Oliver Glasner – VFL Wolfsburg – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga, Managers, Team Analysis

German football is becoming more and more populated with talented coaches hailing from one of the nation's noisiest neighbours - Austria. Oliver Glasner is the latest in a long line of stellar Austrian coaches in the Bundesliga, currently leading VFL Wolfsburg to amazing heights in his second season at the club. After much in the way of success with LASK Linz in the Austrian Bundesliga, Glasner joined Wolfsburg in 2019 and led them to a 7th place finish in his first season at the club. This season, the Austrian manager's taken Wolfsburg to new heights, with the club currently sitting in third place. The Volkswagen-owned club are now set for their best finish in years under the influence of Glasner, with the manager himself linked with some of the top clubs across the country. Here is a tactical analysis of Oliver Glasner's VFL Wolfsburg in 2020-21.

Explaining Germany’s 50+1 Rule

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga

If we've learned anything about German football clubs this week, it's quite simply that their owners are smarter than the average club owner. The 50+1 rule in Germany has recently been getting attention due to its involvement in stopping the dreaded European Super League from coming to Germany and sweeping away the nation's biggest clubs. But what is the 50+1 rule?

Who Should Replace Hansi Flick at Bayern Munich?

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga, Managers, Team Analysis

On Saturday August 17, 2021, shortly after Bayern’s big 3-2 win over VFL Wolfsburg, Hansi Flick announced his decision to leave Bayern Munich at the end of the 2020-21 season. The news left the Bayern board reeling, and the club now having to navigate the final stretch of the season under the uncertainty of not knowing who their next manager will be. So who should be their next manager? Bundesliga Daily brings us some of the key candidates for the job.

How fans stopped the European Super League

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Premier League, Serie A

April 20, 2021, will go down in history as the day when European football was saved, and in large part, saved by the fans of the game. Sir Matt Busby famously said, "Football is nothing without the fans", and it was proven right when fans of all Premier League clubs involved in the creation of the Real Madrid led European Super League protested against their own clubs and owners. Liverpool fans took down banners inside the stadium and replaced them with protest banners outside the stadium instead and fans of Chelsea FC took to the streets to protest before their match against Brighton & Hove Albion, even prompting club legend Petr Cech to jump off the team bus and plead with them to move out of the way. The owners of the six English clubs got the message loud and clear, "WE DO NOT WANT THE SUPER LEAGUE." This is how fans stopped the European Super League from happening.

Paulo Fonseca – AS Roma – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Managers, Serie A, Subscriber Exclusives, Team Analysis

AS Roma are still far from the side they were many years ago, but they have enjoyed two of their better seasons over the last decade since Paulo Fonseca arrived at the club. The Portuguese manager came to Roma with a respectable reputation, having led Shakhar Donetsk to three league titles and a 74% win rate in his three seasons at the club. During his first season in charge at I Giallorossi, Fonseca led AS Roma to a fifth place finish in Serie A - securing Europa League football for the team. Roma have since performed well in the competition this season, with a semi-final against tournament favourites Manchester United to play for in the next few weeks. Their performances in the Europa League have outshone their relatively sub-par season in Serie A, with the side currently in seventh place. Nonetheless, if Fonseca's team were to pull out a miracle and make the Europa League final, this season would be seen as a complete success. With that, here is a tactical analysis of Paulo Fonseca's AS Roma this season.

Futbol Masterminds – European Super League, Racism, and Euro 2020

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Podcast, Premier League, UEFA Champions League

On Sunday April 18th, 2021, twelve of Europe's elite clubs made a shocking announcement that they had agreed to take part in a "European Super League". The announcement was instantly condemned by UEFA, FIFA, the FA, and fans around the globe...not to mention the Futbol Masterminds. Rhys, Kausty and special guest Vivek dissect some of the many issues to do with the European Super League, before delving into a discussion on racism in football and England's Euro 2020 squad. Submit questions and follow the show @futbolmasterminds on Instagram, or on themastermindsite.com. 

CF Montreal 4-2 Toronto FC – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Match Analysis

After a fantastic midweek win in the CONCACAF Champions League against Club Leon, Toronto FC looked beaten and battered before the whistle even blew on Major League Soccer's opening day. The Reds looked lackluster throughout the match, struggling to put up a fight against a Montreal defense full of mistakes. This is our tactical analysis of Montreal's 4-2 win over Toronto FC on the opening round of the 2021 Major League Soccer season.

Borussia Monchengladbach 4-0 Eintracht Frankfurt – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga, Managers, Match Analysis, Team Analysis

Earlier this week, Adi Hütter was announced as the next Borussia Monchengladbach boss. Unfortunately for him and his current Eintracht Frankfurt team, he didn't make the best impression on his new club this weekend, suffering a 4-0 defeat. Adi Hütter's team were lifeless and ineffective, and let Gladbach walk all over them. So as this managerial merry-go-round saga continues, we analyze Borussia Monchengladbach's 4-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.