Schalke 0-2 Manchester United: Schalke torn apart by United’s passing and movement
The starting line-ups
Manchester United were superior throughout the 90 minutes and could have won by a much greater margin.
Ralf Rangnick was without Benedikt Höwedes at the back, which meant Joel Matip had to play at centre-back. Other than that, it was the expected team in the expected formation.
Sir Alex Ferguson omitted Nani to play Antonio Valencia on the right, and played Fabio behind him. The side was the same as the XI that started against Chelsea, with the exception of one Brazilian twin in for the other.
Manchester United dominated the game from start to finish – better at the back, always in charge in midfield, and creative in the final third. The only poor aspect of their performance was their finishing – though credit is due to Manuel Neuer for a fine first half performance. He was only holding back the tide, however, and United’s goals duly arrived midway through the second period.
With little change in the pattern of play throughout the game (with the slight exception of when Rangnick replaced Alexander Baumjohann with Peer Kluge towards the beginning of the second half and Schalke briefly competed in midfield) there’s no real reason to review the game chronologically. Instead, here’s a look at what Schalke did badly, and what United did well.
Schalke errors
(a) Not compact enough
This was Schalke’s biggest problem. The concept of being ‘compact’ from back to front is widely established in top-level modern football. It doesn’t matter whether a team presses high up the pitch or uses a deep defensive line – the gap from the defence to attack shouldn’t be stretched. Arrigo Sacchi famously wanted a distance of no more than 25 metres in this respect, and Rafael Benitez – a self-confessed Sacchi disciple – is another who encourages his sides to be compact.
This idea seemed to completely escape Schalke in this match, however, as Kyriakos Papadopoulos would often become stranded in front of his own defence, with a huge distance between Schalke’s back five and the rest of the side. The three attacking midfielders tended to jog back, meaning United found gaps between the lines and were able to play.
(b) Allowing Carrick to play
Michael Carrick is a player who divides opinion, but it’s widely established that there’s a huge difference in his performance level when he’s left free, and when he’s closed down in possession. Carrick has a good passing range but needs time and space to pick his passes, and Schalke stood off him, allowing him (and Giggs) to dictate play in the midfield zone.
Carrick's passes
In previous games Raul had been very good at dropping onto the opposition holding midfielder and preventing them from passing, but Carrick moved slightly higher up the pitch into a position Raul didn’t want to drop into. He completed more passes than any other player, and also covered the furthest distance.
(c) Using only one holder
This was a good advert for the use of a ‘double pivot’ in midfield. Jurado was slack in his defensive duties – he didn’t drop in alongside Papadopoulos quickly enough (and nor did he press higher up the pitch). This meant that Wayne Rooney could move from side to side and drag Papadopoulos around the pitch, opening up space for midfield runners.
(d) Not patient enough in possession
Against Inter, Schalke could play the ball out wide to their full-backs, who were in space and could bring the ball forward. Here, they didn’t have the luxury of ‘free’ players, and so had to try to move up the pitch as a unit. Their passing meant that this wasn’t possible, though – they played forward passes too quickly and couldn’t retain the ball up top.
What Manchester United did well
(a) Pinning back the Schalke full-backs
It’s the usual Manchester United strategy in Europe, but Park and Valencia had excellent games defensively. Atsuto Uchida and Hans Sarpei tried to get forward to stretch the play and provide width, but were rarely in the game and Schalke had to try play forward passes, which were frequently unsuccessful.
(b) Exploiting space between the lines
Schalke were bad in this respect, but United still had to take advantage. Rooney’s movement dragged his marker around and this opened up space in front of the defence for Giggs and Park Ji-Sung to run into. Park spent much of the game coming inside, similar to his movement at the start of the season, whilst Giggs’ bursts forward were reserved but well-timed – particularly in the case of his goal, but he also had other goalscoring chances.
(c) Getting behind the ball quickly
A basic tenet of their game, but United’s (new?) 4-4-1-1 shape was particularly obvious here. The defence sat quite deep, Carrick and Giggs occupied space rather than individual players in front, and the wide players tracked the full-backs. With Rooney dropping in to pressure Schalke in the middle of the pitch, United were disciplined in the rare spells Schalke held onto the ball.
(d) Intelligent passing from midfield
Again, Schalke helped United hugely by standing off, but United used the ball intelligently. Carrick was clearly the main man – his passing was reliable, but also varied. He played short sideways passes, incisive forward balls, and long diagonals out to the flanks. Rooney was also impressive with his passing – he moved away from Papadopoulos to get time on the ball, and then moved play from flank to flank.
Conclusion
Schalke terrible or United fantastic? With such a one-sided performance it’s often hard to tell, but if we’re focusing on tactics – which, of course, we are – it has to be marked down as Schalke being woeful. It’s rare to see a top-level side leaving such huge space between the lines, even rarer to see such little defensive effort from half the outfield players. Losing 0-2 flattered Schalke.
