Sport correspondent in hot pursuit analyzes the first match of the semi-finals of the League Champions of the UEFA season 2022/23.
«Real» — «Manchester City» — 1: 1 «City» has chosen a rather cautious line-up for a meeting with the current winner of the Champions League. On the right flank of the attack came Bernardo Silva, who usually plays in the center; more often not right-back Kyle Walker was connected to the attack, but central John Stones. On the one hand, this allowed the team to better control the ball due to the presence on the flank of the combination-prone Silva. On the other hand, Josep Guardiola probably hoped to limit the opponent's most dangerous left flank in the attack.
For half the half, the plan worked perfectly, also due to the cautious play of Real Madrid itself. The Madrid were afraid of an opponent who was rolling over his opponents both in the Example and in the Champions League. Wards Carlo Ancelotti passively went into pressure, quickly sat closer to their gates and allowed the guests too much in the attack. The Creamers were so afraid of missing a pass behind their back to Kevin Holland that they let the guests shoot from a distance with little or no resistance a couple of times.
Such a game is not typical for Madrid. It is City who use ball control primarily for safety, using the golden rule: as long as you have the ball, the opponents will not score. Therefore, for Guardiola, the correct location of the players, the construction of triangles, and the numerical advantage in the ball zone are critical. The team is doing everything to have the “winged” one, because this is the foundation on which the “townspeople” game is built.
And what about «Real»? The Spanish giants cannot play such a “correct”, geometrically lined football. Its foundation is improvisation, built on the finest mutual understanding of incredible talents. And this kind of football involves risk, because it is built on a not very reliable foundation. That is why for any Real Madrid coach the main task is to find a balance between this very risk and reliability in defense.
Had Madrid played the same cautious football throughout the match, they would have been doomed. But “Real” is able to change during the meeting and due to this, even get out of hopeless situations. So in the match with “City”, “creamy” gradually leveled the game. Thanks to both more active pressing, which forced the opponent to make mistakes, and risky rallies when leaving the defense.
Vinicius' goal is the best illustration of the difference in the styles of the teams. “Real” created a moment due to the extremely adventurous exit from the defense (the walls of Kamaving – Modric). «Two on two» on the flank, the ball in his third — the vast majority of teams in such a situation would prefer to play reliably. Including “Manchester City”, which will surely saturate the ball zone and achieve a numerical advantage, or play the ball back.
But not Real Madrid. It was the perfect interaction of two excellent players in a risky situation that created the opportunity for a dangerous attack. Which was completed by another top with a perfect blow.
In the second half, “Real” came out tactically prepared. The team skillfully broke the opponent's pressure, changing positions between Modric, Kross and Kamavinga, calmly came out of the defense and had the advantage. Madrid were even close to scoring the second goal… However, this time the playing advantage played against them. Catching his game, “Real” got carried away a little. The players let their emotions take over and began to play too risky. The delicate balance that allowed them to take the initiative was lost. Madrid began to make mistakes often, which resulted in a missed goal: while Haaland hovered like a ghost at the Santiago Bernabeu, Kevin De Bruyne hit hard from afar and struck Thibault Courtois.
Characteristically, the same Camavinga was “cut off”, the risky move of which led to the goal of “Real” in the first half. “City” also managed to squeeze the maximum out of the situation is the constancy of his game. The team lost the initiative in the first half of the second half, but it cannot be said that they lost the balance between defense and attack. Just when “Real” is at ease, it is almost impossible to resist him. But the guests endured, fought, and finally put the squeeze on. The ability not to succumb to emotions and keep a cool head helped Guardiola's wards go home with a good result.
UEFA Champions League09 May 2023 • Start at 22:00End
Real MadridSpain1 : 1
Manchester CityEngland
36' • Vinicius Junior (Eduardo Camavinga)
68' • Kevin De Bruyne (Ilkay Gundogan)
Main confirmation of the existence of a balance among the British — the absence of replacements. Guardiola was obviously pleased with how the team handled the difficulties, as long as he didn't try to change the game with a rotation. Even at the end, the specialist did not want to give the team freshness: the risk of breaking something in the working mechanism was too high. Ancelotti acted in a similar way, who pulled with substitutions until the 80th minute. The Italian chose to release more defensive players in order not to slip into reckless football again.
As a result, the first round of confrontation between reliability and risk ended in a draw. But there will be only one in the Istanbul final — the second chapter of the confrontation will take place on May 17 in Manchester.