AC Milan vs FC Barcelona - a tactical overview

This game won't go down as a classic between the sides, given some of the amazing results in the past, but there were some points of interest. A classic Italian shut-out that at times owed more to typically English traits of heroic last-ditch desperate tackles and blocks. Barcelona dominated possession and territory as expected, but were ultimately inefficient, and the tie is delicately balanced for the second leg.

By now, most football watchers with an interest in tactics will be well aware of the characteristics of these two teams. Milan typically play a very narrow midfield, and famously restricted Arsenal in the Gunners. Against Barca here they set out in an unsurprising 4-3-1-2 with Ibrahimovic starting with Robinho up front, former Portsmouth  FA Cup winner Kevin Prince-Boateng as the trequartista and the usual array of grizzled campaigners behind them.

Barcelona did spring one surprise, Keita starting in place of Cesc Fabregas, but apart from that alteration Guardiola too played as expected in a 4-1-2-2-1. Iniesta pushed up into Fabragas’ position wide left, as the more defensive-minded Keita took his place further back in midfield with Xavi.

There will come a point soon when Dani Alves will no longer be described as a defender, and the 4 at the base of Barcelona’s formation will become a more truthful 3. Alves played higher up the pitch than Busquets and Keita, and wider on the right wing than Iniesta was on the left. He was the only player giving real width to Barcelona’s attacks until the introduction of Tello in place of Iniesta in the 65^th minute. On more than one occasion Milan were defending with 7 players within the width of the 18 yard box, and Alves was right there in acres of space waiting for the ball. He was passed to 74 times during the course of the game – more than Iniesta on the left and almost 30 times more than Keita who was playing in Iniesta’s usual position on the left of the midfield, within easy reach of Xavi.

The Xaviesta partnership was broken up, and it was Iniesta who suffered really, unable to influence the game to his usual extent.

For Barcelona, it was a night where nothing really clicked properly for them. Despite enjoying the larger slice of possession, a few of their attacks became pedestrian, and it seemed that what would normally be described as ‘patient build up’ looked more like a lack of a cutting edge.

The contrasting styles of the two teams are well illustrated in these representaitons of the passes played by each team into the final third. Milan played far more long balls up to Ibrahimovic, who to be fair is a fine target man. After judging the flight of the ball, he becomes an almost immovable object, and Milan searched for him as an outlet many times.

However, to describe the result as simply a failure of Barcelona clicking properly would be a disservice to a Milan side that defended heroically. Antonini and Ambrosini in particular showed such determination and spirit that Massimiliano Allegri couldn’t have asked for more. The same could not be said for Robinho, who squandered a gilt-edged chance to put Milan 1-0 up within three minutes of kick off, but skied his shot well over.

Milan’s front three pressed the Barcelona defence early on, but as the first half wore on Milan seemed content to allow Barcelona possession in non-threatening areas of the pitch. Ambrosini proved what a nuisance he can be with a huge performance, making six interceptions, 5 successful tackles and one block.

In total Milan made 25 interceptions compared to Barcelona’s 13. The spread of the interceptions shows that Milan were affecting a high pressing approach to defending.

Milan were very organised and efficient. Whilst sometimes happy to concede possession and territory, they put their foot in at vital moments to break down attacks. Most of the players will be straight into that ice-bath for a cool down after the game – a combination tactic of high pressing and packing the defence when Barcelona got close *and then* also counter attacking with gusto must’ve taken a lot out of the players, especially given their relatively high average age. Despite only having 35% of possession and 38% of territory, they managed to get as many shots on target as Barcelona - 3. Not including the five blocks put in by Milan defenders.

So whilst statistics will point out that Barcelona attempted more passes and achieved a higher percentage completion rate – the only real stats that matter at this point is 0-0; and Milan go to Camp Nou knowing that a score draw will see them  though.

The stand-out moments of the game where the desperate and crucial blocks by Ambrosini and Antonini – but whether it’ll be those actions that are telling or the missed opportunities by their attacking colleagues will be worked out in two weeks’ time. Milan had far fewer chances, but they were perhaps the better ones.

Rough Diamonds #8-Moritz Leitner (Borussia Dortmund)

Over the last few years, Germany has produced some of the most talented attackers in the world. Ranging from lethal goal scorers like Mario Gomez, to the simple yet creative Toni Kroos, we’ve seen them all being born in the Bundesliga. One club that has seen innumerable talents coming to the fore is Borussia Dortmund. Many people would attribute BVB’s success to their starlets.