That might seem harsh on United – and the obvious question would be, “If Schalke are so bad, how come Valencia and Inter didn’t carve them apart?” To which the answer is, “They did.” Inter scored two goals in the first leg as well (the Italians were just desperately awful at the back and managed to concede five goals), whilst Valencia created constant opportunities and managed to waste them – much like United did in the first half here. As Unai Emery said after that game, “We had four chances and we don’t take any. We’ve been knocked out unjustly, we’ve missed an opportunity with everything in our favour. It was a game where we had more chances and we lost.” It’s a long way back for Schalke.
Schalke 0-2 Manchester United: Schalke torn apart by United’s passing and movement
Gotta love Hernandez’s movement for the first goal – holds the door open for Gigg’s and says, “There you go sir!”
Yeah, and was particularly impressed with his movement into channels too. Has got a lot of praise (rightly) for movement in box, but also good in deeper positions
Spot on as usual. It was a bit of both, Shalke being poor and United being very good.
As you highlighted United were given way too much space and time on the ball and with a bit of better finishing this could have been embarrassing for the Germans who showed why they are mid table in the Bundesliga.
I am not sure whether this was designed or not, but United have slowed down considerable in the second, almost content to keep possession and wait for chances instead of pressing on constantly as they did in the first. I started to lose faith and thought the deserved goal might not come at all. But a quick pick up of the tempo, a great run, few nice passes followed by a superb assist and United were in front. Shalke were still in shock of finally conceding when United showed more of the same. It was brilliant to watch.
I thought that Scholes could have come on earlier. With the time and space Shalke were giving, he could have really torn them apart, as it were he still made 27/30 passes in about 20 minutes of playing time.
In the end after getting two United were quite happy to just keep the ball while Shalke pretty much gave up. A very poor showing, I am not sure what went wrong, whether it was the tactics or just a poor team performance, but Shalke looked overwhelmed from the start and played without any belief that they can beat United. A well deserved win, though it should have been over by now, a 0-5 would also have been fair.
Today, no matter what personnel Fergie used I think it would have worked. Nani could have perhaps gotten by his marker more often, and Scholes might have used his passing range as well or better than Carrick. It was one of those days when almost everything a team does goes right. Almost everything, because for all of United’s poor finishing in the first half, Neuer was immense. Someone (Bayern?) will have themselves a great keeper for the next decade.
I must say I think Nani over Valencia is still the right choice. And I’m a big Valencia fan.
Nani provides so many different things. Better cutting inside, can cross (when he chooses to), shoots well with both feet, is harder to defend as he goes down the line as much as cutting inside. A more talented player. But Valencia, though somewhat limited, usually proved a very good performance, and defends as much as any attacking player in the league. Too bad Nani is a bit better on the right, if he was as good on the left United could utilize both in big games as well as in the league.
But right now Fergie is getting his line up right for the most part and almost any players he picks and formations, and tactics seem to work. Lets hope it holds up for another month. Could make for a great final no matter who goes. Interesting that this now looks more of a team since 2007. No one huge star to save us (RoM spoke of this on twitter) if we’re poor, but several different players stepping up at different times. Its great to watch.
i think only Fletcher is the one first team player missing from the team now; all the other pieces are in place now and i dont think SAF will change too much now in the EPL until the championshiup is wrapped up.
Utd showed all their experience and class gained form playing all those semis and finals in this competition in this game; the slower tempo being raised twice in order to score two goals and then slowed again to retain control. Wonderful to watch and im sure that this team will complete the job come next week…
Who would Fletcher replace?
Depends on the opponent I guess. When you play a team like Barça, who press all the time, Carrick will have a difficult game (as mentioned by ZM). I’d play Fletcher in his place then, to get more energy in midfield. When there’s some more space in front of MU’s defense, then I’d prefer Carrick. Giggs, Park, Valencia (or Nani), Rooney and Hernandez should always play in important games when the current shape is used.
The main reason Fergie played Valencia over Nani is for his defensive qualities (i.e. tracking his full-back so as to not allow him to be an outlet for Schalke). As mentioned by ZM, Schalke’s main method of keeping and recycling possession is by using their two full-backs to pass to when they advance forward – Fergie obviously knew this (or whoever his scout is told him this), and so picked Valencia and Park on either flank to stop this happening, thereby nullifying one of Schalke’s main tactical methods.
It shows how Fergie’s Tactical nous and understanding has improved through his time by seeing the bigger picture for the whole team, and not just picking a player on individual skill (i.e. he could have said to himself “Nani is a World-Class winger who will beat the left-back inside-out and will create lots of chances – obviously I should pick him on the right”). Valencia is of course a fine winger (although not as good as Nani, IMO), and Fergie felt the balance of good attacking play AND good defensive discipline (which Valencia provides) was what was needed for this game.
