Chapter 927 This is a good question!
"Bayern Munich are most dangerous when they have complete possession of the ball!"
In the upscale conference room of the Grand Hyatt Berlin where Southampton stayed, Bielsa explained the Saints' core ideas for this game to all the players included in the 18-man squad.
In order to ensure the team's safe preparations and to take good care of the players' families and members of the Saints Fan Club who came with the team, Southampton booked the entire Grand Hyatt Hotel, so Bielsa did not need to have any reservations when speaking.
"Guardiola's team is very good at creating threats when they are in control of the situation, so in the game, from the first minute, we have to disrupt the opponent's control of the game."
Bielsa pointed to the LCD screen behind him, on which a PPT was being switched, showing Bayern Munich's lineup and the list of substitute players.
"We have received news that Ribery is destined to miss this game. He has not played for a long time and is not even on the squad. However, another winger Robben is expected to be on the field."
Bayern Munich's offense relies heavily on the two wingers, but this season, Ribery and Robben have been injured and often absent, so Guardiola's lineup is also greatly affected.
"I have every reason to believe that Bayern Munich will continue to adopt the three-back tactic, because this tactic has been practiced many times by Guardiola and has achieved certain results in the semi-finals. It can make up for the loss caused by the absence of two core players on the wing to the greatest extent."
Behind Bielsa, Bayern Munich used a 3-5-2 tactic.
The three defenders are Dante, Javi Martinez and Jerome Boateng.
As for the five midfielders, Xabi Alonso falls back, and the four players in front are lined up in a row, namely Bernat, Thiago, Lahm and Robben, and the two forwards are Lewandowski and Thomas Muller.
At first glance, this formation appears to be three-five-two, but in fact, there are many factors that can be changed.
For example, if Bernat retreats, it is a four-back formation, and if Lahm also changes his position during the game and retreats to the right, it is a five-back formation.
The reason why Guardiola's team is a headache is that his formation is completely useless. The players' positions change too frequently and are highly mobile, changing anytime and anywhere.
The same is true for Southampton.
It is entirely foreseeable that Bayern Munich will certainly invest a lot of defensive energy in the game to guard against the Saints' offensive lineup, especially the front trident.
"So, in this game, we have to rush forward from the beginning, press forward, and suppress Bayern Munich firmly in the half court, using pressing to suppress them, but we don't need to fight for the ball too much. Remember, if their defense line wants to control the ball, it's up to them. But once they enter the midfield..."
Bielsa's slap was displayed on the LCD screen behind him, covering the area where the three midfielders Xabi Alonso, Lahm and Thiago were huddled.
What the Argentine madman meant was that they would allow Bayern Munich to control the ball on the back line, but as soon as the ball entered the midfield, Southampton would immediately rush for it, completely destroy Bayern Munich's organization, and push the ball back.
Let me ask you, if the ball can't pass the midfield, how can it pose a threat?
"In order to restrict Bayern Munich's midfield, we need to shrink our formation appropriately, focus on the area between the midline and 30 meters, and control the middle and flanks."
At this point, Bielsa showed the next PPT, which was a matchup chart of the two teams’ players.
"Luis!" The Argentine looked at Suarez, "I need you to block all passes to the center of the midfield. If Xabi Alonso retreats, you must follow him immediately and keep a close eye on him!"
Suarez nodded. This task was not unfamiliar to him.
Moreover, with his ability, he can quickly cut into the gap between Xabi Alonso and the back line at the moment of switching from defense to offense. As long as he gets the ball here, Bayern Munich will be in danger.
Because he believes that his two teammates Hazard and Sanchez will follow immediately.
As long as the three get the ball in the frontcourt and cooperate with each other, they will have the confidence to break through Bayern Munich's defense.
"Eden, Alexis, I need you to assist Luis. Your main task is to block the passes to Lahm and Thiago while Luis in the middle is pressuring Bayern Munich, forcing Bayern Munich to pass to the wing."
As long as they lock down Bayern Munich's central midfield and prevent the back line from passing the ball to the three players in the middle, it will be useless no matter how much ball possession Bayern Munich has, because their only way to pass the ball is to go to the side.
In this case, it will be much easier for Southampton to organize their defense.
Because of the two flanks, not to mention that Ribery is not there now, even if the devil's wingers return, Ribery and Robben, Southampton can control the center of the frontcourt. Fabregas and Danilo, Di Maria and David Abala are all able to restrict the two flanks of Bayern Munich.
As long as the ball is on the wing, it is difficult for Bayern Munich's offense to pose a threat.
As for attacking, that's even simpler.
The three-back tactic has a natural weakness in defending the flanks.