During their triumphant campaign, Jurgen Klopp fathered the rise of stars like Mats Hummels, Shinji Kagawa, Kevin Grosskreutz, Mario Götze and Sven Bender. Half way through their success story last season, Dortmund acquired the services of a relatively unknown midfielder, Moritz Leitner. His career in the 2.Bundesliga was not an eye-catcher. The central midfielder made 16 appearances for 1860 Munich in the 2010-11 season, showing his quality but not managing to stamp his authority in the league.

Having been picked up for a minimal fee of € 800,000, Leitner was immediately shipped back to the 2.Bundesliga, this time to Augsburg on loan. The diminutive midfielder was influential in Augsburg’s return to the top division, providing 2 assists in his 9 appearances. After a successful loan spell, the 19 year old returned to the German champions and has not looked back ever since.

Klopp has had his fair share of worries this season, especially with Sven Bender being unavailable in fairly regular spells and Nuri Sahin having left for Real Madrid last summer. His second choice midfielder has been Ilkay Gündogan, but the former Nuremberg man has been far from impressive. It has been primarily due to Gündogan’s inability to perform that young Leitner has been called upon this season.

At the ripe age of 19, Leitner has been nothing short of brilliant. Although he may not be as defensively sound as first team regular, Sven Bender, he has shown that his passing ability surpasses that of any other central midfielder at the club – lets hope he can replace Sahin over the next few years. A fairly good work rate, and decent positional sense have allowed Leinter to compliment captain, Sebastian Kehl, wonderfully in the center of midfield.

Numbers may not point in Leitner’s favor at the moment, but anyone who has seen this kid play will vouch for his ingenuity. Also, age isn’t on Kehl’s side anymore and Bender will surely go on to take his place as the destroyer in midfield. Although Dortmund may not be lacking in creativity at the moment, a deeper midfielder pulling the strings would most obviously be appreciated. And there is no better player at the club at the moment than Moritz Leitner.

Another point that works in favor of Leitner is his ability to slot into more than one position. He has shown that he can play both as a central midfielder – Xavi like – or as an attacking midfielder who sits behind the striker – just like Kagawa does at Dortmund now. This flexibility in his position could be crucial in the future, assuming that Leitner moves to another club.

At Dortmund, I can only see this teenager succeed. If he does decide to move to a bigger club, it should be timed to perfection and his choice of the club will be immensely important – just look at Dortmund’s beloved Sahin. As long as this kid makes the right decisions over the next few years, nothing but success and glory shall be strewn across his path. 


-Aditya Balaram
 Milan And Me
 Footie Magic

Europa League Quarter Finals Preview

The 2011-12 Europa League has been one of the most exciting and certainly the most widely watched version in recent years. Big spending  Manchester City have been knocked out by a disciplined and hard-working Sporting and the other "big" team in the competition,Manchester United were given a footballing lesson by Athletic. Out of the remaining teams,I favor Athletic with Bielsa at helm to lift the trophy on the 9th of May. To know who the Bookmakers favor,check Europa League Odds.

Schalke 04 Vs Athletic Bilbao

According to WhoScored.Com,Huntelaar has been the best player so far in this year's Europa League followed by teenage sensation Iker Muniain. Athletic under Bielsa have been exciting to watch,they gave Manchester United a footballing lesson over the two legs. Athletic certainly are the better team technically ,but in Huntelaar and Raul,Schalke have two players who can cause them problems. Javi Martinez has been playing as a center back and is one of many changes which Bielsa as made after becoming Athletic's manager.As Llorente's goal against Manchester United showed,they are a flexible side who are comfortable both with the ball at their feet or in the air. Schalke need to be defensively solid and certainly have to show more energy and desire than the English Champions to progress.

Sporting Vs Metalist


Sporting survived a disastrous second half against Manchester City to progress on away goals. They must consider themselves to be favorites to beat the surprise package Metalist Kharkhiv. Ricky  van Wolfswinkel who has been attracting a lot of attention from the Premier League,certainly has a chance to show his ability on the big stage. Metalist Kharkhiv who beat Olympiakos on away goals have a chance to qualify for their first Semi-Finals of any European Competition. They were excellent in the initial stages of the competition but needed away goals to beat the Greek side.