What people must understand about United away from home in Europe and big EPL games(and I’ve seen a lot of United now, to be able to make this comment), is that they always play at a pedestrian pace, always in control of themselves, making sure that they don’t concede any goals, whilst looking to score at the other end without overstretching themselves and leaving themselves open to swift counter-attacks (remember, in the first Manchester Derby this season, at Eastlands – the ridiculously boring 0-0 draw – after the game Fergie said that they were looking to play the game like they would in a European away tie. In that game they played in exactly the same style as I’ve just described). Therefore it makes complete sense that Fergie would choose Valencia in this game……maybe Nani will get the nod in the home leg……
It was strange that no one pressed Carrick – who dictated from deep. Schalke midfield was broken (that led to back 4 problems) which wasn’t Ralf Rangnick fault at all – but I think he wanted to play Man.Utd on the counter-attack which was his downfall.
They let Carrick dominate from deep, therefore were in pretty much in control and all the other factors you mentioned are really spot on.
But from Schalke perceptive, it was quite frustrating that they were rushing with possession and didn’t keep the ball. It was so broken. Man.Utd capitalized very well on Schalke poor performance.
Great analysis as always!
Amazed I got through this report without writing ‘broken team’ – thanks for making it right re the midfield!
Good report. This match wasn’t too hard to dissect as you mentioned. I was very surprised however at the minimal effort displayed by Shalke in the second half, primarily after they were able to hold Manchester scoreless in the first half. You would think that they would come out with more pressure. I guess they forgot they were playing at home.
Only just found this site – Loving your analysis. Keep it up!
It is very unique game plan isn’t it? Usually, Champion’s League knock out stage require 3 men midfielder formation. Rooney drop deep and help defense still he is forward not a midfielder.
I am a big fan of Hernandez but he could have done much better than he did, and he knew it. I can understand the frustration he feels when he pounds the floor after his crossed shot at the net. He played well getting behind the back four but needed to be quicker on the finish. I can see him being a great player in the near future if he improves other aspects of his game like: his passing, his movement out of the box, and definitely his dribbling. Hope he scores in the next game!
Funny you mention that because as I was watching the game I have to say I thought he had one of his most complete games in a United shirt!!
Decent hold up play, getting tackles in like the one that robbed the Schalke defender to put Rooney through and much more integrated in play instead of just relying on his movement.
Even the pull back for Rooney when he probably should of shot showed to me that he was prepared to mix it up instead of just getting the ball and instantly going for goal(although the quality of Neuer may have made him think twice).
While that directness is obviously one of his main strong points, being able to mix it up like that will make him a much more rounded player.
After making numerous remarks on this forum about the strictness of refereeing in Europe, I was surprised to see just how laid-back the referee was in this game. I thought he let a lot of tackles go which would (and probably should) have been fouls for any other referee in Europe. I don’t think you’ll see an accommodating ref like this in Europe very often…….
…..oh, and Neuer is probably the best keeper in World Football at the mo – Alex Ferguson needs to offer him the world to get him to move to Man Utd…..
oh, and you were right, ZM, about Valencia carving Schalke open – I remember seeing the highlights of that game and thinking “how on earth did Valencia miss all those chances?!?” – so Schalke obviously had it coming…….
It’s a shame really, as Valencia are a really interesting team. Emery must be going nuts right now.
actually i dont think there has ever been a better keeper…. i mean he won so many games just on his own and is still sooooo young. if you just remember porto 2008. schalke were so screwed this game, and with any other keeper, even oli kahn or buffon they would have lost terribly, but somehow the young blondie is just the boy of miracles…
No. Neuer needs to stay right the $%#& where he is, and football’s financial regulations to prevent teams like Man U/Barca/Madrid/Inter from just buying whoever performed best the prior season can’t possibly come into effect quickly enough.
And shame on you for caring more about the team you like than the health of the game.
I think it’d be so much more interesting if they all had to make do with only trades and free agents like in the NBA. The business of buying a player’s contract from another team is one of the most sordid and depressing things about football.
Neuer had a great game, but I hope it doesn’t turn into a mania about how he’s the best goalkeeper in the world. Gareth Bale had one good game too and they gave him the award for best player of the season. That leaves my mind playing a game of boggle. Neuer made some fine saves, but United weren’t as clinical as they can be. They were very much in the 2nd gear, just doing the work. Like you said, the game was more down to the poor quality of Schalke’s play than the class of United’s. If Sir Alex wanted them to, it easily could’ve 7-0 or 8-0, but it wasn’t needed. Huge games against Arsenal and Chelsea are coming up so its obvious Fergie doesn’t want his boys to exert any more energy than absolutely necessary. In less than 2 weeks time, United could be through to the Champions League final and be crowned Premiership champions.
