Control. It was a word that came up more than once in the aftermath of this week's first-leg meeting of Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid in the UEFA Champions League round of 16.
Carlo Ancelotti, the Madrid coach, used it in his summary of the contest when saying: "They had control of the game in some moments, we did in others, but they didn't create many chances." As for Atleti's Diego Simeone, he remarked: "We had a lot of control of the game."
It is no coincidence that two of the Champions League's most experienced coaches both landed on the same word after a first leg of few chances. As this study by UEFA's analysis unit will show, Tuesday's game featured a number of tactical adjustments which suggested that both men were mindful of the second instalment still to come at the Estadio Metropolitano.
Analysis: How Madrid won the first leg
Accordingly, this is an analysis written with a focus on how the two coaches 'managed' the first leg, and it begins with Madrid's approach in possession.
This graphic shows Madrid's average attacking shape when they had the ball and it highlights that when they attacked, they did so with two pivots and the centre-backs narrow. The aim was to maintain good balance behind the ball and control the space on transition.
Champions League Performance Insights: Real Madrid control of midfield
This point is enforced by the video above which shows an example of Madrid attacking in the first half, with midfielders Aurélien Tchouaméni and Eduardo Camavinga remaining back, closely connected to their back four. The purpose of this is to control the central area. What it means in this clip is that when Madrid attack, they do so with fewer numbers and the move breaks down. On the positive side, though, when Atleti win the ball, they are forced wide because of Madrid's defensive shape. As UEFA Technical Observer Rafa Benítez noted: "There was just one counter from Atleti in the first half."
Champions League Performance Insights: Real Madrid closing down
Another facet to consider is Madrid's pressing and the first clip of the video above shows their midfielders are not joining in the front press – again because their priority was control centrally. Atleti, as we can see, are able to build with a 3v2 at the back and this was a factor behind the visitors enjoying plenty of possession – of which more below.
Madrid did adjust their pressing in the second half as is visible in the second clip in which Brahim Díaz joins the front two in pressing higher up the pitch.
For UEFA Technical Observer Steve Cooper, it is worth noting that "the team losing the ball have decided to not really go after it and they get back into shape while the other team have recognised they don't need to rush the attack". How coaches can train their players to employ the strategies seen in this tie is something that Cooper will explain in the bottom section of this article.
Possession with a purpose
To switch the focus to Atleti, they had longer periods in possession than they might normally expect at the Santiago Bernabéu, and this is reflected by the graphic below which shows that in only one game in this season's Champions League have they had a longer average spell of possession than the 19 seconds they managed at the home of their crosstown rivals.
This was the product of more than one factor, starting with Madrid's reluctance to commit numbers to the front press. Moreover, from an Atleti perspective, keeping the ball and slowing down the tempo was part of the game plan. As Benítez asserted: "They preferred to control the game and not give the home fans anything to get excited about."
Champions League Performance Insights: Atleti possession play
Consider this third video, featuring an Atleti possession sequence of more than 90 seconds, the vast majority of which is spent in Madrid's half and in which they display no great urgency. Tellingly, however, they have the hosts' dangerous front players occupied back in their own half – in areas from which it is harder to launch one of their high-speed counters.
Benítez said: "They were happy to slow the tempo right down. You saw Simeone gesture to slow the game down. They were comfortable with that, and with not giving Madrid opportunities to counterattack."
It is a point that Madrid winger Rodrygo commented on too, when he told Movistar Plus: "Today in many moments, they had the ball a bit more. We are not used to that. We had to defend."
Another detail from Tuesday's shifting tactical picture was how Atleti adjusted their shape in the second half, as displayed by these pitch maps above and below. Above is their average shape when defending in a mid-block during the first half, a clear 4-4-2. In the second half, by contrast, that shape morphed to a 5-4-1, facilitated by the 71st-minute introduction of a third centre-back in Robin Le Normand.
The last video of our analysis serves to demonstrate how that shift in shape helped Simeone's men. It begins by showing the threat posed by Madrid at the start of the game when, as Ancelotti explained, they looked out wide to their wingers and Rodrygo, in particular, benefited with runs into the space behind Javi Galán. The first run led to his opening goal before, as we see in the first clip below, he then troubled the visitors' left-back with a second dangerous surge.
Champions League Performance Insights: Atleti defending
Clip two, from the second period, shows a very contrasting scenario. When the ball goes wide, this time there is plenty of cover, first with a 3v1 against Vinicíus Júnior. And though Madrid switch the play, again Atleti have an extra man to defend the threat thanks to that change to a back five.
Translating insights to the training pitch
Here UEFA Technical Observer Steve Cooper shares his reflections on how insights from Tuesday's Madrid derby in the Champions League can be taken by youth coaches and passed on to young players.
On training defensive balance and transitions
"First and foremost, with transitioning it's important to understand it is a decision-making process. Football is about decision-making. This means you look at awareness and positioning; where the turnover takes place and the decision-making in the action.
"The easy way to create decisions in training is make sure you have opposed practices, with attackers and defenders. After all, every time you have a 1v1, you have a decision to make. Therefore, to train for real transitions, do it in opposed practices. This can mean conditioned games, small-sided games, tactical possessions, directional or non-directional possessions.
"You need to have constraints and conditions in the exercises that allow you to make transitions look a certain way. If you want to work on counterpressing, for example, you might set a condition to say you have to win the ball within the opponents' first three technical actions or within a certain amount of time. Meanwhile, if you work on a scenario where you don't press but drop and delay, it could be about whether every player can get into a certain area.
"On the control element, it is always easy to control balance when everybody is involved. The best teams very much do it as a team."
On training tactical possession
"Atleti used possession as a tool for having spells of control and this had an effect on the state of the game and on the stadium as well as they were the away team and maybe the home fans didn't expect the opposition to have as much of the ball. But in terms of what it means for young players and individuals, the first thing to mention is that keeping the ball for control does need a really good level of technical competence.
"For training, it is important to have a range of games in which players can work on this. Directional or non-directional possessions are important, as that allows you to make good decisions, it allows players to work out positions.
"If the coach is really committed to a certain style of play, then tactical principles can be put into training. This allows the team to be in positions, whether in small or big areas, where they are practising those tactical moves. These would normally be an opposed possession practice. You must also consider the rules you set around the exercises, which could be so many passes in a certain area, or so many seconds on the ball, or so many technical actions before you attack."
On switching from a back four to a five
"My advice for working with young players on this begins with the need to give them understanding of why that change might be taking place in the context of the game.
"As for making that switch that Simeone made, for the full-back who's moving to wing-back, this change allows you to be more aggressive and get out to the wide player early. If you press one player and the ball gets played, you might press again, because you know you have that insurance of an extra player not just behind you but inside you slightly as well. You are not giving up too much space behind you closer to the goal and you can be more aggressive and risk-taking in trying to get up to the ball."