Hansi Flick – Bayern Munich – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, German Bundesliga, Managers, UEFA Champions League, World Football

In his first season at the club, Hans-Dieter Flick has seamlessly achieved success with Bayern Munich in stunning fashion, reaching the Champions League final for the club's first time since Jupp Heynckes was at the helm in 2012-13. The former Bayern player achieved widescale success as Germany's assistant coach, even winning the World Cup as Joachim Low's assistant in 2014. With all his experience at international management, Flick has now taken his former side to new heights, creating the most exciting Bayern Munich team since the days of Ribery and Robben. In the 2019-20 Bundesliga season, Bayern won 26 of their 34 games, scored 100 goals in the process and won the league by 13 points over arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund. In the Champions League, they've fared arguably even better, winning all 10 of their games and scoring 42 goals in the process. That's right, they've averaged over 4 goals per game in the toughest competition in club football this season. So, as we prepare for Sunday's 2019-20 UEFA Champions League Final, here is a Tactical Analysis of Hans-Dieter 'Hansi' Flick's Bayern Munich.

Thomas Tuchel – Paris Saint Germain – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Managers, UEFA Champions League, World Football

For the first time ever, Paris-Saint-Germain have reached the final of the UEFA Champions League. Beating out Borussia Dortmund in the Round of 16 paved the way for PSG to play Atalanta and surprise semi-finalists RB Leipzig upon a return to the competition in August, where they now await German giants Bayern Munich in the final on Sunday. Under the fantastic management of Thomas Tuchel, PSG have been extraordinarily good. Some might argue that their path to the final was a tad easier than previous finalists of the competition, but it would be hard to argue PSG to be undeserving of their place in the final with such a star-studded lineup. The Ligue 1 champions have scored 25 goals in Champions League play thus far, conceding just 5 in the process. Here is a Tactical Analysis of Thomas Tuchel's PSG as we head toward the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League Final.

The Steps to a Perfect Demonstration for Any Activity

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Sport Psychology

The art of carrying out the perfect demonstration is an underrated skill, often neglected by coaches in the quest to get the activity going as quickly as possible. What coaches often don't realize is that by not demonstrating, and by not demonstrating properly, they are wasting time as players are thrust into an activity without having a clue as to what they are supposed to do. The demonstration is probably the most critical component to any activity or game in a practice session, yet many forget about the necessity of the demonstration or neglect to realize a) how important it is to raising understanding and painting the picture for the players and b) how many crucial steps there are to an effective demonstration. As a result, in this article, I will break down every element to a perfect demonstration in helping coaches better paint pictures for their players.

Manchester United – Premier League 2020-21 – Transfer Market Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Premier League

The first half of 2020-21 was not ideal for Manchester United by any stretch of the imagination. But in the final fourteen Premier League matches, Ole Gunnar Solksjaer took Manchester United on an unbeaten run, culminating in a final day triumph over Leicester City to secure Champions League football and third place in the table. It was a finish worth celebrating and with Bruno Fernandes firing on all cylinders, Manchester United fans will be hoping for better times ahead. But another year gone by without Premier League glory, Solskjaer and co. would have been hoping for silverware elsewhere. Unfortunately for the Red Devils, they crashed out of every one of their cup competitions at the semi-final stage. So even with Bruno Fernandes and a powerful trio of attackers alongside him, the Red Devils will undoubtedly be turning their attention to the transfer market for new additions. Anything less than Premier League or Champions League glory is simply not enough to satisfy the Manchester United faithful's. Here is a Transfer Market Analysis of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United and who they can sign to achieve the dream of getting back to that level.

1V1 Attacking & Defending – Session Plan & Key Coaching Points

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, World Football

Over the years of coaching youth soccer, I have seen entire curriculums made up of 1v1/2v2 and activities. Sometimes clubs focus solely on these topics throughout their curriculums, particularly with regards to younger players. For me personally, I love to be more possession-focused and most of my activities revolve around topics of how to get the most out of our attack and time on the ball. 1V1 and 2V2 activities can also be dangerous to implement as a lot of them involve far too much waiting in lines. That said, 1v1 defending and attacking is still an essential session topic to cover in any season, regardless of your coaching philosophy and approach. As the great football pundit and commentator Don Hutchinson once said - "People think it's a game of 11v11. It's not. It's a game of 1v1. Win your individual battles." So with that, here is a session all about both 1v1 attacking and 1v1 defending.

Arsenal – Premier League 2020-21 – Transfer Market Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Managers, Premier League, World Football

The 2019-20 Premier League season was Arsenal's worst in twenty-five years. Not since 1995 had the Gunners finished below 8th place in the table and even under the leadership of Mikel Arteta, their form was inconsistent at best. Despite Arteta's tactical nuisances and potential to be a world class manager, Arsenal fans may be feeling skeptical going into the 2020-2021 season knowing that things have gotten worse, rather than better, since Arsene Wenger left the club. Even their FA Cup final victory over Chelsea did little to lift the fans' spirit and their lack of Premier League success has had an impact on their ability to attract top quality players in this summer's transfer window thus far. With all that said, Arsenal are still an incredibly interesting outfit and Mikel Arteta will undoubtedly prove to be a tactician worth examining throughout 2020-2021. To kick off our new Transfer Market Analysis Series, we discuss who Mikel Arteta may look to bring in to strengthen his team and achieve greater success in 2020-21.

Passing & Moving – Session Plan and Key Coaching Points

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, World Football

Although they should be considered completely different topics, coaches often link passing and moving together as items that need to be improved together. As every youth coach of ages 4-10 has found out, players in the initial stages of their soccer development often have trouble "spreading out" and understanding basic concepts of passing and moving. So with that, here is a session plan from The Mastermind Site all about passing and moving for ages 6-10!

Marcelo Bielsa – Leeds United – Tactical Analysis (2019-20 Edition)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Formations, Managers, Premier League, World Football

Leeds United have waited 16 years to be back in the Premier League, and under Marcelo Bielsa that dream has now finally turned into reality for the 2020/2021 season. The Argentinean manager has long been hailed as one of the best in the world, not just by fans and players, but by other managers like Pep Guardiola, Diego Simeone and Mauricio Pochettino. It's easy to see why, as in just two years he has turned Leeds United into one of the very best teams in the Championship and has had the club hovering inside the top two for almost the entirety of both seasons. After a poor run of form at the end of the 2018-19 campaign resulting in Leeds missing out on automatic promotion to Sheffield United, Marcelo Bielsa has just continued to work his magic to the point where they secured automatic promotion this season with two games to spare. Here is a Tactical Analysis of Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds United and the extraordinary exploits his team have pulled off in the 2019-20 EFL Championship season.