I don’t think Schalke can come back from 2 away goals down. They have to score thrice to win, but its at Old Trafford and United’s record there, particularly defensively speaking, is unmatched. Plus, United always seem to score at home as well. Nothing is impossible, but Schalke are going to have to play immaculately to get through to the final.
I don’t want to hear any more of this nonsense that United are “mediocre” or “average” this season either. Its just been on my nerves and I hope it stops. They are mere days away from being the most successful club in English history with a very good chance at winning Europe too. An “average” club can’t do that.
Anyway, I wanted to say my favorite part of the game happened after the final whistle blew. It was when Raul and Giggs swapped shirts. It almost brought a tear to my eye to see such amazing players, legends, showing that kind of admiration and respect for one another. The “Old Guard” of players like Giggs, Raul, Del Piero, are some of the greatest and most admirable players both on and off the pitch. The new chumps like Balotelli should take note on how true footballers act.
Good game today with a lot of action. I’m hoping the 2nd leg will be a good one too. But right now the attention is focused on Spain.
It’s not just one good game. Neuer has been doing this on a consistent basis for a long time. Most recent perfect example was the 0-0 Revierderby and DFB-Pokal semi-final 1-0 win vs Bayern.
Best goalkeeper in the world is a debatable topic though, I’d say he’s up there. Schalke’s defence has been non-existent at times and Manuel Neuer has been the one man show on many occasions. When he goes Bayern, people will be more comfortable to say he’s best GK in the world.
“I don’t want to hear any more of this nonsense that United are “mediocre” or “average” this season either”: well, quite. By ManU’s own standards they are quite obviously below average.
I have to agree with the Neuer comment although for different reasons. Yes, he has done well in the past for Schalke and is not a one-game wonder. However he does need to move to a bigger club and succeed at the elite levels consistently to be called truly great. It is one thing to stop shot after shot with adrenaline flowing through at a club like Schalke and quite another to make the one game changing crucial save at clubs like United, Barca, Real, etc. where that’s the only action you’ve faced in the whole 90 mins. “Concentration” IMO is also a key attribute for all goalkeepers at the top. Just look at VDS …
What do you mean doing this at big clubs ? With Schalke, he managed to have unbelievable games against Bayern and Dortmund, the best teams in the league.. if he goes to Bayern, he has to play against lesser teams..
I think he means that testing himself by not the quantity or quality of thesaves he makes, but having the concentration to make one important save at a critical time of the match having been a spectator.
To compare, we have the England goalkeeping situatation where we have fantastic shot-stoppers for mediocre teams, employed all the time, who let in a doozy through their legs even though it was the oppositions only shot of the match (a mild exaggeration but I’m sure you get the point)
I think he means that it’s easier to make good saves when you’ve been kept active and alert throughout the whole game. To be one of the really top-class keepers, you have to prove yourself capable of making those same saves even when you’ve spent the previous 85 mins watching your team dominate the play while you’ve not had to do anything. i.e. the mental quality of concentration is needed to be fully alert despite long periods of relative idleness.
Neuer played for a dominant Schalke last season when they came in 2nd in the Bundesliga. He’s also played for a very dominant Germany. Not sure your comment makes any sense.
Let me explain it further. Take Joe Hart, Gomeses of this world. On their day, they are completely unbeatable and over a season they perform consistently to keep their team sheets respectable. But, occasionally comes a time when they drop clangers and cost their team dearly. Is it because they are bad keepers? No. Because concentration is a rare quality even in great keepers.
Why are VDS, Raina, Cech considered great keepers when Joe, Ben Foster, Jääskeläinen make more number of saves ( and to some extent more quality saves too ). Its because of their ability to deliver when ever they are called upon.
“However he does need to move to a bigger club and succeed at the elite levels consistently to be called truly great.”
This notion is so misguided. The semis of the Champion’s league *is* the elite. So is playing in the Bundesliga for Schalke. Not every great player needs to play for one of Madrid, Barca, Milan, Man U, Inter, Juve etc. What’s the point of even staging domestic league competitions if the famous teams buy all the best players?
Neuer’s been phenomenal all season and in years past. Way more consistent than Bale. Not comparable IMO.
Here is my take. Yes, Schalke were not compact, but they weren’t very compact in the game against Inter and they convincingly won both games. With the space they leave in the middle, they are attempting to play a game where its easy to counter through the middle and then send the break wide, using the speed of Farfan, and/or Jurado, and Baumjohann. It becomes open when the counter is being countered, but the very underrated Papadopulous is great at covering for the pressing centre backs and covering wide for when the full backs push up. However, United are one of the most cohesive and most organized teams in the world; no matter what, it’s tough to win against a team so tight in movement and positioning up front and so organized in the back.
