Tag: UEFA Europa League

Finding Obite Evan Ndicka’s next club

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Centre Backs, Data Analysis, German Bundesliga, Most Recent, Player Analysis, Recruitment & Scouting

For two seasons in a row now at Eintracht Frankfurt, Obite Evan Ndicka has been one of the best centre-backs in the Bundesliga. A massive factor behind Frankfurt's fifth place finish in 2020-21 under Adi Hütter, followed by a stunning UEFA Europa League final charge in 2021-22, Obite Evan Ndicka is starting to now receive deserved attention as one of the most promising defenders in world football. With an eye for a goal, fantastic timing of decisions at the back, phenomenal dueling ability, and pace to sweep in behind defensive mistakes, all top European clubs should be tracking Ndicka's progress at Frankfurt this season. But mysteriously, very few seem to be circling around the 22-year-old, and most clubs in need of a centre-back appear to have their eyes set on other targets. So with that, we attempt to find Obite Evan Ndicka's next club, if a move were to be made ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.

Advertisement

Longball Preview Show – West Ham’s European Tour + the Divock Effect

by TMS Staff, posted in Most Recent, Podcast

On this week’s Longball Preview, Kausty Kapoor joins Declan to review last week’s action in the Premier League and all the European action before taking a deep dive into West Ham vs Arsenal, and the relegation six-pointer between Watford and Burnley. Be sure to follow the show @mastermindsite on social media to never miss an update, as we continue to preview the remainder of the season! 

Gerardo Seoane – BSC Young Boys – Tactical Analysis

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coach Education, Managers, Masterclasses, World Football

Very rarely has a manager dominated their domestic league over a three season period like BSC Young Boys' Gerardo Seoane. The Swiss manager has led his Bern-based team to a shocking 81 points in 35 matches this season, nearly 30 more than second place FC Basel on 53. With his unique style of football and winning mentality, a host of Bundesliga clubs were interested in securing the signature of Seoane, with the Swiss ultimately signing on for Bayer Leverkusen. So ahead of Gerardo Seoane's move to the Bundesliga, we take a look at the tactics he deployed in his three season spell with BSC Young Boys.

Why German teams struggle to dominate in Europe

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League

The German Bundesliga, one of Europe’s big 3 professional football leagues, has been anything but collectively dominant in European competitions over the past decade. Although Bayern Munich won the UEFA Champions League in 2019-20, the days of Bayern and Dortmund squaring up in a European final as they did in 2013 appear to be over. This past year Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund were both knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the quarter-finals, with Leipzig failing to make it past the Round of 16. So if Germany wants to get themselves onto the level of England and Spain, what needs to change?

UCL / UEL second legs – what we learned this week

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Match Analysis, UEFA Champions League, World Football

In a week that saw Manchester City humble PSG, Chelsea teach Real Madrid a lesson, Manchester United and Roma involved in a 5-goal thriller and Villareal tame Arsenal, we look back at some of the talking points from the second leg semifinals of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

UCL / UEL Semi-Finals – what we learned this week

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Match Analysis, UEFA Champions League, World Football

In a week that saw Neymar battered and bruised at the hands of Manchester City, Christian Pulisic dazzle against Real Madrid, and Edinson Cavani terrorize Roma to bits, the UCL and UEL semi-finals threw up a ton of action and intriguing sub-plots. Here is what we learned this week in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League semi-finals.

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 – Lingard, Bundesliga Top Four Race & Racism in Football

by Rhys Desmond, posted in German Bundesliga, Match Analysis, Player Analysis, Podcast, Premier League, UEFA Champions League

Since arriving at West Ham, Jesse Lingard has revitalized his career and transformed the Hammers into one of the most dangerous attacking outfits in the Premier League. This week the Futbol Masterminds discuss whether or not he could start for Manchester United next season and why he's had so much success with David Moyes' team. The panel also discuss the Bundesliga top four race, Mane and Salah's 2021 relationship, and racism in football following this week's disappointing incident in the Europa League involving Glenn Kamara and Ondrej Kudela. Subscribe via Itunes and Spotify below!