Dortmund v Arsenal Tactical Analysis: “On the Road Again”

When you talk to Arsenal fans about the issues in their team, you begin to hear a familiar pattern. “Cheaply conceding goals on the break”, “losing possession high up the pitch with advanced fullbacks and midfielders”, “lack of a top class striker or defensive midfielder”. The list goes on and on. 

What’s sort of intriguing about Arsenal’s matchup with Dortmund is last year, Arsenal came to the stadium known for having “the Yellow Wall”, didn’t seem fazed at all, and came away with a 1-0 victory.  Fast forward to this season’s encounter and the aforementioned issues came roaring right back in one match, resulting in a 2-0 loss to Dortmund.  

To add further twists to the tale, Dortmund couldn’t field the likes of Reus, Hummels, Sahin, Piszczek, Blaszczykowski etc., which to nobody’s surprise, gave Arsenal fans hope of grabbing a win once again at Westfalenstadion. But what’s that saying about lightning? That’s right. “Lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice”. And unfortunately for Arsenal, it struck twice, but not in the way they expected.  

It’s this sort of torturous circular loop that Wenger’s Arsenal can’t seem to quite escape from.  So much so, you begin to wonder if they’ll be able to escape this circular loop at all. 

However, it’s still early in the season, with time for improvements to be made as players are still recovering from the World Cup hoodoo. But the lingering fact that Arsenal are more or less struggling from the same issues, which have been seen for years, definitely casts some doubt on how smooth the future will actually be.

Well, without further adieu ladies and gentlemen, I give you a tactical analysis with the slightest bit of spice to keep those brain cells firing. Enjoy!

Today is not only going to be a challenge for our readers, but it’s also going to be a challenge for myself. In most tactical analyses, there’s a breakdown of formations, how both teams attack and defend, the structures within those attacks and defensive situations, and of course, the overdone debate of which formation to use (we’re all guilty?). But alas, we’re not going to cover all of those things (keyword: all). Instead, we’re going to try a slightly different angle and see if we can learn anything new.

If you’re read this far, your seat belt has already been automatically secured, the rollercoaster is ready to take off, and we’re not letting you out (unless of course you scream for mercy, which would be weird, when this isn’t even 500 words yet!). So just sit tight, stay calm, stay focused, and trust me, we’ll make it through. Vamos!!!

I’m assuming you’re also familiar with the starting lineups for this match. If you’re not, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered.

Lineups (courtesy of sbnation.com)

Some Ground Rules:

Before we dive deep into the analysis, there are some things which need to be spinning in our minds before we latch onto the different aspects being covered in this article. Like I said, this is a rollercoaster so it will get a little bumpy. But if you’ve ever been on one, keep imagining the adrenaline rush you feel after the ride. 

And if you are already familiar with these terms/concepts, then don’t feel you have to labor through the explanations, but they do provide some context for how the rest of the piece will be laid out.

The first term/concept I would like to draw your attention to is called “the pressing trap”. 

Imagine playing a prank on your friend where he/she thinks they are following their normal routine, minding their own business while they walk home.  However, unaware to them, you and your buddies are hiding in the nearby bushes ready to scare them to death.  

You all wait for the perfect moment then BOOM! Burst out from the bushes with the scariest faces you can make while your friend jumps back or falls over in fright while everyone else (hopefully someone is recording all of it) takes the piss out of the whole situation.  Meanwhile, your friend hurls explicit insults towards all of you (got to love humanity).

This is an exaggerated illustration of the pressing trap but the idea is to invite your opponent into a space they think they can take advantage of. Timing is key, because if you do it too early or too late, you increase the chances of not only missing the opportunity to spring the pressing trap, but you also increase the chances of compromising your defensive shape. We will see a couple examples of what a pressing trap looks like later on.

The second term is called counterpressing (translated from German which is originally known as gegenpressing). Counterpressing is about the immediate effort to regain the ball after losing possession. It is also dependent on the positioning of the team (in defense) before counterpressing.  

The idea is to win the ball in such a way where your opponent’s defensive organization is immediately compromised and you can take advantage of this situation by counterattacking quickly towards their goal (Arsenal fans think back to last year’s fixture against Dortmund at the Emirates. Ramsey gave up the ball in your own half and then Dortmund scored.). 

 In order to do this, your team needs to be in the correct defensive positioning to take advantage of this situation. I assure you, the pictures shown highlighting counterpressing will make it a lot clearer.