However, i watched most of the game through Schalke’s perspective, since I am a Schalke fan. The teams played mirrored formations, added that Schalke played a frequent offsides trap to account for the very slow centre backs (they were hurting without Howedes). When properly exploited, Jurado isn’t the best at box to box nor playing deep, and United kept him at bay. Baumjohan seemed to have space to work with (like United were asking Baumjohann to beat them) but he did very little in the final third. In the second half, Rangnick made a smart move in moving Jurado up and bringing on a better “box to box” player and defender in Kluge for Baumjohann. However, it was a bit too late when the inexperienced Matip was dragged out and Giggs took the hole. Like a good chess player, United will pounce on any mistakes made by the opponent.
On the attack, Edu was very lackluster, barely getting a head on any of the six yarders. Edu and Raul are best in the box, which they saw very little of throughout the game. It’s tough for any striker or false nine, let alone Raul to take on the trio of Carrick/Vidic/Ferdinand, so I felt Edu and Baumjohann really needed to step up when they had space or were receiving little coverage, but they didn’t. In the end, United did dominate, but I thought Ragnick did a decent job (although I would have played Plestin over Matip).
one player who could have been useful to schalke in this game was ali karimi yet rangnich decided to go with the playstation kids baumjohann and draxler. karimi has the ability to bring the ball out of defense and feed it to the attack, something that schalke missed dearly.
I wouldn’t call their formations mirrored. Schalke play a fairly basic 4-4-2 with Raul just off the front man which ends up being called a 4-4-1-1 by many. Manchester played a system where Rooney played level with the wingers and centre mids level with the fullbacks in average position. United were very much a 4-2-3-1 despite being labeled a 4-4-1-1 and this is where the space between the lines came into play
and i cant believe Rangnick playing Sarpei to defend against Valencia or Nani. Damn, even a much younger Badstuber get burned by Valencia, Sarpei is not the man to do that. He is good against a bulky & not so speedy Maicon, but not against speedy winger. Baumjohann, Farfan, Jurado had an off day too, they’re misplaced too many passes.
Maicon not speedy….lol
Good write up, touched all the important spots.
Shalke were way above their standard in a CL semi-final… and it really showed.
It’s also interisting to note that while under Felix Magath, they were a very consistent team and only went forward when they really needed.
With Rangnick they play a much more open style of play.
It’s that style (and lots of luck) that got them here… going on a boxing match with Inter and Valencia and not being KOed.
With Man Utd, they tried the same, but not only is United a superior team to those two, but also one of the best counter attacking teams in Europe. Schalke were always certain to come out with a loss, and it really seemed their players trully believed it.
On top of that, Edu and Baumjohann are somewhat insuficient for a team like Schalke.
Raul played without any kind of support and would have been much better if Farfan played as a forward instead of this ridiculous right midfield position, that really doesn’t suit him.
Another big mistake was to think that Jurado could hold the midfield… he is a very talented player, but one who needs his back covered by other players who can press and cover space, as he is very limited on the defensive side.
Without Magath’s pragmatism, luck could only get them so far….
I haven’t really mentioned United, but they were really good today. Carrick had an heck of a game and Rooney’s movement and passing were superb!
Park also was instrumental in coming in from his left midfield position into central areas wich gave United a 2-1 against Papadoupoulos. As Farfan doesn’t track anyone and Schalke rarely had the ball, Evra also had a field day on the left.
The final word goes to Manuel Neuer, who at 25 years of age, showed he’s one of the world’s best keepers.
Baumjohann is a bit frustrating, isn’t he? I’ve really got a soft spot for the boy, he has a lot of good ideas. Didn’t he have a brilliant assist record the season before he joined Bayern? He can play balls that are nearly Özilesque, such is his vision. Theoretically.
Only, neither his touch nor his delivery nor his effort nor his defensive work are a match for Özils. Yesterday night, again, there were so-and-so many situations where his passes were nearly very brilliantly dangerous, had they not been intercepted for being just not precise enough. In the end that meant that he nearly gave away every ball he had with a not-quite-there-yet creative idea.
