Michael Beale’s Rangers alteration that turned Tannadice tide

Yesterday at Tannadice they’d accumulated just 0.2xG before the half-time whistle. Despite enjoying total control and working the ball into promising areas, the visitors’ “execution was horrible” according to Michael Beale. As demonstrated by the xG trendline, the traffic was one-way in the second 45.

“There are one or two things about how you can create space for yourself when a team drops down. You may have to overload in certain areas. We certainly needed to up our quality because there were times when our initial part of the action was good but the execution was horrible,” Beale said when asked what changed to provoke a much better showing after the interval.

“In the second half, I thought we improved. We had to pass and run more. It was clear that Dundee United were sitting deep with a lot of people behind the ball to play on the counter-attack.

“I won’t tell you everything we changed. The crux of it is that we passed and moved off the ball a lot more. I thought the first goal typified that because it’s two players running in behind.”

These small tweaks and changes helped Rangers get their full-backs higher to turn the game against Hibs, and click the attack into gear during last Monday’s Old Firm tie. Yesterday was another example of subtle alterations made in the dressing room making an immediate impact.

Fashion Sakala’s opener tied in all the themes that Beale mentions, with Rangers “overloading certain areas to create space” on the opposite side of the pitch from which they’d score, improving their movement off the ball and running in behind.

The move starts with Malik Tillman recovering a long ball and Rangers setting up to move forwards. Ben Davies doesn’t play the ball wide to Ryan Jack dropping into the left-back spot, instead keeping it on the right side to start the process of overloading.

Rangers want to overload one area of the pitch, meaning, get more players than the opposition around the ball. Although this time it’s not to progress using the overload, but because of the space it creates elsewhere.

The visitors know if they can keep the ball long enough on the right and commit players to that flank, the opposition will have to respond or risk being outnumbered. Therefore, space will be created on the opposite flank.

READ MORE: Why Fashion Sakala represents Rangers' key change under Michael Beale

In this image, you can see both teams have five players on the right side of the pitch. James Tavernier and Connor Goldson aren’t forcing play because they seem to be plotting an attack down the left.

Goldson then raises his hand, encouraging Davies to switch play, but instead, the centre-back looks for the feet of Alfredo Morelos before the ball is worked back to the defence.

As John Lundstram subsequently drops into the right-back position, you can see him look towards his two centre-backs, while Goldson ushers Davies wider and deeper in order to switch play and attack the underloaded side of the pitch.

Davies has his arm up before receiving the ball, seemingly instructing Jack to move infield and clear the passing lane.

After Davies has found the feet of Sakala and the Zambian relays it to Borna Barisic, there is far more space available on the left compared to the right. 

Beale also said after the game that he wanted Sakala to “come off that right side and run down the left side at times and disrupt”, just as he did for the goal. He still had so much to do following Jack's clever flick but the room created on the left just wasn't on show during the first half.

You can see the goal's passing sequence below. Look at the concentration of passes on the right before the move is accelerated down the left.

Davies’ role in playing the initial pass forward was important. He completed 72/77 passes and won six of 10 duels, making an additional six ball recoveries, four clearances and three interceptions.

While Beale's still waiting for a full 90-minute performance, the development of this squad's playing style against the low block, shown to create space for yesterday's opener, will encourage the new manager while he waits for January recruits to arrive.