Inter 1-1 Sampdoria: Inter’s attackers struggle to break down Sampdoria’s two banks of four
The starting line-ups
Inter dominated, Sampdoria took the lead, then Rafael Benitez’s side rallied late on to claim a point.
Diego Milito was still out injured, but Esteban Cambiasso returned to the centre of midfield. Elsewhere, the side was as expected, with Jonathan Biabiany on the right and Coutinho on the left.
Sampdoria played their 4-4-2 (or 4-4-1-1) system, in order to solidly defend with eight players. Massimo Volta came in at centre-back alongside Daniele Gastaldello, whilst on the right Franco Semioli was replaced by Valdimir Koman. Fernando Tissone continued ahead of Andrea Poli.
Sampdoria’s approach was very defensive-minded. The two holding midfielders looked to get goalside of Wesley Sneijder, with the wide midfielders not much further forward. These eight players set out very narrow, denying Sneijder space – although his excellent movement meant he often found room to receive the ball, he rarely had time to get a shot away.
Samp to back five?
As moves developed, one of Sampdoria’s wide players sometimes dropped in and marked an Inter winger, forming something more like a back five, with the the relevant Sampdoria full-back tucking in and forming even more of a compact defence in the centre. This left the Inter full-backs free, of course, but neither Cristian Chivu nor Maicon provided particularly good crosses in the first half.
Sampdoria’s 4-4-2 (as opposed to their diamond shape) means that Antonio Cassano plays centrally, just off Giampaolo Pazzini. Inter were happy with this, as it meant that the trio of Lucio, Walter Samuel and Esteban Cambiasso dealt with those two very easily in central positions. Cassano caused Inter slightly more problems when he shuttled back out to the left-sided position he cuts in so well from – and although he didn’t create anything from that zone, it made Maicon slightly more reluctant to come forward, whilst Lucio was forced to come out of his natural position to the right flank, stretching Inter’s defence.
Poor transitions from home side
Sampdoria’s problem, however, was that there was a huge distance between the midfield and attack. Their defence was playing with a very deep line to prevent Samuel Eto’o’s pace causing a problem, but they were also seeking to minimise the space between defence and midfield, to stifle Wesley Sneijder. This meant that whilst there was generally only 10 metres between defence and midfield, there was frequently 40 metres between midfield and attack when Sampdoria won possession, and they didn’t form particularly good counter-attacks in the first half.
Sampdoria's two banks of four sometimes became pulled around by Inter's movement, but the eight players always stayed very narrow
The main goalscoring threat was the marvellous Coutinho, who made something happen nearly every time he got the ball. He took advantage of Sampdoria’s narrow defence and happily stationed himself in wide positions, before picking up speed and taking on defenders at full pelt. The one attribute lacking in his game at the moment is finishing ability, but he caused Sampdoria constant problems with his direct running.
Second half
The second half continued in similar fashion to the first, but Domenico Di Carlo had clearly instructed Cassano and Pazzini to drop deeper, because Sampdoria were much more compact in the second period, with passes between midfield and attack much easier. Cassano drifted across the pitch more, and it was from an unconventional right-sided position that he assisted the opening goal from, chipping a cross over for Stefano Guberti to volley past Julio Cesar – though the Brazilian goalkeeper should have saved it.
Inter changed nothing when 1-0 down, aside from removing Biabiany and introducing Goran Pandev, but the Macedonian did little on the ball. Inter’s squad still seems relatively weak, especially for European Champions, and Benitez was forced to rely on the players already on the pitch to conjure up a goal. It was Coutinho who provided the assist with a quick dart down the left, and Eto’o finished at the near post.
Sampdoria threatened to self-destruct late on, but the defence held firm and got some tremendous last-ditch tackles in. Inter had a couple of half-chances, whilst Sampdoria showed no ambition to get a second goal – in stoppage time they won a free-kick near the corner flag, but kept the ball there rather than trying to get it into the box.
Conclusion
One thing Inter did not do under Jose Mourinho was suffer home league defeats. Rafael Benitez looked to be on course to record Inter’s first league loss of the season, but Sampdoria were unable to deal with Coutinho, and Eto’o cannot be kept off the scoresheet at the moment.
In general Sampdoria defended well, but the transitions from defence to attack were disappointing (the goal came when Cassano won the ball in the corner from Chivu, rather than on the break). That was natural considering how deep the defence was and, in turn, how deep the midfield was – they simply couldn’t connect with the attack when they won the ball, especially with a double pivot of Esteban Cambiasso and Javier Zanetti in the way.
Coutinho was marvelous. The next big thing?
Indeed. Thought he was very raw earlier this season, but has settled quickly.
I keep reading that Biabany is the new Lucas. Any opinions?
How so? Biabiany is a striker played on the wing while Lucas is a defensive midfielder.
On another note, does anyone know while Benitez doesn’t play Suazo and Mancini? I remember them being pretty good a few seasons back
Have no idea what the deal is with Mancini…
Suazo was good in Cagliari, not good, awsome. Very fast, strong striker. But in Inter and in Benfica (thats where i saw i’m live) he was &%$#”!$… With Pandev, Milito and Eto’, Suazo has no chance. And thank god for that. Very, very limited striker when is comes to technique.