Agree about Edu – but he wouldn’t have started if it wasn’t for Huntelaar and Gavranovic both being injured
Didn’t Schalke play a 4-3-3 for the first 20 minutes? I didn’t see it mentioned anywhere in the analysis or the comments so maybe I’m mistaken. It looked like a 4-3-3 with Raul down the middle, Farfan on the right, and Edu on the left. Edu and Farfan swapped flanks a couple times.
true, they used it as a way to apply medium pressure on United when they (Schalke) had to transition from attack to defence without being caught offside. with the front 3 they cover more space, & although they were pretty passive, the nature of the shape gives the impression that they’re pressing high. I haven’ seen many Schalke games this season, but I think they had trouble going from 4-3-3 to press & 4-4-2 to sit deep. some players seemed confused as to what their tasks were
You’re right. Actually, the 4-3-3 is Rangnick’s favourite formation, but I’m not sure it was a good idea to use it for the first time with Schalke exactly in this game…
Edu and Farfan seemed to be pretty unsure what their defensive tasks were indeed and just generally it’s tough to play well defensively using Jurado and Baumjohann in a 4-3-3 in the centre together. They’re both excellent on the ball and the 4-3-3 might be what works best for them offensively against Man United (or anyone maybe), but as of now they have huge problems against the ball and that’s why I was surprised hugely Rangnick went 4-3-3. I’d generally not have expected him to use it for the remainder of the season and certainly not in this particular game.
how about Fabio then? seen him at U17 throughout the qualifiers & world cup, his desire to attack is remarkable. valencia…still don’t get what all the fuss is about. Neuer, very good technique & personality…an imposing figure.
United played the game just right, whereas Schalke were just average. the obvious thing to do against a Carrick-Giggs midfield is to press them early. Carrick knows how to play, and as ZM pointed out, gievn time he will play! Schalke usually have Raul moving centrally from deep, allowing Farfan to move forward (Uchida becomes more defensive) & Edu exploits space on the left (left unmarked quite a few times, but didn’t use it). Baumjohann then moves to a central position behind the front 3 with Sarpei covering his left wing spot, which didn’t happen vs United, which I think is a big mistake, because without Fletcher (& Hargreaves) hed be difficut to pin down.
Schalke either chose not to do that or United’s occupying of the fullbacks stunned the Germans. granted, I only saw the first half
Valencia was largely responsible for Rooney’s goal tally last season as he provided numerous assists from the right and partially explains Rooney’s poor from when asked to lead the line early in the season when Valencia was out injured.
I never said he’s a terrible player, just that he’s quite limited really, and not overwhelmingly talented. he does a good job though, and the stats you mentioned tell the whole story. but if we base our conclusions on them alone and mistrust our own eyes, then we can comfortably say Rooney is useless without Valencia?
Indeed Valencia isn’t the most technically talented but his pace and power make him a danger. I find that this ‘predictable’ perception is rather short-sighted.
If you compare with Nani (and lesser extent Park), who play on either wing, cut in, drop deep, shoot long then yes, but if he’s that predictable, then why does he keep getting in behind the full-back? He is obviously a very one sided though, but I think that tactically, for Ferguson, is exactly what is needed. Hugging that line and knowing that he has pace draws the full back out, opening the channel. This gives the left hand side (as the line closes up that space), particularly a marauding left back so much more space. Its interesting that Fabio is having a lot more success through this channel, as he tends to bee-line to the box (centre halves don’t seem to like agile little squirts bombing through there) unlike his twin, Rafael, who tends to overlap – probably the only way you could tell them apart. With Park a destined certainty on the left for big games, having Nani on the right means that the play becomes congested in front of the 18 yard line, as he will rather (not always) go inside – as United appear to keep at least one full back back, width appears to be sacraficed on the left as when Nani plays on the right, the right fullback overlaps, whilst it Valencia plays, Evra plays left wing with Park adding numbers to the box.
It does appear to me that, tactically, Valencia gives better options on a team basis when he is playing whilst Nani, whilst being less predictable, partially makes the team predictable by offering less options overall.
Great post. Two thumps up.
Shocking from Schalke: easily the worst EPL or Champions League performance by any team United has played this year barring Blackburn’s 7-0 capitulation. It was almost surreal to see them get sliced open time and time again. United literally looked like they could score with every attack.
to be honest there was such a pre game hype created about schalke and its coach ralf ragnick but clearly he hasnt studied or watched united he should had atleast munich play utd last year and he would had got what it needs to play against utd where olic constantly picked carrick . i think the master stroke was to play giggs in the midfield many dont give him a credit but not only he starts the attack very fast and drives the team forward but he is defensively very good and closes down players for which he is not credited and the goal he scored was the goal which is rarely seen nowadays midfielders making run and getting beyond forwards a typical young paul scholes goal .to be honest this was game where ragnick should had showed his coaching credentials when there were several miss matches all over the pitch and clearly he should had adjusted to it instead like ancelotti he stuck to his own plan which backfired .
Rangnick’s game plan didn’t work, but another big factor was squad composition. Schalke have a couple of really quality players in Neuer, Raul and Farfan. Felix Magath, who was the manager before Rangnick took over, has an approach of assembling a very large squad of cheap players and instilling fierce competition though, hoping that some would turn out good.