Now we’re ready for the third term which in German is called halbraum but is translated as “half-space”. I understand, it’s not easy to intuitively picture what a half-space looks like compared to saying “the center circle”.  So pictured below is a diagram of where the half-spaces are (courtesy of @ReneMaric at spielverlagerung.com).

Figure 2: Außen = “outside/wing”, Zentrum = “middle/center”,  Halbraum = “half-space
(courtesy of @ReneMaric – Spielverlagerung.com aka SV.com)

What’s important to understand about the half-space is that it’s like any other space on the field (wings, middle, 18-yard box, etc.).  From there, it’s understanding the half-space runs down the length of the field from its defined width which we see from the picture above.  

However, when analyzing games, the focus is not necessarily on every spot within the half-spaces but how teams are interacting within them (defending/attacking) and whether they’re (more so the coach/manager) even conscious of being within the half-spaces.

And finally (breathe a sigh of relief, we’re almost to the game analysis!), the fourth term is called “the 10 space”. In the picture below, look at zone 14. This zone is what I’m referring to as the 10 space. 

Zone 14 = “the 10 space”

Coaches and analysts deem this space as one of, if not, the most important spaces on the pitch as any attacking player stationed there is usually operating between the defensive lines/blocks of the opposition which can cause uncertainty in the opposition’s defensive organization.

The purpose in focusing on the 10 space is, when it’s not defended properly, it gives the attacking team a loophole to drag defenders out of position, opening up more gaps to exploit. As we will see in a bit, this was one area Arsenal consistently neglected to defend properly.  An area they will need to pay more attention to, if they want to continue progressing through their Champions League campaign.

Pat yourself on the back! You made it! And if you skipped the previous section, pat yourself on the back anyway so you’re not left out. We are now ready to dive into the analysis and break down the key aspects which defined the course of this game.

Where Dortmund were Strong, Arsenal were Weak

If there was one aspect which stifled Arsenal’s attacking game, it was their failure to recognize the pressing traps along with not finding the right passing options before or after they encountered a pressing trap.  Arsenal fell into these passing traps throughout the game.  

Whether it was high up the pitch, in Dortmund’s own half, out on the wing, in midfield, Arsenal just kept falling for the same old tricks. It got so bad, I wondered to myself if Wenger noticed what was going on and why.  If he did, it begged the question why he didn’t do anything about it.  If he didn’t, well then crikey!

In this picture below, Aaron Ramsey is the ball carrier as Arsenal are in transition.  The key to this pressing trap working successfully, comes from the 2 Dortmund players closest to Ramsey, applying pressure from behind.  Hence, it forces him to make a decision quickly (dribbles along the black line) which unknown to him, is dribbling right into a pressing trap (yellow circle and notice Mkhitaryan’s positioning change in next picture)

Example 1a: Not recognizing the pressing trap

Example 1b: The result of not recognizing the pressing trap

As he has Wilshire running alongside him, Ramsey does not realize Mkhitaryan rapidly closing him down where Ramsey is now unsure what to do with the ball.  At this point, it’s too late as Mkhitaryan puts in a tackle resulting in the ball falling to Subotic, who initiates the ensuing Dortmund counter.

Alexis Sanchez (world class player) is one of the best dribblers in the world and also has a good football brain. But even the best players make erratic decisions, especially under pressure.  

This next example is a perfect illustration of that. Sanchez finds himself in Arsenal’s half as Arsenal attempt to advance play after regaining possession.  Due to the mechanics of the pressing trap, Sanchez finds himself in a situation where he has to dribble or lay the ball off to an open teammate.  

Unfortunately, he chose the former and when the timing of the pressing trap is executed to perfection, there’s almost always one winner in that situation (and that’s not the ball carrier). Of course, in this situation, Sanchez suffered the same fate like many others do (pictured below).

Example 2: Case of the Dirty Sanchez (open to interpretation)

Another aspect Arsenal struggled to deal with was resisting Dortmund’s counterpress.  If you’re going to break any pressing scheme, having pressure-resistant players is helpful in doing so.  One could argue Arsenal have these type of players.  

However, it doesn’t matter how good you are, if you don’t have supporting passing options around you and aren’t prepared for oncoming pressure, you’ll most likely lose out in that altercation.  

Unfortunately, Sanchez fell victim again but this time, he at least didn’t fall into the pressing trap. He just wasn’t ready for the even more aggressive counterpress (pictured below).

Example 3: Arsenal concede possession due to Dortmund’s effective counterpressing

In this case, you can see the nearby Dortmund players (Kehl being the closest) who make sure the surrounding Arsenal players are covered (aspect of counterpressing), but are also following the situation in case Durm is not able to regain possession.  