In order to pursue midfield ball control, Guardiola reuses players like Xabi Alonso and Lahm. As long as Southampton's front trident can move to the empty space to receive the pass as soon as possible, and Fabregas and Di Maria can join in as soon as possible, Southampton's offense will be able to be active.
One-on-one, no one could defend Southampton's front trident.
More importantly, in the midfield, there is Fabregas who passes the ball, Di Maria who dribbles the ball, and Toni Kroos who organizes and controls the rhythm. Once Southampton's midfield starts working, it is hard to defend.
This is why some people commented that the Saints' midfield is comparable to Barcelona in its heyday.
Di Maria’s role is similar to Iniesta’s, Fabregas is similar to Xavi, and Toni Kroos is similar to Busquets.
Although the technical characteristics and styles of specific players are different, resulting in different characteristics of the two midfield combinations, but in general, the specific functions are the same.
Therefore, as long as the Saints can grab the ball and block Bayern Munich's attack, the attack will not be a problem.
One of the important reasons why Southampton has such confidence is that the front trident is willing to engage in pressing and defense.
Just imagine, if Southampton's trident was like Real Madrid's front trident, playing a rough game, defending when they were in a good mood and standing and watching when they were in a bad mood, would Bielsa hand over such an important first line of defense to them?
Of course, Bayern Munich is not completely powerless to fight back.
Regardless of whether Bielsa's tactics can be successful, even if they are successful, Bayern Munich still has choices.
For example, Guardiola could give up his possession and focus on limiting Southampton's attack.
But in this case, whether Bayern Munich can still create threats on the offensive end depends on luck.
Another situation is that Southampton's frontcourt pressing and blocking are not strong enough and cannot work, allowing Bayern Munich to control and pass the ball more effectively. Once Lewandowski, Thomas Muller, Robben and others are given the opportunity to directly take the ball and attack the back line, Southampton's goal will also be in jeopardy.
Football tactics are like this, any choice involves both opportunities and risks.
As a head coach, Bielsa can only choose the tactics that are most likely to bring out the team's advantages and defeat the opponent.
As for whether it will work, it depends on how Bayern Munich responds.
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While Bielsa was arranging the team's tactics for tomorrow's final at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, major German TV stations were also warming up for the upcoming Champions League final.
The German TV station with the highest ratings even produced a special program, inviting many football legends to discuss tomorrow's game and study whether Bayern Munich has any chance of defeating the Saints.
"The Saints' strongest point is their offense!"
Michael Ballack, a former superstar of German football and a famous player of Bayern Munich, commented on the show.
"I have never seen a team attack like Southampton. They have gathered the best superstars, Suarez, Hazard, Fabregas, Sanchez, Di Maria and Toni Kroos. They are absolute superstars and their strength is unquestionable."
"Looking at Bayern Munich, we also have superstars, Ribery, Robben, Lewandowski and Thomas Muller, but we have to admit that we are slightly inferior in comparison."
"Not only that, Southampton gives me the feeling that their tactics are very rigorous. They rarely lose tactical discipline. Every player plays for the team as a whole and plays at the highest level because of teamwork. This is very rare in the current European football. The last time I saw it was Guardiola's Barcelona!"
After listening to this, the host smiled and asked, "Michael, what you mean is that Bayern Munich doesn't have much chance of winning?"
"We definitely have a chance of winning!" Ballack replied. "The strongest point is often also the weakest point. The Saints' offense is indeed quite sharp, but can their defense be as good as their offense?"
"In such a crucial final, can Bielsa let their superstar players devote enough energy to defense? You know, offensive players are naturally resistant to defense, and Southampton players will also be slack and unwilling to defend, so this is their weakness."
The host nodded and said, "Thank you Michael. Who do you think is the player that Bayern Munich needs to pay most attention to in this game?"
"Suarez!" Ballack answered without hesitation.
"Why?"
"Any team that has a player like Suarez is very lucky. His active running and outstanding personal skills can bring chaos to the opponent. I personally think that his biggest threat is to retreat to find trouble for the midfielders and get the ball in the threatening area. It's quite scary for one person to fight against three players' double-teaming!"
"What about Hazard and Sanchez?"
"They are also very scary. Southampton's greatest luck is that they have three top players with excellent personal abilities at the same time, which makes them seem to be at ease when facing any defense."
"This is the nightmare of all opponents!" Ballack added.
Anyone can hear that the Bayern Munich legend believes that in this final, Bayern Munich is at a disadvantage in terms of strength.
If Guardiola's team wants to beat their opponents, they have to do a lot of work in limiting the opponent's offensive players.
But the question is, given Guardiola's personality, is he willing to lower himself to defend?
That’s a good question!