Yea i remember, I even read reports back then that said he was as good as Eto’o. But with Milito and Pandev injured, I’m sure Benitez could have found some playing time for Suazo and Mancini if he wanted to (I think even that Obi youngster made more appearances). Instead of relying on a youngster like Biabiany, which genuinely surprised me because I always thought of Benitez as a cautious coach. Guess he just doesn’t rate them at all.
Suazo’s more of a sprinter than a footballer these days, really different from what he used to be. Mancini was so atrocious during Mourinho’s time at Inter that he got loaned to AC Milan, where he was so atrocious he pretty much just sat on the bench.
“while Lucas is a defensive midfielder”
He was an attacking midfielder at Gremio, and more like a box to box midfielder now. He starts at the DM position but makes attacking runs forward. He’s not bad really; 40/41 pass completion against Blackburn, and not all ’sideways and backwards’ as he is usually accused of.
Why is Benitez playing Babiany and Coutinho surprising though? He did often start young players like Lucas, Insua, Ngog, and sometimes Pacheco at Liverpool as well.
Oh I definitely think Lucas is a good player, or at least decent. I don’t know how he played at Gremio, but he’s definitely a DM at Liverpool now, with maybe more license to roam when alongside Mascherano. It’s just the comment comparing Biabiany and Lucas that baffled me, they are completely different players.
Suazo and Mancini have essentially sat on the bench for years, I’m pretty sure that they’re both finished at this point…both were good for their prior clubs, though. Suazo probably enjoyed the counterattacking freedom given to him by playing in a smaller side like Cagliari. Mancini was also good for Roma on the left of Spalletti’s 4231, but by the last year became pouty, for reasons I can’t quite recall…it also didn’t help him that Vucinic was starting to come into his own (even in a not quite preferred left wing role).
Any thoughts on why Benitez continues starting Chivu ahead of Santon? Chivu has looked average at best this season.
Benitez is only going to use Santon to cover for Maicon, Zanetti or Chivu, Santon is the perfect cover. A remarkable player at the age of 19, very skillful youngster, not all full back has his ability to play left or right full using both feet, he can cross also with both feet and is a huge asset and have that kind of ball technique. Santon can also play ahead on the picth on both wings. He has a tremendous awareness of the game, reads well the plays close to him, awesome physical qualities. He is the definition of the “modern footballer” of the 21st century.
Benitez in the back prefers more experienced players, we have seen this in Valencia and Liverpool for the past decade. Benitez is obligated to win the Serie A, so in is mind he won’t want to risk a 19yr old in the back.
But I wouldn’t say Mourinho particularly likes playing young players, can’t think of any at Chelsea when he was there anyway. But he gave Santon his chance. And the fact Benitez is happy to play Coutinho makes me think it’s not his age which is the reason – does he simply think Chivu is a better player? Maybe Santon’s just off form?
I Quote:
“Benitez in the back prefers more experienced players”
I wasn’t talking about midfield or attacking players.
Mourinho first started Santon because he showed more effort in training than Maxwell and Chivu, i remember reading in a Portuguese newspaper. Then came some injuries he continued to use him. He even played in midfield roles, because Quaresma and Mancini just weren’t working out most of the times.
But yes, in this present time he might just be lacking form to be part of the coaches picks.
Inter was good but in my opinion they lack final pass in some situations. Sampdoria did defend with 2 banks of four but there was space. Coutinho was very good, I think that he will only improve.
I noticed that Lucio was quite keen on going forward a lot of the time. Often he would stay up after corners when Inter won the ball, and Sampdoria seemed quite baffled when the big centre-back came running from the defense with the ball. Had he been a little bit better with the ball, he really could have done some harm to the Sampdoria defense.
Could this be the next big thing, attacking centre-backs? It’s certainly not unreasonable, with almost every big team in Europe playing with one central attacker and leaving one centre-back free. Lucio is a prime example of this, surging forwards from the defense, but also Barcelona has shoved Pique up front when they needed a big strong guy up front (the best example is the home tie with Inter last season).
I have a hard time seeing this tactic being deployed as a standard tactic though, I think most managers would prefer to keep the two centre-back at home just to be safe. There is another problem, that it’s a long way from your own defense to the opponents, which would force the attacking centre-back to have great stamina, speed and good ball-skills, in which case it would be better to place him as a wing-back or in a more advanced position. It’s an interesting thought though…
Well, there is no tactic to cover centre back when going forward, or there is no plan who need to cover that player if others are occupy, but in order that to function that one player must be very good on the ball if he has it. It’s not bad tactic but you need some class for playing that, thats my opinion. Or, you can push him forward just to distract some players in order to get others free. Khedira for Germany often runs from the middle to distract and occupy some defenders to him to get others attackers free. But, playing that with centre back, I don’t know.
In SL Benfica, David Luiz is a ball playing center-back, he can run 40, 50 meters with the ball, has a fierce shot, can even deliver a reasonable cross if he ever gets to the line, good technique when he transports the ball, Javi Garcia stays back and replaces him, Javi is the Benfica Anchor Man, only goes forward in offensive corners and offensive free-kicks. In the last game against Portimonense, Javi played mostly in David Luiz spot, next to Luisão, David’s partner in center back. David Luiz was always going forward to help.
