Wenger’s post-match tactics talk makes nonsense of claims that he doesn’t approach games with opponents in mind News

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Wenger’s post-match tactics talk makes nonsense of claims that he doesn’t approach games with opponents in mind

By Daily Sports on November 1, 2017

For long, especially after Arsenal suffer a defeat in the English Premier League (EPL), reports emerge from match analysts, some of whom have played for the club and manager Arsene Wenger in the past, that the coach does not pay enough focus on the opposition when preparing his team for games.

Wenger has been pilloried for years over his inability to win a major title since 2004 when his Thiery Henry-inspired swashbuckling team won the EPL title, going the entire season unbeaten.

The bile and general bad blood against the longest serving football manager in the aftermath of a loss can reach such a level that one begins to wonder if Wenger is or has been any good at coaching at all.

Past players can be a good insight into the methods of coaches and when a former player accuses a coach of being tactically inept, it can be quite damning.

However, not all opinions from ex-players can be regarded as the correct opinion. Their views can often be corrupted by an impulse to let out frustration after a bad result is recorded in a match. One suspects that may be so in the case of Wenger and his hordes of critics who accuse him of not paying much attention to the opponents when preparing his team.

After Arsenal’s last weekend win over Swansea in the EPL, Wenger discussed how his team was able to turn around a 0-1 deficit in the first half to win 2-1, and one could sense from his analysis that the coach pays a lot more to details about the opposition and how to deal with them.

Swansea sat very deep in the first half and relied on counter attacks, one of which they profitted from when Clucas gave them the lead in the first half.

Wenger revealed how Arsenal were able to turn the tide around in the second half:

“We had a bit more space on the left, we saw that and we wanted to take advantage of that in the second half because they blocked Hector (Belerin) a lot with Clucas on our right side. For us it was important to build up on the right and change quickly to the left and create some space for (Sead) Kolasinac. He did that very well.”

It might not reveal much about his tactical approach during games, but those words reveal an acute sense of match reading on the part of Wenger and the Arsenal bench. To have bamboozled the opponents by building up from one half of the pitch, while eyeing a quick transition to the opposite end, shows intelligence on the Frenchman’s part and that’s what many are loathe to concede as they jump into the bandwagon of criticising the coach when the Gunners lose.

Certainly, Arsene thinks about what the opposition does when planning his tactics, and it’s always naive to assert otherwise.

Christiano Ronaldo blames Zidane over Real’s slump

Cristiano Ronaldo has blamed Zinedine Zidane after Real Madrid suffered a shock 2-1 loss to Girona in La Liga on Sunday.

Isco put the champions ahead in the 12th minute but goals from Cristhian Stuani and Portu turned the game on its head.

Spanish outlet Diario Gol report Ronaldo thinks Zidane’s tactics are becoming predictable for opponents to play against.

The Portuguese wants the French manager to learn from the defeat and is concerned the La Liga champions are now easy to work out.

The reports also claim Real president Florentino Perez agrees with Ronaldo and his opinion on Zidane.

And the bigwig has already made a shortlist of candidates who could replace him should results not improve.

The defeat to Girona leaves Real Madrid a massive eight points behind rivals Barcelona after 10 matches in the top flight.

And Zidane will know he is under pressure to get results quickly.

That starts on Wednesday when Real take on Tottenham at Wembley in the Champions League.

After the defeat to Girona, Zidane said: “We did well in the first half but football is about details and the first goal was from a throw in and we weren’t focused.

“I don’t think we played badly, we didn’t lack intensity or effort, we just lost focus at the most important moments and that’s why I’m annoyed.

“We’re eight points behind but it won’t change anything, we can pick ourselves up, we'll have better days than this and our rivals are going to drop points.”

Source Daily Sports

Posted November 1, 2017