If the counterpress breaks (meaning, the immediate effort to recover the ball does not work), it’s important for players to maintain their composure and know how to defensively recover the situation. 

The two main options here would be to slow down the ball carrier (Sanchez) or retreat defensively into a different defensive structure to try and quickly rectify the situation without giving away too much space, which would further compromise the defense. 

This is an example of what @ReneMaric from SV.com calls leeway-oriented counterpressing. 

Arsenal’s Failure to Defend the Half-Spaces/10 space Allow more Chance-Creating Opportunities For Dortmund

While this section could fit under the previous one, I wish to devote a whole section to discussing the effect of the half-spaces/10 space in this game because they are that important.

In fact, from Dortmund’s very first attack, we get a glimpse of this strategy as Aubameyang makes a run into the right half-space where he is rewarded the ball, resulting in a corner shortly after.  Part of the reason the half-space is so important is it causes uncertainty in the defense.  

In the case of the back 4, the relationship between the defensive midfielder, center-back and fullback is crucial in deciding which way these situations will play out against an attacker in the half-space.  The idea is because so many teams do not defend the half-space, they are not well-prepared when players purposefully use that area to either evoke some uncertainty or to further exploit a weakness as part of an attacking strategy.

As it was mentioned earlier, the 10 space is one of, if not, the most dangerous spaces on the field.  The half-spaces are so important, you could put them in that category. Essentially using both spaces allows for two dynamic ways of breaking down an opponent’s defense. When used in combination, it can be very difficult to stop as the following illustrations will demonstrate.

Example 4a: Dortmund’s strategic use of 10 space and half-spaces enable them to create quality chances

At this moment, notice how how Grosskreutz and Mhkitaryan are both positioned in the half-spaces.  Grosskreutz on the left, with Mkhitaryan on the right.  Durm has just made a run through the 10 space, attracting Arteta’s attention, before laying off the ball to Bender who looks to pass to Grosskreutz in this moment. 

There are two key points we are looking to establish here: 

1) Due to Arsenal not defending the half-spaces, Grosskreutz is allowed to stand in space, waiting for the pass which will ultimately break Arsenal’s backline structure as someone has to commit and not all the other subsequent spaces will be covered. 

2)  Due to the way Arsenal are defending in this situation, they can be opened up in multiple ways.  Bellerin (Arsenal’s right back) seemed unsure whether to step up out on Grosskreutz or continue to hold the defensive line. It’s exactly this type of hesitation which can occur by simply occupying the half-space.  

Furthermore, the yellow lines indicate how this passing move ends up going.  After Grosskreutz receives the ball he finds Aubameyang who makes near post run who then has a chance in front of Szczesny but does not convert the chance into a goal.  It was one of the many chances Dortmund created (15 in open play) using this method.

An alternative way Dortmund could have broke through Arsenal’s backline (using the same method), instead of Bender playing the ball directly to Grosskreutz, he could have played a through ball between the gap of Bellerin and Mertesacker for Grosskreutz to run into which could have also led to a goal-scoring chance.  Once again, this is to show the weapons you have at your disposal when using this approach. 

Example 4b: The result of using the half-space and 10 space for chance-creation (Aubameyang missed)

Pictured below, is another example of Arsenal not defending the half-space and passively defending the 10 space with the ensuing result.

Example 5a: Mkhitaryan receives the ball in the half-space with room to turn and run at Arsenal’s defense

The main takeaway here is another advantage of strategically using the half-space. The reason I am stressing the word “strategically” is technically you are always using these spaces around the field as the half-space is just a space on the field itself.  

It’s no different than if a player was positioned on the wing, yet there is little to no strategic value in him being there other than out of consequence rather than by design.

One key aspect, which @ReneMaric touches on in his article on half-spaces (a must read by the way!), is strategically using the half-space, opens a player’s field of vision without him having to be so wide he is potentially further removed from play.  

So in the picture above, we see Mkhitaryan positioned well in the half-space. His positioning allows him to:

1. See who is coming towards him
2. See who is going away from him
3. See what is ahead of him
4. See what is across from him
5. See what is behind him

Mathematically, I think it is the closest a player can get to 180 degrees in his field of vision while also being close enough to central zones to quickly exploit any apparent weaknesses.  

If we imagine Mkhitaryan positioned closer to the wings, one could argue Wilshere would travel a longer distance to engage him, although, Mkhitaryan also has a longer diagonal dribble to make (assuming he makes the same choice as pictured above), which in a way, cancels out the extra work Wilshere has to do. 