AZ Alkmaar Vs Valencia


Unai Emery has done a wonderful job at Valencia,although many of the fans who frequent the Mestalla may disagree with me. In Soldado they have one of the best strikers in Europe,sadly the talented Banega wil not play any part due to a freak accident. AZ Alkmaar on the other hand are sitting on top of the Eredivisie,but with just 2 points separating 1st from 4th,they have a long way to go. This situation may be a big distraction for Alkmaar,where as Valencia are sitting comfortably in 3rd position with a 3 points gap between them and Levante in fourth.

Atletico Madrid Vs Hannover 96


Atletico have enjoyed a upturn of form under Simeone and in Falcao(Atletico's own "He scores when he wants") they have someone who enjoys playing in the Europa League and who certainly has the experience in the competition. Their league situation is not very good,they have little hope of making it into the Champions League spots,but a good run will see them into the Europa League for next year.

Statistics for WhoScored.Com

As you can see,Hannover struggle against technical teams,cant keep possession and mostly score from outside the box and dead ball situation. So in short they are the "Stoke City" among the remaining teams in the Europa League,but one of their weakness is winning aerial duels,so they are Stoke minus their strengths.  They need to do well at the Vicente Calderon and get a away goal,as one doesn't expect them to keep a clean sheet at home against the likes of Falcao.

Predictions-


Athletic
Metalist
Valencia
Atletico Madrid

The Secret of Swansea's Success

There is no secret to Swansea’s success....

Swansea City are the latest newly promoted side to charm the neutrals and earn the respect of opponents throughout the Premier League. Following their 3-0 away victory over Fulham they currently lie 8^th in the table – only three points off Liverpool, by mid-March find themselves just one point off the magic 40 generally reckoned to ensure safety in the division.

Blackpool similarly impressed match-goers, TV audiences and pundits in their 2010-11. They stuck to their guns by playing the same expansive and entertaining game that they had been promoted using. Sadly they fell short, but during the season they had wins over Liverpool (twice) and Tottenham, and some memorable away victories. West Bromwich Albion seem to do it on a 2-4 year cycle. Almost every year, at least one of the clubs promoted to the Premier League raise eyebrows with attacking play.

But this should not be such a surprise. Promoted teams have, by definition, had very successful league campaigns the year before. The same question is always posed to these clubs. Stick or twist? It applies not only to style of play, but also to investment. A Chairman can choose to rubber stamp ambitious moves for players with good experience or great promise, paying out on transfer fees and extravagant wages, or they can cautiously withhold funds (If indeed funds are available) and hope that the existing playing and non-playing staff can withstand the onslaught. The manager too is asked the same question, and of course in discussion with the money men at the club will choose to either stay true to their attacking ideals or try to adopt a defensive approach. The two questions are inextricably interlinked. Strangely though, although one decision informs the other, it’s often the case that if the decision is made to stick with the system, investment is made, and conversely if a club decides to change tack from attacking expansive football to gritty survival football, then the money isn’t spent. So a club would end up trying to implement a defensive strategy with their existing attacking squad. This is of course a simplification, but a promoted team will have to position themselves somewhere on a sliding scale of financial and football gambling.

QPR, for example, exclusively set out in an exciting 4-2-3-1 formation during their promotion year, but under Warnock and now Hughes they have chosen to try and weather the storm by playing defensively and picking up points where they can, rather than going for broke in each game and indeed the campaign. Not a huge amount was invested in the playing squad in the summer break. DJ Campbell (£1.2m) and Anton Ferdinand (£3m) were brought in, supplemented by numerous free signings and loan deals. Not an enormous outlay – and yet the football that the players have been asked to play is vastly different from what they were originally were assembled for. Football players, and even more so a group of players, aren’t the best at adapting to change – just ask Andres Villas-Boas.

What makes Swansea special – and different to most promoted sides – is that they have a manager with a firm belief in his footballing principles, and a set of players who have been instilled with that belief – in the manager’s instructions and in themselves, almost to the point of indoctrination. Whereas Blackpool begun with a 4-0 victory in their first ever Premier League match but ultimately fell short, Swansea have improved as the fixtures progress. After a poor start in the division, results have started to turn their way. A 4-0 defeat in the opening game to Manchester City, and a 1-0 win in the corresponding home game neatly encapsulates this trend.

