Tactical Analysis

There is perhaps no better microcosm of the absurdity of the world at present than the Premier League season thus far. Leicester City trouncing Manchester City 5-2 before losing 3-0 to a West Ham side widely tipped for relegation. A Tottenham Hotspur team burdened by fixture congestion humiliating the purportedly …

Manchester United had a characteristically manic and generally underwhelming transfer window. Despite bringing in big names such as Edison Cavani and Donny Van de Beek, they have not addressed any of the glaring weaknesses in their squad, have been slow to sell fringe players, and dramatically failed in their summer-long …

Manchester United’s pursuit of Jadon Sancho has been among the most drawn-out transfer sagas of this or any transfer window. Some, such as Gary Neville, have suggested that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is better off looking elsewhere to resolve his right-wing dilemmas. To many, this would seem reasonable. There is a …

Liverpool’s midfield is peculiar. Great teams are often defined by a stellar midfield. Roy Keane and Paul Scholes. Casemiro, Toni Kroos, and Luka Modric. Most infamously, Busquets, Xavi, and Iniesta. Jurgen Klopp, however, has built his side on the dynamism of his front three and fullbacks, while his midfield is …

A perennial issue of squad building is how to purchase players beyond a first XI. Should teams buy like-for-like replacements for starting players such as Liverpool did with Takumi Minamino or acquire players who can serve as “Plan Bs” such as Olivier Giroud at Arsenal? In signing Ajax midfielder Donny …

Leeds United have signed former Real Madrid academy striker Rodrigo Moreno from Valencia. With just 38 goals in 172 La Liga appearances, some are sceptical as to whether the Spain international will be prolific enough for Leeds in the Premier League. It is worth remembering, though, that Rodrigo was on …

Arsenal have reportedly beat Napoli and Manchester United to the signing of 22-year-old centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes. Mikel Arteta will hope that with the Brazilian and 19-year-old William Saliba in his squad, he can finally resolve the Gunners’ perennial issues in central defence. Despite only coming to prominence this season, Gabriel …

Aside from Diego Costa, Chelsea have lacked a reliable, world-class centre-forward during the past several seasons. The arrival of Timo Werner may change that, but perhaps no Chelsea striker will ever entirely fill the void left by one of the club’s foremost legends: Didier Drogba. In his two spells at …

After failing to renew his contract with Chelsea, Willian has signed for Arsenal. Despite being a free agent, the Brazilian’s contract reportedly makes him the club’s second-highest earner and contains loyalty payments, bonuses, and a sizable signing-on fee that could see the Gunners pay £35 million for his acquisition. With …

In the 2013/14 season, current Leicester City coach Brendan Rodgers brought Liverpool within three games of their first Premier League title. Their sensational demise during those last three games has sullied their standing among pundits and fans, but they were a genuinely excellent side. Liverpool scored 101 league goals that …