Despite Brighton’s high-flying start to the season, I worried about what would happen when faced with a truly great counter-attacking side, given the space out wide in their shape. Well, in came West Ham United, one of the fiercest counter-attacking teams in the world. Here is Game of Numbers #26, starting with how West Ham perfectly exploited Brighton’s greatest weakness.
JAMES WARD-PROWSE & WEST HAM V. BRIGHTON
Embed from Getty ImagesJames Ward-Prowse is so insanely good at set-pieces, that some members of the footballing community seem to think he’s only good at set-pieces.
Not true! James Ward-Prowse is the perfect player to have in a counter-attacking team. His weight of pass is fantastic, he’s incisive with his movement into space, and he’s quick to play unbelievable long-passes in behind an opposition defense. All of these traits have been on full display since the former Saints captain joined the Hammers.
Last week, I spoke about Brighton‘s need to sure up their wide areas in defensive transitions. It was a trend I noticed them struggling with in their 2+3 shape against both Luton and Wolves. But having won both games so comfortably, it was always going to take a beating to truly help the Seagulls see the issue at hand.
Now a 2+3 build is fine for winning back possession in central areas in the immediacy of transitions. But if the ‘3’ in that equation don’t win the ball back straight away, the opposition will always look to hit the wide areas. This is where Michail Antonio already loves to operate on the break, wreaking havoc with his imposing physicality as he drifts out wide.
With Antonio such an imposing threat, the centre-backs had to consistently stretch themselves within that shape. In a 3+2 such as what Man City now have since they evolved away from their 2+3 (with two Inverted Fullbacks), you simply have more cover in the wide areas.
As a result of that cover, your defensive players can stay in their positions. But with just a pair of centre-backs to cope at the back, one centre-back has to shift across to cover out wide, meaning the other one also has to come across. Space can then be hit on the other side.
This is what we saw over and over again with the Seagulls against the counter-attacking genius of David Moyes’ West Ham.
Embed from Getty ImagesTake the first goal as an example. As soon as the great shuffling of JWP allowed the Hammers to win possession in midfield, Antonio immediately sprung toward the wide left channel, in behind the slower James Milner.
Webster naturally had to come across, and couldn’t handle the physicality of Antonio. With Webster now out of the picture, Dunk became the last man. Who was there to exploit the space left by Dunk? James Ward-Prowse.
Jarrod Bowen‘s goal for #2 hits a similar note. The Hammers immediately hit Said Benrahma again in behind James Milner’s position, causing Webster and Dunk to compact together in stopping the Algerian. In doing so, they left a massive gap over on the other side, as Estupiñán recovered from his high attacking position. So even as Benrahma slowed the transition to wait for support from the likes of Jarrod Bowen, it didn’t matter.
It’s rare that I’ll talk about the same subject in two editions of this series (let alone in back-to-back weeks), but Brighton once again have to sort out their rest-defense.
RELATED: Game of Numbers #25 – Brighton in transition & Frenkie de Jong in defense
They no longer have problems in front of goal. It’s that 2+3 shape that’s leaving too much space out wide. West Ham were always going to win this match with their approach to counter-attacking in the wide areas as a result, and the Seagulls should have seen this coming. As for James Ward-Prowse, this is underratedly one of the signings of the summer, and one that perfectly fits their style of play.
ENZO FERNÁNDEZ – CHELSEA’S JAMES MADDISON?
Embed from Getty ImagesChelsea struggled for goals last season, but they also struggled to create the right chances to score goals. Enzo Fernández ended up being one of the only bright spots in a torrid time for the Blues, nicely dictating the tempo of their matches from his role as the ‘Deep-Lying Playmaker’ in a post-Jorginho palace. Since he’s so confident with the ball and so willing to pull off the difficult passes, Mauricio Pochettino has started to harness that superpower further forward.
This could be crucial for Chelsea as the season unfolds. The dynamic wing play between Sterling and Gusto will be key, and they’ll be hoping Ben Chilwell can stay fit for the entire season down the other side. But Enzo is the only genuine chance creator from central channels.
We’ve already seen just how critical a player like this can be when put in a position to succeed with Ange Postecoglou’s start to life at Tottenham Hotspur. The Australian’s used James Maddison as his ‘Creative Ten’, with most of the play funnelling toward the former Leicester man as he dances between half-spaces and looks to exploit the spaces left by the opposition’s midfield lines.
Maddison is a master of spatial perceptions, and nicely picks up pockets to play line-splitting, defense-breaking passes even in the tightest of times. Last year, we wrote about how the half-spaces are the most optimal areas for creating chances. But James Maddison is the type of player that will even find room to exploit the supposed holy grail ‘Zone 14’ in front of the box.
Enzo is a slightly different player. He has great box-to-box mobility, a sublime weight of pass, and immaculate long passing ability, particularly in spreading play diagonally.
His technique might not be as sublime as James Maddison (high bar to clear), but what separates the Spurs man from others in the ’10’ role is that ability to perceive spaces to receive completely unopposed.
Enzo’s energy will allow him to make lung-bursting runs into space, but the 22-year-old will need to grow in that ’10’ role for Chelsea with the more subtle movements into space. The smaller adjustments that the likes of Maddison or Fernandes make to receive the ball just a half-yard away to keep the game ticking along.
However, the signs are positive if Mauricio Pochettino wants to continue deploying the Argentinean further up the pitch. It’s getting the best out of the vast array of attacking quality Enzo offers, while also helping to produce more chance creation from central channels. It was Chelsea’s most impressive victory in a while, and Enzo felt at the heart of everything good.
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MORE TO FOLLOW IN THIS EDITION!
Be sure to check back soon as we analyze more matches and performances across the weekend! Plus be sure to see the previous editions from this campaign below.
-> Game of Numbers #25 – Barca’s midfield diamond & Frenkie de Jong in defense
-> Game of Numbers #24 – Bellingham at the top of the diamond
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