Swansea City play the 4-2-3-1 formation which has brought success to many clubs recently. Neil Warnock’s QPR side romped the Championship title playing the same formation, but changed tack once in the promised land of the Premier League, and as a result are struggling. Since signing Joey Barton QPR have tried 4-4-1-1 with Taarabt supporting the striker, they’ve tried 4-1-4-1 with Derry sitting in front of the defence, and they’ve tried 4-4-2 with Cisse and Zamora up top. Apart from the 4-4-2 games, QPR have had five in midfield, but the way they’ve set that midfield up has varied from game to game and it has sometimes showed. That’s not to say that football managers shouldn’t vary the way they play against different teams – of course they should. But to having no default can leave players struggling to understand their role in the team.

Swansea have not only outscored some of their more affluent and popular opponents, but in the majority of cases out-passed and out-played them too. When they faced Arsenal – a team generally reckoned to have the best passing game in the country – they hit 99 more passes than Arsenal, had a greater pass completion % and had more than 55% of possession. Possession is precious to Brendan Rogers. Against Manchester City they not only won 1-0 but again completed almost 100 more passes than their fancied adversaries, and again had over 55% possession. Incredible… you might say. But it’s not, once those passes are looked at in a bit more detail.

Almost all of Swansea's passes in the final third of the pitch originated in that zone. There are very few long hoofed balls up to a target man. And, as can be seen by the red arrow which eminate from Swansea's half, the long balls that were played were not very successful in keeping possession, which is Swansea's modus operandi. Compared to Fulham's passing - and remember fulham are the established Premier League side, and were playing at home. Far more long balls played up to the attackers, so consequently far fewer of those passes hit the mark. Territory, but not possession.

Against Arsenal, 54% of passes were either played backwards or square, and Swansea – despite the greater possession – had less of the territory. Against Manchester City it’s the same story. More passes than City, but over half didn’t go forward and Swansea spent more time in their own half than the other team’s. Even the 3-0 win over Fulham (With all due respect, less of a surprising result than wins over Arsenal and Manchester City) the trend continues, as seen in the images below:

Possession is precious to Swansea. Possession not only allows a team to create chances, but it stops opposition from creating their own. Against Fulham, a 3-0 victory was achieved, Swansea had far more of the ball, but were in their own half with it most of the time – of the little time that Fulham did get the ball, they managed more pass attempts (although not completions) than Swansea. Swansea are happy to play the Spanish style possession game – stylish, patient and effective. A continental style 4-2-3-1 with patient building through possession and short passes is effect tive against the “English way” of 4-4-2 and long balls up to a big number nine. The only surprise about Swansea is that they had the self-belief to stick to their guns after a bad start to the season. Because they did hold firm to their beliefs about how the game should be played, they are now reaping the rewards.

There are of course other issues that come with playing very well. A club such as Swansea, even with all the respect they've earned on the pitch this year, will struggle to keep hold of star players. Perhaps they were lucky in that way not to really hit the heights before the January transfer window closed. Blackpool where less fortunate - star midfielder Charlie Adam was linked with a move to Liverpool in January 2011, and Ian Holloway stood firm and rejected bids for his player in the belief that he needed him to stay up. Charlie then suffered a loss of form, Blackpool were relegated, and Adam now warms the bench and occasionally misses penalties for the Reds. What is very important for Swansea is the system. The system of simple short passes, possession at all costs, and pressing the opposition needs to be believed in. Team spirit is key to Swansea. The player most are talking about at Swansea is Leon Britton. A remarkable story even in a sport full of remarkable stories. Leon Britton has played in all four divisions with Swansea city, and now finds himselfi n the Premier League and with better passing statistics than anyone sharing a pitch with him. The Wandsworth born wizard has even achieved a better pass completion rate than Xavi at FC Barcelona.

His passing against Fulham rather beautifully describes Swansea's general style of play. Most of the passing takes place in his own half, the passes are short, often square of backwards, and 96% of them found the intended target. Simple really!

Images are taken from FourFourTwo Stats Zone App

Football Venn Diagrams-The Crying Man City Fan!

Click the picture to enlarge.

Manchester United 2-3 Athletic Bilbao:Talking Points

United struggle against sides which press hard
Manchester United have struggled against sides which pressed hard like Newcastle,Norwich,Tottenham and now Bilbao(to their credit they managed to win 2 of the games). The center backs and the center midfield players prefer time on the ball before passing it forward. Athletic Bilbao pressed United all over the pitch,and special mention has to be given to Fernando Llorente who pressed both the center backs on his own. And unlike the other sides mentioned above, Bilbao managed to press the whole 90 minutes, it will be interesting to see how they play this weekend in the La Liga.