Essentially, it puts more emphasis on Mkhitaryan taking advantage of the situation in just as much time as he could have done it if he was positioned in the half-space.  

Therefore, by being positioned in the half-space, Mkhitaryan not only has the same relative field of vision he would have closer to the wings, but he also has a much greater chance of exploiting whatever weakness he detects in Arsenal’s defensive organization.  

On this occasion, Wilshere is late to engage Mkhitaryan and the gaps in Arsenal’s midfield allows him to have an easy route to dribble into the 10 space where finally, Dortmund produce a shot, albeit, off target.

Example 5b: After starting his dribble from the half-space, Mkhitaryan makes his way into the 10 space

How you all doing? You need a break? I know it’s a lot of content but the rollercoaster is on its way to making the home stretch! We just have one more hill to climb so if you wish to get up and stretch (you can use your imagination here), please do so.  Because we are about to rev it up one more time before making our descent.

One damaging trend for Arsenal in this match was neglecting to adequately defend the 10 space.  To be fair to Arteta, he was more or less left to do this himself. When your other midfielders are too far apart to support you, it can be a daunting task.  The only respite for Arsenal was Dortmund weren’t very efficient in their chance conversion. 

Example 6: Arsenal neglecting to defend the 10 space

There is the misconception that if a player is stationed in a certain area or space, he is defending or defending well.  However, we know there are different ways to defend, therefore, to better decipher if a player is in a good position, it also depends on where his teammates are positioned relative to him.

Here the point is raised as some would argue in the picture above, for example, that Arteta is in a good defensive position for the 10 space. He may very well be, but it begs the question why he isn’t more central to narrow down the freedom of play for Aubameyang and Immobile.  

If he’s not doing that, to me, he may as well be pulling a Gary Lineker (if you didn’t know already, Lineker sh*t on the pitch once. Some story).

Now you might be raising the point, “Well what about Ramsey and Wilshere?” which would be a fair point to raise. In fact, it further begs the question, “How are Arsenal supposed to be setup in these situations?” If anything, their defending in these scenarios was more reactive than showing any knowledge of what Dortmund were going to do.

Part of the reason Dortmund’s counterpressing and pressing traps worked so effectively is because they had an idea of what Arsenal would do on and off the ball.  If Arsenal tried to change up how they attacked, then Dortmund for the most part were able to adjust to it, achieving the best of both worlds (reactive and proactive).  Further pointing to why they had such a dominant match even though they didn’t necessarily dominate the possession.  

Returning to the scenario pictured above, the black rectangular box is meant to denote a segment of the half-space.  The only real meaningful aspect of this segment is the positioning of Mkhitaryan and Gibbs.

Let’s just say from this picture (Example 6), Immobile turned and attempted to pass to Mkhitaryan. If this were to happen, Gibbs would have a decision to make. He would either have to remain along the defensive line or break from it to try to cut out the pass to Mkhitaryan or at least apply some pressure. 

The point once again, is to highlight the effectiveness of positioning players in the half-spaces.  So if any coaches are reading this, perhaps you can consider coming up with some drills or exercises to communicate to your players about the half-space as well as guiding them to understand why it’s important and how to take advantage of it.  

Since this is the information age, if you decide to do so, feel free to share your work.  Then we can learn from what you’ve done and talk about ways of improvement which may lead to new questions or discoveries.

Now let’s look at a slightly different aspect from the half-spaces or the 10 space.  This next illustration will focus on what Arsenal fans have been telling me for ages when it comes to their defensive issues.  

It boils down to Arsenal’s defensive organization in transition. So if you’re an Arsenal fan, I’m warning you to look away now if you’ve had enough and skip to the next section.  Otherwise, prepare for another sight for sore eyes.

Example 7: Arsenal’s defensive issues rolled up into one play

The irony here for me in this picture is that this type of scenario actually isn’t all that uncommon in the English Premier League. Poor defensive transitioning is actually a component of what makes the English Premier League what it is. So imagine what the league would be like if teams were actually more competent in this aspect! 

Nonetheless, whenever I see this picture, I see the issues Arsenal fans keep banging their heads on the wall about.  I highlighted Gibbs and Wilshere to indicate one of these issues.  

Flashback to Arsenal’s performances against Liverpool and Chelsea last season as well as against City this season and it’s the same pattern.  

Losing the ball high up the pitch with both fullbacks and central midfielders advanced which then leaves a huge gap to exploit for the opposition (Dortmund players must have experienced the equivalent of a football hard-on with all that space!).  