It’s really really risky but pays off if well played, but if he looses the ball when going forward, you can go crazy, because the team is also going forward down the pitch and then he looses the ball and there is only two players and the anchor man to stop the counter-attack. It’s a hearth attack in the making.
You can see from 0:11 on the video David Luiz coming from the left and trying to score from about 25 meters.
Benfica 1 – Portimonense Highlights: http://rutube.ru/tracks/3706230.html?v=9c61b195bde086ed89b7380db6eb473a&autoStart=true&bmstart=0
PS: Sorry about the off-topic, i was just giving another example of a ball playing center-back.
Agger and Krygiakos have been getting forward for Liverpool too. Agger making runs with the ball, Krygiakos staying up following corners.
Some good points. In regards to Santon and Mancini, I have examined both as I saw them live when they played against Toronto.
Just watching Santon run, you can tell he has exceptional talent for a Fullback. I do agree that he is the ‘modern’ player, but he is not consistent. Both Mourinho and the tactian Benitez prefer substance over style and Santon is more of the latter where as Chivu is rock solid.
Mancini has lost in three areas – 1) confidence: you can see he just does not have the same confidence as he did in Roma. In the capital, he would fearlessly take on players but now he is hesitant and is not as comfortable on the ball. This is proof that some players are better as big fish in a small pond. 2) Position – I have seen him all over from his natural position as a left winger to the unnatural centre midfielder. He is being used as a guinea pig. 3) Fitness – in Toronto, he played like he was 35, which is 5 years older than he is. His fitness is not where it used to be.
How was Chivu rock solid in the Sampdoria game? Cassano owned him every single time on his flank. One of those times led to a goal, even though it arguably started from a foul on Chivu. His performance this season so far has been average IMO. His pace is nothing to write home about either. Santon at his best could catch up with C.Ronaldo.
Chivu is a fantastic centre-back with a bit of skill on the ball, plus he’s left-footed. Inter doesn’t have a natural left-back, but two right-backs who play incredibly well at left back (Zanetti and Santon). I guess what Benitez (and before him Mourinho and Mancini) figured was that having an experienced cetre-back in the left-back position is worth it. At times, I can see why they’d think so, he makes great blocks and he’s good at intercepting the ball. His problem is when he attacks. He’s not fast (or fit) enough to be able to track all the way back against a speedy wide player when he pushes up, so he gets beaten.
The way I think about it is that wing-backs deal with players who run “past” them, that is avoid them and squeeze down the wing. Meanwhile, centre-backs deal with players running “through” them to get to goal. Chivu is not adept at dealing with the former, but there aren’t many better than him at dealing with the latter. That’s how he kept Messi quiet in the CL group stages, for instance.
As a general purpose left-back, Santon is better. He defends well against the speedy players, he can keep up with anyone, and he offers a lot in attack. However, Chivu is the better choice when you want to “park the bus”. Why he’s being picked ahead of Santon now, only those at the Inter camp know.
Fitness i believe, he was out a really long time.
Well said re: Chivu…
Some managers almost refuse to do it, but a common defensive tactic is to play players who are predominantly centre-back in the full-back position. I think you can only get away with this if they aren’t absolutely murder pace-wise.
I firmly believe that this not only ups the “headerer” quota of a given team (always best to have 1 more than your opponent for set-pieces) and also when “parking the bus” he can tuck in and add an extra CB centrally. Also has the *toughness* to kick the hell out of an opposition winger who can tend to be slight and fleet-footed.
But with every advantage comes disadvantage and that’s a lack of attacking bite going forward. I can’t speak too much for Rafa’s Inter but Mourinho’s generally countered with 4 players (LW, AM, RW, ST) and perhaps an extra DM or the extraordinary athleticism of Maicon….
My problem with Chivu isn’t his lack of attacking prowess but with how poor he has been defensively of late. He seems to struggle whenever he comes up against good wide players which is why I think Inter would be better off starting with Santon or Zanetti at left back and using Chivu as cover for Lucio and Samuel.
Well in that case you’re darned right, if he’s not been up to task defensively…
Like I said earlier, I don’t think Chivu is bad at attacking, and I think he’s solid at defending, but he gets seriously exposed when he combines the two. He was fine under Mourinho because Mourinho only wanted one defender up at a time, and that defender was generally Maicon. Plus, Mourinho played a deeper line than Benitez, which suits Chivu. However, Benitez wants a lot of play to go down the left wing (presumably to take advantage of Eto’o/Coutinho’s dribbling), so Chivu pushes up a lot.
I think Mancini should go back to Roma, he was immense with them not that long ago, and clearly the move to Inter has been a retrograde step in his career, he needs to get back to basics and show the world that he is still a great player. Santon has time on his side; all things being equal he should become the “Maldini” for Inter when he finishes his career…
Milito injury and struggling to get his old instinct back become a bit bleesing-in-disguise for Coutinho. But I’m worry about his growth if Milito and Pandev “back”.