Bielsa's Vertical Football
Although for onlookers yesterday's performance by Bilbao may seem to be similar to Barcelona's tiki-taka,there is a world of difference. Marcelo Bielsa's teams generally play "Vertical Football",i.e there main aim is not possession but getting the ball forward as quickly as possible. Against United this was achieved generally by the full backs pushing forward and playing one-two-ones. Bilbao,when they lost the ball,they switched back to their pressing philosophy and managed to regain possession easily. United didn't have enough quality on the ball to effectively counter(they missed Scholes here), and even when they did get the ball forward quickly,Hernandez was very poor in the box. One way to play against a technically strong team is to play with technical players yourself,United's technical players Scholes,Carrick,Berbatov,Cleverley none of them featured from the start. Especially baffling was Ferguson's choice to start with Hernandez instead of Berbatov,the Mexican has struggled this season and games like this where the midfield is dominated by the opposition he is ineffective.

Athletic Bilbao's Man Marking
When without the ball,the Bilbao players each had a single opponent player to press.At the back they had a spare man with the excellent Javi Martinez and San Jose taking turns to mark Hernandez. This left United with a spare man at the back too,this is where United could have been clever. The free center back could have been the one who started attacks,but this required a good ball player,probably someone like Michael Carrick,but clubs from England rarely try out these kind of tactical tweaks.

Passer + Runner
Sir Alex Ferguson over the past few season always used to play with a passer(Carrick,Scholes) with a runner(Fletcher,Anderson) in midfield. Last season United mainly played with Carrick and Giggs in midfield,but they didn't face any quality opposition from the continent until they met Barcelona. Especially against side which press hard like Bilbao,you need energy in the center of the park. Giggs neither has energy nor can complete 90 passes a game. He does get his fair share of assists,but he is better of playing in a 3 man midfield. United did look better when Anderson and Carrick were playing,and there was one instance when Anderson nicked the ball and started a counter,but Hernandez wasted the opportunity.

Manchester United miss Carlos Queiroz

Manchester United's excellent performances in Europe were in some part due to the fact that Queiroz was at Old Trafford. During Queiroz's days,United were defensively solid with Vidic-Ferdinand being one of the best defensive partnerships in the world. Also Ferguson abandoned the naive 4-4-2 and went in for a fluid 4-3-3. One can't say how much influence Queiroz had on creating the 4-3-3,but after Queiroz left United switched back to 4-4-2 with Rooney dropping back.

Wayne Rooney fails to pick up Iturraspe
While Rooney was hounded and marked tightly whenever he had the ball,but he failed to do the same when Bilbao had the ball. Iturraspe had a lot space and time to dictate play,as Rooney mostly was still behind him. Rooney is a key part of how United play as his dropping back into midfield and his energy makes up for the fact that United play with only 2 central midfielders. But against Bilbao,especially in first half,his off the ball workrate was poor.

David De Gea kept United in this tie with some fantastic saves,his agility and athleticism were from the top drawer as he pulled out saves to stop Muniain,Llorente and Torquero.

Rafael has committed some terrible mistakes in the past,but him going to sleep for the third goal was simply unforgivable at this level. Only time will tell whether the Da Silva twins can make it at Old Trafford,but they certainly have their work cut out.

No review of this game is complete without the mention of Iker Muniain,the 19 year old put in a terrific performance with his speed,skill,stamina. And like most other Spanish players(Unlike the English) has a very good football brain.

David De Gea and Iker Muniain-The Future of Spain Looks Bright

This post first appeared on Sportskeeda

Few points from Twitter on Arsenal 3-0 AC Milan.

I asked my followers on Twitter-What was the most interesting thing they observed from Arsenal Vs AC Milan,below are few of the more interesting replies.

Unpredictable Arsenal? They continue to confound fans & critics alike this season. Just look at the scribes' opinion on Wenger.Milan are still some way from being mentioned among the top clubs in Europe atm. Yesterday's game showed just that.Walcott has much to worry about his place in the side given the phenomenal rise of Oxlade-Chamberlain in recent weeks.Finally, Arsenal will be obviously disappointed after getting so close but they need to realise that 4th place is priority now.

                        

                                                                                                             -@AbhinavCJ

Ibra's fantastic hold up play in the second half won the tie essentially.