If there was one thing I never understood about Arsenal’s shift from conceding possession to defensive transitions, it was the lack of compactness for a team which is instructed to play higher up the pitch compared to their opponents.  Followed up by the fact, Arsenal don’t really press when they lose the ball.  If they do, it’s maybe a few players but nothing more.  

Against City, Sanchez was like a prairie dog just hunting down City players like no tomorrow.  You wondered to yourself why some of his teammates weren’t following suit (hint hint, maybe Klopp should be Wenger’s successor).  If they did, they may have been able to create more meaningful chances.

Looking back at the picture above (Example 7), Arteta (red circle) is once again, poorly positioned.  We know Dortmund players have pace so if you’re going to stop them or at least impede them, let them know you’re there. 

It’s like Arteta is the traffic control officer who seems a bit too timid to do his job, in fear of being hit by cars, even though he’s the one responsible for saying “enough is enough!” (You are the captain Mikel, shouldn’t that mean something?). 

While I disagree on Arsenal needing a world class defensive midfielder (not so simple as plug and play), I do think they need a mentality change in this position.  If there’s one thing you don’t want to see your defensive midfielder doing, it’s witnessing him play as if he’s unsure where to be. Talk about a nightmare scenario. 

In summary, there isn’t much more to take from Example 7 other than realizing Arsenal’s problems go deeper than mere formation or not having better personnel.  It’s about the collective and how they interact with each other or better known as “the system”.  

When things aren’t going right in your system, the finger of blame is usually going to go in one direction, and that’s right smack dab at the manager.  

Perhaps the most worrying part for Arsenal fans is it seems Wenger isn’t sure how to get the best out of his squad. 

There are questions which indeed beg answers and if Arsenal don’t find some solutions or ways to cover up their issues, Wenger might find a few more questions at his doorstep.

(Note to Arsenal fans, I did not forget about some of your more positive moments for the match.  If this were a general tactical analysis, you would have seen more attention given to these positive moments.  For now, they’ve been wrapped up in the storify link provided here along with the other tactical screenshots from the match. Enjoy!)

BONUS SECTION!: Are you ready to be a part of tactical analysis history?

The Germans gave us the term “half-space” and now it looks like we’re set to have another enter the tactical analysis stratosphere.  Ladies and gentlemen, remember this moment. 

Because now, we are going to witness for the very first time (I believe) the use of the German word “quetschen” in relation to tactical analysis (much thanks to my colleague @ReneMaric).  Quetschen translates to “squeeze” and it turns out, quetschen is a key component of a specific type of pressing trap Dortmund used against Arsenal. 

So now let’s not waste any more time because I can’t hold back my excitement of sharing this new term and “concept” with you! Oh you guys are going to feel so smart and hipster!!

Quetschen: The “Squeeze”

There was one defensive organizational pattern Dortmund used within the Quetschen which truly exemplifies the whole purpose behind the pressing trap.  

In a medium block (mid-level defensive backline), Dortmund organized into a 4-4-2 defensive shape with two blocks of 4 with the 2 strikers (Aubameyang and Immobile) in line with each other.

What this does is invite your opponent to play in between the lines of the blocks of 4.  Little does the opponent know, they are walking right into a pressing trap.  

In fact, it’s even more tenacious than just any pressing trap, it’s absolute torture!  One second you think you’re in the clear, the next, you have the ball taken off you by Dortmund players who close you down like bees reacting to you getting too close to their hive (“You.shall. not.pass!” is essentially how it goes).  Well enough talking about it, it’s time to show you the beauty of the Quetschen.

Example 1a: Stage 1 of the Quetschen – Allowing Welbeck to position himself between the lines

Example 1b: Stage 2 of the Quetschen – Dortmund preparing to engage Ozil as he receives the ball
Result: Dortmund quickly closes Ozil down and regains possession

Example 2a: Déjà vu with Welbeck
(Red circle denotes a space maybe Arsenal can look to attack in their next match against Dortmund)

Example 2b: A touch too far as Dortmund looks to pounce
(Perhaps a better touch would have seen Ozil through as he has a headstart on Sokratis)

Example 2c: Quetschen is complete. Dortmund regains possession as Welbeck got “stung”.

Example 3a: Player specific use of the Quetschen by Sokratis
(Oxlade-Chamberlain sidesteps Schmelzer here while Sokratis prepares to engage)

Example 3b: Sokratis wins the ball. A great example of Dortmund’s “You shall not pass” mentality. 
(Teammates in position in case Sokratis use of the Quetschen didn’t work but now they prepare to attack.)

Congratulations! You actually did it! You’ve made it through the rollercoaster! Feel good about yourself? I hope it was worth your time! Now go and share! ☺