Knowing Pep Guardiola's level of footballing intelligence, we thoroughly trust his judgement. However, within the commentary surrounding what Atletico did on the day to achieve a result, as an undoubtedly all-out defensive approach, the 5-5-0 has become overstated - almost as a metric for evaluating Atletico's solidity. In actuality, the 5-5-0 rarely ever took centre stage.
past weekend, securing an easy 4-2 win against arch-rivals Atletico Madrid. With the likes of Dani Alves, yes Dani Alves, and a younger version of Xavi himself in the form of 17-year-old Gavi, Barca have a mix of incredible experience and youthful verve to propel them into the top four moving forward. Here is our match analysis of Barca's 4-2 win over Atletico, and Barcelona's attacking variety and balance throughout the match.
This past weekend, the 2020-21 Premier League season came to an end, along with all of Europe's top five leagues. In an exciting and dramatic final matchday, Leicester City crashed out of the top four, leaving the Futbol Masterminds to argue about whether or not they "bottled it". The panel also discuss Liverpool's subsequent top four comeback, Harry Kane's impending, or rather unlikely, move away from Tottenham Hotspur, Lille's Ligue 1 title win and Atletico's La Liga title thanks to Luis Suarez. Follow @futbolmasterminds on Instagram to see more of the show and subscribe via Itunes and Spotify!
Russell is back(!!), and back in style to discuss all the top European leagues in episode #11 of the Futbol Masterminds show. The panel first delve into Chelsea vs. Man City, Timo Werner and panenkas, before moving to Serie A, discussing Juventus' top four hopes being dashed before their eyes. The panel then give their picks in the respective races for the La Liga and Ligue 1 title, before discussing the potential Ballon d'Or race between Lewandowski and Messi. Follow @futbolmasterminds on Instagram to see more of the show and subscribe via Itunes and Spotify!
For his fantastic performances this season and overall reputation scoring goals, Andre Silva has attracted the attention of Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United. Here we break down each of his potential suitors, and what he might bring to each club.
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.
2020 was a strange year for everyone in the world, not just footballers. But the COVID-19 pandemic has meant that we haven’t gotten as much football as we might have done otherwise. That said, there were still plenty of matches played across the year, and some surprise performers and performances along the way. As always, TheMastermindSite.com will now count down the top 100 male footballers in the world for the year. This list takes into account a player’s form in 2020 as its primary mechanism, with reputation, difficulty of league, club and national team success each playing a secondary role. So with that in mind, here is TheMastermindSite’s Top 100 Male Footballers in the World for 2020 (40-21).
Some things never change, and one of those things is Atletico Madrid under Diego Simeone. The Argentine's team have been one of the most consistent sides over the past decade, not only on form, but on system and style of play. This season, Atletico have been playing some fantastic football, with all of their top stars in full flow. Los Rojiblancos currently sit top of the table, albeit on goal differential, with 8 wins from 11 matches so far. Here is a Tactical Analysis of Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid in 2020-21.
Few clubs over the past decade have developed as succinct of a style of play as Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid. The 4-4-2 and 4-4-1-1 formations have practically become synonymous with Simeone's side, as he's taken Atletico to two Champions League finals and one La Liga title. Although 2019-20 hasn't been the best of seasons for Los Rojiblancos, they've continued their usual defensive prowess, conceding the second least amount of goals this season in La Liga and beating Liverpool in both Champions League Group Stage encounters. Here is a Tactical Analysis of Diego Simeone's 4-4-2 system and hard-working Atletico Madrid team.
At the end of the day, a team can win playing any formation and there isn't necessarily any formation that is superior to another. However, some of the best teams in the modern era have perfected certain systems and styles of play, guided by the formation they use. Here is an examination of some of the best teams in the world and how their formation has led to their success.
In terms of formations and tactics, one of the major surprises of the 2018-19 season in Europe has been the rise of the 3-1-4-2. Although the formation is only a very minor spin on the popular 3-5-2, seemingly a host of teams around Europe have implemented this formation, and not just in Italy where back-three … Continue reading The Rise of the 3-1-4-2
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