                                                                                                             -@Whole12Yards

Arsenal have a backbone, Spurs game motivated them, they're not bottlers anymore. As for Milan, they were too complacent.

                                                                                                             -@Radwancfc

The amazing pressing by #AFC in the first half. I love pressing like that.

                                                                                                             -@FlixandTrix

The crowd seemed to die after VP's miss, even though there was 30 mins left. As if everyone woke up from the same dream at once.

                                                                                                              -@RGSOAS

How important Arsenal's aggression was in unsettling Milan. Look at the foul and yellow card counts.

                                                                                                               -@DiarmaidHill

A few of my own thoughts

• Arsenal's defensive coordination and  positioning was excellent,Zlatan was caught offside often during the match.

• When playing away from home,teams usually defend with  two banks of four,but Milan always leave 3 up front which means they should be effective on the counter which they weren't against Arsenal(KPB was missed a great deal).

• Milan's weakness is that their midfield is narrow and Arsenal took advantage of this by playing two natural wingers on the flanks,Wenger should have done the same thing in the first leg too.

• A better bench would have helped Arsenal a great deal in the final 30 minutes.

England XI: Mourinho and Guardiola

A story on a well known British newspaper website recently claimed that Harry Redknapp was not the FA’s only choice for the England managers job. In fact, they had found out (Through the usual unnamed source) that the FA were considering approaching either Pep Guardiola or Jose Mourinho........................

[This pause is to allow you, the reader, the get up off the floor and stop laughing]

Outlandish and far fetched as that may be, it does pose the question: What would a Mourinho England team look like? And what about a Guardiola England team, what shape might that take?

Mourinho’s England XI

Lined up in Mourinho’s 4-3-3 - The Special One has a few favoured systems, and this one can be considered his Plan ‘A’. A fairly narrow midfield of one defensive midfielder, one box-to-box player, and one midfield man more free to join attacks. Three up front, two wingers that can interchange, and a target man.

Joe Hart is an automatic choice in goal, no questions asked – he is the best goalkeeper England have to offer.

Across the back four, old friend Ashley Cole plays at left back. He too is a fairly automatic choice, despite his advancing years. Mourinho likes his full-backs to offer attacking width, and this is why Cole is complemented on the other side of defence by Kyle Walker. Glen Johnson would’ve had a good shout at being started in the right back berth, if it were not for the fact that he was not really trusted by Mourinho at Chelsea. He preferred fellow Portuguese Paulo Ferreira, and also brought in Geremi as cover – eventually shipping Johnson out to Portsmouth. Kyle Walker would provide the required amount of attacking threat down the right wing, and is an able defender too.

John Terry was the rock at the heart of Chelsea’s defence for Mourinho, indeed he still is. Mourinho is well known for his faith in favourite players, and also known for not giving a damn what people think – just look at how he asked/allowed Pepe to play against Barcelona! Terry gets the nod, and Jose takes the flack.

Alongside Terry isMicah Richards. Terry needs a quick intelligent player next to him to cover. Rio Ferdinand has performed this role in the past for England, but his creaky knees count him out as an effective and reliable “get out of jail” man. Micah Richards has the physicality and pace required to do this job. Also, as a player who is primarily used as a right back, he’s more comfortable on the ball, and will be useful playing out from defence.

In midfield, Wayne Rooney plays in the attacking position where Lampard at Chelsea, Sneijder at Internazionale, and Mesut Ozil plays for Real Madrid. This might seem strange, to play England’s current best attacker in midfield, but here he will get involved in the play as much as he likes to – and Ferguson has experimented with him here recently too. Rooney’s all-round game is about so much more than gettingo nthe end of things, and like Sneijder and Ozil he can orchestrate things from this advanced midfield position. He is complemented by Scott Parker, who is used in a role that was Michael Essien’s at Chelsea and Sami Khedira’s at Real Madrid. Scott Parker might not have the long-range shooting ability of those players, but he is sufficiently “all-action” to make up for this – and this is where the limitations of the talent pool make themselves clear. Completing the midfield trio, and playing as the shield in front of the defence is Phil Jones. A player so versatile that not even Alex Ferguson knows his best position, his work rate and defensive qualities make him perfect here. In addition, his versatility means that he can drop back to make a five man defence when a lead needs protecting, cover for Kyle Walker when needed, and also steam up field and get involved in an attack on rare occasions.