With the exception of Uchida that didn’t work out well at Schalke. Next to the handful of top notch guys there are quite a few players who probably shouldn’t even play in the Bundesliga, much less a Champions League semi final. Edu for example is a second division player at best and him scoring two goals against Inter tells everything about their shambolic performance.
ManUtd under Ferguson don’t always play pretty football but they rarely put in an off day, overall their squad is much more homogenous and on a considerably higher level than Schalke’s, with Sir Alex managing to instill a surreal level of ambition and determination in his players they will almost always turn in an ok performance at the least and that is exactly what happened last night.
I haven’t watched Schalke play at all this season but looking at the 1st leg, I have to ask, are they always this awful? How did they get through Valencia and Inter? Because of Neuer? The level must have dropped really low in Europe for such a side to advance to the semi-finals based on the performance of a goalkeeper for 4 games.
I was still impressed with United and thought that that’s the best they’ve played this season. The scoreline could and should have been 10-0.
Honestly, mate, if you can you should try to watch extended highlights of the Schalke-Valencia first leg – Valencia missed a hatfull (to say the least) of chances (shots/headers/one-on-ones), which really showed just how good Neuer is in goal. If you notice, in ZM’s review of this game, he says that Valencia did carve Schalke open left, right and centre, but missed their chances – exactly the same applies to Inter – they should have scored more than the 2 they scored in their first leg…….
…..it’s funny, with goalkeepers, it’s not always easy to see just how good a goalkeeper is by watching him (for instance, I’ve watched David De Gea a few times this season – everyone’s raving about him – and he looked good, but didn’t look anything too special), but after seeing Neuer last night (and in other CL games) he does look like the absolute best keeper I’ve seen for some time now…..he’s a beast…..
I think Nani will have to adapt his game once again next year. It is clear that he currently prefers the right hand side of the attack but Valencia is in that regard so one dimensional that he cannot play anywhere but on the right. Therefore it is up to Nani to adapt again and use the momentum gained from this seasons performances to make the left hand side his own. I believe he can do it and once he does he becomes arguably Utds most creative AND adaptable attacker.
So the question remains now; who do Utd chase this upcoming transfer window..??
After watching Fabio play it can be assumed that in fact the right back position may be shared next year between the twins, however i feel that Evra needs proper backup and i suspect that one of their targets next season may be a extra left back for cover (unless someone stands up and makes a statement from the reserves..???). Perhaps Contrea from Benfica as a long term replacement for Evra..???
The other area would be in the midfield. I believe another quality all rounder who can mark, intercept passes well and has vision and good passing range (say a cross between Carrick and Fletcher’s game), because i think that Cleverley will be given the opportunity to shine next seasonand im sure that this will be Scholes final season so somehow we need to replace what he has provided for the team interms of vision and passing. Schweinstiger has been mentioned and i think that he has the all round game to contribute but you have to ask just how much more can he develop? Same with anothe rplayer linked with Utd
e Rossi. If SAF wants experience rather than youth to fill this sizable gap then i would seriously consider those two. However if he is looking towards the future than Gotze or Defour may be considered..??
I don’t know why people are surprised at result. Chelsea couldn’t cope same Utd system and get defeated 3-1; only consolation was Drogba and Essian’s individual skill goal. Schalke is no different I think.
Let’s see how Madrid or Barca can cope with this system if Udt progress into final.
I saw someone in the comments section of the Guardian preview describe Rooney’s role as a ‘false 10′. I think that’s a great description.
yeah, it seemed to me that this United setup is basically a 4231 with Rooney, the middle man of the 3, playing less like a midfielder than, say, Fabregas or Yaya Toure.
great analysis – love this site even though I am posting for the first time.
indeed even on German telly they caught Rangnick on camera telling his team to switch to 4-2-3-1 at some point after they had tried 4-3-3. I guess that he tried to close the gaps between his bands by that, but failed.
@ valencia: I also prefer him over nani. why? because he is a no frills winger. he does the job he is being asked to do extremely well whereas nani can be at times highly frustrating to watch when he gets into his “I want to show the world I’m as good as cristiano ronaldo”-mode and ends up falling over his own feet 10 times per game. that said, nani probably is the better footballer compared to valencia.
It was a good performance by Carrick, Ferdinand and Vidic which laid the foundations for everything else going forward. Personally, I have never seen Antonio Valencia afforded so much space in one game of football.
http://www.fivecantonas.com/morning-manchester-united-schalke-leg/
This tie would be completely, utterly finished if it wasnt for the brilliance of Manuel Neuer in goal – someone will spend a lot of moeny on him in the summer, and then Schalke will be in serious trouble.
You really had to shake your head and realise just how bad Schalke’s defence was when you seen Hernandez make a simple run across the box, and Metzelder follows along, oblivious to Giggs ghosting into the box. In fact, the German was awful all night long, struggling to turn and keep pace with the game.
