Possession with Purpose: Erik ten Hag (Ajax 18/19)
During their incredible 2018/19 campaign, Erik ten Hag’s Ajax represented football at it’s most intelligent. Despite their entire squad costing less than Cristiano Ronaldo, Ajax managed to overcome the likes of Juventus and Real Madrid on their run to the Champions League semi-finals. It wasn’t a typical underdog story, however…
Pressing & Counterpressing: Marco Rose (RB Salzburg 17/18)
Following a modest playing career, Marco Rose retired at the age of 33 to pursue coaching. A native of Leipzig, the former defender spent a year Lokomotiv before moving to Austria to coach RB Salzburg’s U16 side. He quickly progressed through the age groups and began managing the U19s in 2016, guiding them…
Innovative Build-Up: Tim Walter (Holstein Kiel 18/19)
Tim Walter is one of the most innovative figures in modern football and during the past couple of years, his bold approach has drawn admiration from coaches across the globe. As we will discover in this article, Walter deploys a wide variety of inventive methods for building out from the back…
Counter-Attacking: Nuno Espirito Santo (Wolves 18/19)
During their first season back in the Premier League for 6 years, Wolves made a habit of preying on clubs much bigger than themselves. Portuguese coach Nuno Espirito Santo guided them to 16 points against the ‘top 6’, a record bettered only by title winners Manchester City and runners up Liverpool…