Up front, Ashley Young and James Milner play on the flanks, and would interchange to keep opposition full backs guessing. Adam Johnson was a strong contender here, and would certainly make the bench, but Milner’s additional bulk just shades it for him, he is strong on the ball. Both wingers would be asked to drift infield and try to drag their markers in to give Cole and Walker space to exploit behind.

Andy Carroll plays as the target man. Certainly a controversial choice given his woeful recent form. However, Mourinho is one coach, if there are any, that could get the best out of the big Geordie. Drogba was transformed into a world-class striker by Mourinho, who convinced him that he was so. The same could be done for Andy Carroll, and in fine form, Carroll is the type of player to relentlessly battle a defence, and keep two centre-backs occupied all day long.

Of course, this is an imagining of Jose Mourinho’s England XI – you may have your own views, feel free to post them below, and feel free to slate this one and anyone elses! There are discussions to be had over every single position (probably barring Joe Hart in goal) Put Gerrard where Rooney is? Oxlade-Chamberlain instead of Milner? Try to use the same system though.

Guardiola’s England XI

Lined up in Guardiola’s 4-1-2-2-1 formation. A team that favours inverted wingers, a false 9, and a defensive midfielder that drops back to make a back three when both the full backs stride up the pitch.

Joe Hart. That’s it… a no brainer.

The back four – Ashley Cole is again almost an automatic choice, there has probably never been a finer player to wear the number 3 shirt for England. 90+ caps and still no realistic competition for his position. Glen Johnson gets the Dani Alves role he’s secretly always wanted. A license to bomb up the right flank almost every time England get the ball is what is required here for Guardiola’s XI. Glen Johnson has been much maligned by certain critics, but there isn’t currently an English right sided defender more adept at attacking. Much is made of Micah Richards and Kyle Walker’s claims to this position, but when they come together on the pitch, it’s often Johnson who leaves the others desperately chasing shadows (Might be a bit of an exaggeration there…). The centre-backs need to be comfortable on the ball. Ferdinand is one of the coolest customers in possession – more stylish on the ball than a lot of midfielders, and he is joined by Cahill who, whilst still a little raw, is a centre-back of the ball-playing variety.

Phil Jones is the thirds player so far along with Joe Hart and Ashley Cole, to make both coach’s XI. He is quite simply a beast – Think Barcelona with Yaya Toure rather than Busquets or Mascherano and you’ll get the picture. When Cole and Johnson disappear off into enemy territory, he will drop back between Ferdinand and Cahill to form a back three.

Now, for the part that needs a bit of imagination…. Which English players fulfil the roles of Xavi and Iniesta?

After checking and checking again whether some archaic bylaw and even more ancient bloodline could allow Xavi and Iniesta themselves could turn out for England, Guardiola goes for broke and puts names of all the English born midfielders into a hat. Luckily for him, his glamorous assistant pulls Jack Wilshere and Paul Scholes out of the depths of black felt. Paul Scholes, as is widely reported, is revered in Spain – especially by the Barcelona players themselves. Xavi in particular, when asked by English press who his favourite player was, he named Scholes as the best central midfielder of the last 15-20 years. Scholes’ range of passing, positional awareness and ball-retention ability make him perfect for Guardiola’s England. Alongside him would be Jack Wilshere. The young Gunner is still learning the game – which is no disparagement, he’s already head and shoulders above most muck and bullets midfielders in the Premier League. But his quick touch, technical ability and close control would partner the old head of Scholes rather well in midfield. Scholes gets to have fun as Iniesta, whilst Wilshere is the link player.

Guardiola’s more recent teams, since he moved Messi off the wing (Actually now he’s sometimes back out wide) have utilised converted strikers as wingers, drifting in from the flanks – much like Mourinho, you might say. Pace and directness is the key here, because with Rooney playing a withdrawn role up front – as a false 9 – they will often be the England players closest to goal. Daniel Sturridge starts on the right and Walcott on the left. Again, when they naturally drift infield, those attacking full backs can exploit any spaces created behind the opposition full backs. Rooney is the fulcrum of the team, sitting just off the defenders, difficult to pick up and looking for intricate passing patterns to cut through defences after they’ve been bored to tears with the tiki-taka.

Once again, this is an imagining of Josep Guariola’s England XI – you may have your own views, feel free to post them below, and feel free to slate this one and anyone elses! There are discussions to be had over every single position. Is Cleverley ready for central midfield? Would Kyle Walker be a better pick than Glen Johnson? Theo Walcott – are you f***ing serious? Etc etc