AS Borussia Dortmund hacked away at Rangers’ healthy aggregate lead and threatened to draw before the interval, Giovanni van Bronckhorst grew increasingly irate.
He said his side “started on the front foot” as they had done in the reverse leg, attempting to make the pitch small and force Dortmund long or into congested central areas, while pressing high when opportunities arose.
However, Marco Rose had changed his side’s approach to address first-leg deficiencies and in the opening 45 minutes, it provided his side with a platform to dominate.
Unlike last week the visitors could call on a natural attacking right-back in Thomas Meunier who was dangerous in space. Additionally, they had clearly prepared a system that focused on creating combinations out wide while stretching the pitch.
This is shown in the passing network from last night (top) compared to the reverse leg (bottom). Meunier and Nico Schulz received the ball wider than Rafa Guerriero and Manuel Akanji in the reverse leg.
Rangers intended to combat this by remaining compact 4-2-3-1 shape, shuttling across the pitch to leave one full-back free and keeping Scott Arfield and Ryan Kent central to block passes into the middle of the pitch.
This appeared the same system without the ball that was used in Germany, however as mentioned Dortmund’s intentional moving of the Rangers block, by circulating the ball left before unleashing primed attacks on the right, got the upper hand.
Continuation of the above sequence demonstrates this.
After play moves from left to right again, the home side has been pushed back 10 or so yards. Kent and John Lundstram angle their bodies to show Mats Hummels inside but, given Meunier is free out wide, Barisic has two men to watch with Meunier unmarked out wide and so can’t stay tight on Julian Brandt.
READ MORE: Rangers defy Borussia Dortmund as Giovanni van Bronckhorst's tactical trump card turns the tide
Bradnt's pass in behind is cut out by Connor Goldson but it provided a warning sign that Dortmund had become wise to last week's approach.
On a number of occasions in the first half, Dortmund’s increased width in possession allowed them to access promising areas. Here, Meunier sees a penalty shout waved away having received the ball in a high area unmarked to play a one-two.
Wide rotations on either flank were carried out quicker than Rangers could combat and led to Dortmund taking the lead. Play moves from left to right quickly to expose gaps in this example, as Marco Reus finds Jude Bellingham before continuing his run.
Barisic is again caught between two men because Dortmund are playing to expose Kent's instructed high position. Meunier can play a one-two with Reus and deliver the cross which resulted in Donyell Malen's strike.
Van Bronckhorst was prepared and the switch to a 5-3-2 at half-time proved to be a masterstroke. A comparison of the first half pass map (top) and second (bottom) outlines the difference.
He said post-match: “I think we were much more solid defensively and when you play this system you have to be ready for the moments in transition which we really did.”
It addressed the first-half issues his side had experienced.
James Tavernier and Calvin Bassey were given license to be more aggressive up against Dortmund's full-backs, with an extra defender behind them providing cover. An extra defensive body and focus on remaining compact blocked Dortmund's wide triangles from making further inroads. Kent marked Mahmoud Dahoud intelligently, often blocking passing lanes into the centre of the pitch to force play long or trapping the midfielder centrally.
Immediately after the interval, these themes became clear. As Dortmund move play wide, Tavernier can stick tight to his man and force play backwards. Schultz is entrusted to switch play but perhaps can’t get the backlift required given Arfield stays touch tight. The hosts have matched Dortmund’s numbers out wide.
Notice Kent’s position as Dahoud receives, he is making sure the midfielder can’t turn and switch play. Instead, funnelling him into the congested centre.
Kent worked tirelessly throughout, making 26 pressures, often harrying the defence to block passes into their No.8.
Leon Balogun brought greater security at the back, the tight midfield three covered the pitch well and crucially, Morelos and Kent were isolated on Hummels and Emre Can.
The system suited the nature of the tie. The hosts could sit deeper given the extra defensive body and still launch stinging attacks thanks to the position of their front pairing, isolating Kent’s pace and Morelos’ physicality worked a treat.
Van Bronckhorst commented: “When you have Morelos and Kent in transition, one-against-one against their central defenders. I think they changed the game.”
Early in the half Morelos went close to a goal after out-muscling Hummels.
Kent was constantly able to run at the opposition defence from central areas.
The pair pressed brilliantly, showing the value of going man for man, to steal the ball from Can as Kent added a third, although VAR ruled the goal out.
The key facets of the first leg, Morelos’ individualism against Hummels and Kent’s one-v-one threat, played centre stage after the tactical switch.
Rangers’ principles didn’t change all that much after the break, however, the greater pitch coverage offered by a five-man defence and central compactness simultaneously dampened Dortmund’s switches of play and wide overloads.
Intelligent preparation and in-game decision making may at times be overlooked in football. Yesterday was a perfect example of how the man in the dugout can impact proceedings.
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