Many have speculated on how Sir Alex will really gut this team in the summer and start a huge rebuild, but I cant see it. Defence is certainly an issue, and a centre-back may be acquired to help fill the gaps, especially with Ferdinand not longer able to avoid injury for a pro-longed length of time. But the talk of Wesley Sneijder etc seems more fantasy than reality, and I’m talking in tactical terms, simply because Rooney is looking quite happy to occupy the space the Dutchman would also thrive in.
Anyway, maybe the tough Madrid team of Mourinho or the crafty Catalans will expose United, but I dont think this hard working and compact unit of Manchester United will be as easily penetrated at the back as many believe and in Javier Hernandez, we have a player who provides a cutting edge that all great teams possess. Who knows, might be time for Fergie to finally stand beside Paisley as a European great.
defence an issue? fair enough with the comment about Ferdinand’s fitness, but I believe we have a potential great centre-back in Smalling. If Johnny Evans can get back to the form of last season, we will have more than adequate back-up for Rio and Vidic. Not to forget Brown and O’shea can also play centre back.
Very good analysis, ZM, I had basically the same impressions watching the game yesterday. Manu played very well, but Schalke were silly in many aspects. Especially the fact that their defensive 5 sat relatively deep, while there forward 3-5 tried to do some pressing. That of course never worked against such a solid and experienced team as Manu, so they could easily play around Raul/Edu/Farfan, because there was plenty of space in the midfield. The Schalke strikers were just tiring themselves out for nothing.
One thing that Schalke did reasonably well was being narrow at the back (regularly Valencia or Park got long passes being completely free), because Schalke were obviously not too afraid of crosses as neither Hernandez nor Rooney are particularly tall. I guess their plan was to condense the mid-defense so Manu would find it less easy to pass/play through there.
However, their defence was bad anyhow. Especially Sarpei had huge problems simply because of being too slow. Papadopoulos was always too deep, never tackling/annoying the midfield.
Also, Schalke were not as physical/robust when it came to tacklings. They seemed to be avoiding tacklings, which is weird considering they are relatively good at it.
But the worst part about Schalke’s play was their general incohesiveness. They were not compact, as you put it, ZM. Their team was split in two pieces along the midfield, usually not working together. I don’t understand why Rangnick did not order Raul and company to stay in their own half when Schalke did not have the ball (when it was still 0-0). Or why he did not tell the rest of the team to move up high when their front 5 tried to press.
Manu were good, especially at the back, but nothing outstanding (yet). Against Madrid they would not stand a chance like they played yesterday.
“but nothing outstanding (yet)”….true, but one gets the inevitable feeling that United are long overdue that one outstanding / spectacular performance….who knows…maybe it’s destined for the UCL final (if United get there)..
Shalke left United with a lot of space, but I think you also have to give United some credit for creating that situation.
United set Shalke a trilemma. Carrick and Giggs controlled the game from deep, the pace of Chicharito and Valencia threatened to get in behind the Schalke backline, and Rooney exploited any space that opened up between them.
At various times Schalke seemed to focus on stopping one or two of these threats, but were unable to cope with all three.
Yes, Schalke were horribly stretched. It’s amazing how little tracking back the advanced midfield and forwards did, they must have known at least after the first 30 mins how little of the ball they were getting. It kinda reminds me of the crushing AC Milan received when they had the Ronaldiniho-Borrelio-Huntelaar(sp!) triumverate – Also kinda makes me wonder if Huntelaar would make a difference. If you remember back, There was so little work-rate backwards from that three meaning defence and deep midfield had all the time in the world to go short, wide and over-the-top.
Schalke were just absolutely awful, regardless of how well United played.
Full backs were painfully bad, slow, poor positioning, the right back was particularly bad. Centre backs were very slow, didn’t deal with Rooney/Hernandez movement at all, midfield were dreadful, the time and space they offered Carrick/Giggs/Rooney was pathetic. Raul was anonymous, and as for that striker, did they just pull him off the street or something? Other than that they were alright…
United still did very well though, despite the atrocious opposition. Valencia was very good, roasted the full back all night long, I’m a big fan of Valencia, quick, deceptively strong, works very hard, and has good delivery, can’t ask for too much more.
But the real stand out for me last night was Rooney again. Back to his best in a different way. Not banging in goals like he was last year, but so effective in ‘the hole’ behind Hernandez. His movement, positioning and finding of space is fantastic, and his range of passing really is Scholes like in my opinion.
It’s incredible to see Hernandez flourish at Man Utd and it beggars belief that PSG turned down the offer of signing him because they suspected it a scam as the price was too low in their consideration.
However, great performance by ManU against a Schalke team that was caught out of their depths and a spot on analysis as well.