during the Portuguese's few months in charge and therefore was able to watch first-hand the developments of his former boss' sacking, which meant that he had to be aware of the pressure that had been mounting over the past weeks. Despite leading Chelsea to the Champions League for the first time, Di Matteo's position never looked secure and Abramovich actually seemed reluctant to hire him on a permanent basis as the club's manager.

Di Matteo succeeded where AVB had failed for numerous reasons, but it was particularly because he was not so adamant at casting the dressing room owners aside - possibly one of AVB's biggest mistakes - and, most importantly in my view, because he went for the diametrically opposed: a cautious, compact and disciplined team that broke quickly and exploited the space left by their opponents.

Despite their ultimate success, Abramovich was not satisfied, insisting on winning with panache - and took out his seemingly endless chequebook and signed players that were specifically designed to bring the attractive and spectacular, if not romantic, approach he has been craving for so long.

Now any coach will tell you that defending is the easiest - and most likely best -starting point while coaching a team. Yes, it can be challenging at times, but deploying your players in two compact banks of four when you have players - such as John Terry, John Obi Mikel, Didier Drogba or Petr Cech - who thrive on that particular brand of football was clearly the easiest and familiar way to go. That was why I was so curious to see what Roberto Di Matteo would bring when next season started.

To be honest, all the signs were there. Even though Chelsea managed to grab several wins and hold on near the top of the Premier League for a few weeks, it didn't look like a case of "if", but "when". While it was true the Pensioners were playing a more expansive kind of football, they were also displaying leaks all over the place and there were no significant adjustments made to the initial plan of playing all of Óscar, Mata and Hazard behind the ever unhappy Torres.

Chelsea kept playing fast, attacking football, which was sometimes enough, but kept conceding too many goals, giving the ball away too cheaply. They were constantly overrun in the middle, not because Mikel and Ramires were poor, but because they were so often left exposed by their front four - and too often Ashley Cole, whose defensive positioning is becoming more and more questionable by the day.

Mind you, they didn't forget how to defend - they were simply out of their comfort zone. Terry is not a quick defender and is vulnerable to balls over the top. Ricardo Carvalho, the player who used to cover for him, is long gone and neither David Luiz nor Gary Cahill are good replacements for that particular sort of task.

When the two men felt the heat from above, Villas-Boas and Di Matteo went in different directions. AVB remained true - probably ill-advisedly - to his principles and stood his ground in a crucial match for the team's aspirations (at Napoli) by daring to leave out some of the squad's key figures and showing who was the boss (not him, evidently). Di Matteo, conversely, tried to steer into safety and resorted to a strategy that had worked miracles in the past, playing compact, benching Fernando Torres, deploying the right-back Azpilicueta further up front, and leaving Hazard up front on his own, trying to exploit the space behind the apparently unstoppable Lichtsteiner.

To be honest, even though I'm aware that Chelsea lost 3-0 and that Cech was back to his golden days, I have to admit that it was the most comfortable I have Chelsea this season. Yes, Juventus bossed them around, but that was pretty much what happened during the last few months of last season - and it still yielded results. On the other hand, whenever Chelsea managed to break free from Juventus' initial pressure, they were extremely dangerous, particularly through the sheer speed and skills of Óscar and Hazard.

Regardless of the identity of the new Chelsea manager, it will be extremely hard not to see a return to safer sceneries. The new gaffer will have no time, no wiggle room to implement his ideas and will probably go back to basics: Where and how to defend, break quickly, bench Torres and take advantage of Hazard's swiftness and dribbling skills, and Óscar's vision.

Despite the unfortunate end, Di Matteo's last match in charge could well prove a blueprint for the next man - provided he has the time to put it in place.

Sabotage Times - Benfica

There is a new piece from Combination Play on Sabotage Times -this time on which Benfica would be expecting Celtic. The article can be found here.

New piece for Sabotage Times

My new article for Sabotage Times revolves around Porto upcoming starlet James Rodríguez and can be found here.

A tribute to Robert Enke