The teams’ strategy is often confused with the will and determination of the players, although both situations can occur at the same time.
In the Copa Sudamericana final, Racing’s strategy of pressing from the start, quickly recovering the ball and suffocating Cruzeiro was efficient and resulted in the scoring of two goals. This stance fires up the team and the fans and inhibits the opponent. Cruzeiro was not apathetic, it was canceled. After 2 x 0, Racing reduced the pressure so as not to have so much physical exhaustion and Cruzeiro started to have the ball, exchange passes and balance the game.
Pressure marking is becoming more and more common all over the world. Argentine teams, when they play at home against Brazilians, tend to have this attitude at the beginning of the matches. Assunção is a neutral location, but closer to Buenos Aires than Belo Horizonte. There were many more Racing fans.
There are risks when marking by pressure. The block advance leaves a lot of space behind the defenders’ backs. There is also great physical strain. If the pressing team concedes a goal, it will have more difficulty reacting.
Botafogo and Atlético-MG play the Libertadores final on Saturday (30). These are two teams that, at home, tend to try to suffocate their opponents from the start. As the match is on a neutral field (Buenos Aires), what will be the stance of the two teams? Botafogo tends to press on the marking even when playing away from home.
Despite good campaigns this year, Botafogo and Atlético-MG are close to success and disappointment. Botafogo runs the risk of losing the Brasileirão and Libertadores titles, while Galo may not win the Libertadores after losing the Copa do Brasil title, in addition to not qualifying for the next Libertadores via the Brasileirão.
The result of this Tuesday’s match (26) between Palmeiras and Botafogo, in the dispute for the leadership of the Brasileirão, could emotionally influence Saturday’s performance against Galo.
Botafogo coach Artur Jorge, usually calm, sounded like an angry Abel Ferreira in his last interview when he harshly protested against criticism that Botafogo is experiencing emotional imbalance after some bad results. The ghost of 2023 remains present in the collective unconscious. However, it is not possible to make predictions about athletes’ emotional reactions.
In Brazilian football there is a great exaggeration in praise and criticism of coaches, as if they were largely responsible for everything that happens in the game. After the results, countless reasons are created used by coaches to explain the inexplicable.
Vasco, with a modest squad, has had a good campaign this year, as it escaped relegation and still has a chance of a place in the Libertadores, in addition to having reached the semi-finals of the Copa do Brasil. Young coach Rafael Paiva paid the price.
Cruzeiro, a team in formation, will be victorious if they qualify for the next Libertadores, in addition to reaching the final of the Copa Sudamericana.
Nelson Rodrigues said that it is the soul who wins and loses games. In addition, there are individual quality, coaches’ strategies, emotional control and unpredictable factors. Everything is uncertain.
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