Official Euro 2012 - The French Tactic & Team Guide

[ZdlR]

Firstly, huge apologies for being late with this. I'll not bore you with my excuses.

At the time of writing, France have already played their first game against England, being held to a draw. I say `held`, because that's usually reserved for the team that is more positive throughout the game and more interested in scoring. While this was undoubtedly true during the game, as France tired towards the end (Blanc's subs coming too late to reinvigorate the side) they became happier with taking the draw. Given that England were all about defending deep and breaking at pace, this might well have been wise. No point in losing your opening game - something that both teams clearly feared.

The France starting XI is strong, but the squad has some depth. While depth is not usually quite so important in cup competitions, the frequency of games during the European Championships means that careful rotation can prevent burnout. The first XI looks like this:

This is pretty much how the team played against England. Debuchy moved forward - often making it into the opposition box - to compensate for the lack of width on the right that Nasri conceded. Diarra, Mexes and Rami would stay back as a three to try to prevent counter-attacks. Evra, a close call for starting ahead of Clichy, didn't get forward quite so much, in large part because Ribery wasn't given the same level of positional freedom as Nasri. In central midfield, Cabaye was the passer, Malouda the attacker to complete the usual Midfield Three Triptych. However, Diarra, not quite a destroyer, was a positionally astute anchor intended to break up counter attacks by tackles or interceptions. Yohan Cabaye was instructed to keep possession and build on it during the transitional phase, threading direct through balls when the opportunity arose, but generally advancing play cautiously. Defensively, he would try to stall England's attacks so that the back three could reorganize - France's transitions from attack to defence being extremely swift due to England's direct counter-attacking system. As a result, he committed a number of tactical fouls. The Counter-Attack Prevention System personified, he only escaped a booking by some questionably partisan refereeing. Malouda would break forward from midfield and support the front three, but this position is somewhat alien to him and he was largely anonymous. Ribery was not quite the force he can be, and he may yet come alive for the rest of the tournament, but he was well stifled by England's two banks of four. He showed flashes of invention, such as a dink over the top of the opposition back line which, at first, appeared to be the signs of a long afternoon for England. However, it came in fits and starts. Unlike Samir Nasri. Given license to roam, he popped up all across the front line and posed a lot of problems to a static defence - none more so than when he scored having been gifted too much time and space on the edge of the area. It would always take a flash of inspiration to break through the `bus` that England had parked in front of goal, and Nasri was in the mood to provide it. Karim Benzema was not, however. He could not find space in behind the defence and was marshalled well by Terry and Lescott who denied him time on the ball and by Parker and Gerrard who sat deep to prevent passes reaching him. In the second half, he dropped deep and tried to score from distance, but he didn't really threaten too greatly.

Translating this to the tactic creator in FM, I would set up France thusly:

Lloris (GK): Sweeper Keeper [Defend]

Debuchy (RB): Wingback [Attack]

Rami (CB): Defender [Defend]

Mexes (CB): Defender [Defend]

Evra (LB): Fullback [support]

Diarra (DMC): Anchorman [Defend]

Cabaye (MC): Central Midfielder [support]

Malouda (MC): Central Midfielder [Attack]

Nasri (AMCr): Inside Forward [Attack]

Ribery (AML): Inside Forward [support]

Benzema (ST): Complete Forward [Attack], (switching to Deep Lying Forward [support] for second half).

Note that Nasri is played in the right-hand AMC spot, not as an AMR, because he really was that narrow. The philosophy would be `fluid` with a strategy of `control`. Creatively, they would be `More Expressive` and marking would be `Zonal` throughout. Roaming would be off for all players bar Nasri.

This would, obviously, be a flawed tactic, but it is indicative of how the team set up against England.

More to follow.

[Os]

Good work!

[JR Becks]

Good start to the thread! Agree with most of the player roles apart from Nasri's, who should really be an advanced playmaker on the wings. Too add on, Nasri and Ribery do swap flanks during the course of the game as they try to find spaces between the lines.

After the first game, I see France topping the group comfortably if they can maintain a certain level of stability in their backline. Evra looked past his best and Clichy should have started tbh. Ben Arfa will be a good weapon off the bench!

[dz47]

Good write up, but I'm genuinely interested in why you think this would be a flawed tactic?

[jimbobBRFC]

Good start to the thread! Agree with most of the player roles apart from Nasri's, who should really be an advanced playmaker on the wings. Too add on, Nasri and Ribery do swap flanks during the course of the game as they try to find spaces between the lines.

After the first game, I see France topping the group comfortably if they can maintain a certain level of stability in their backline. Evra looked past his best and Clichy should have started tbh. Ben Arfa will be a good weapon off the bench!

Do agree with the AP for Nasri, everything they created came through him. Id still give him a cut inside wide play instruction though, or does an AP have that as default?

Id also like to know why it is a flawed tactic, it is basically a 4-2-3-1? Just with NAsri a little more central, but with Debuchy getting forward there is still width?

[JR Becks]

Do agree with the AP for Nasri, everything they created came through him. Id still give him a cut inside wide play instruction though, or does an AP have that as default?

Id also like to know why it is a flawed tactic, it is basically a 4-2-3-1? Just with NAsri a little more central, but with Debuchy getting forward there is still width?

Maybe it's due to Nasri being positioned in the AMCr slot instead of AMR in the classic 4-2-3-1?

IMO it was a good move by Blanc to try and pull Ashley "best left back in the world" Cole out of position for Debuchy to exploit with his rampaging runs down the right!

[jimbobBRFC]

Maybe it's due to Nasri being positioned in the AMCr slot instead of AMR in the classic 4-2-3-1?

Yeah but it doesnt really make the tactic any weaker thats all im trying to say

[dz47]

Yeah that's pretty much my thoughts on it too, though from that diagram I'd stick with it being a 451 rather than a 4231. If you were to have nasri set up as an advanced playmaker/attack and pehaps ticked as playmaker. Ribery could then be perhaps an inside forward support or attack

[jimbobBRFC]

Yeah that's pretty much my thoughts on it too, though from that diagram I'd stick with it being a 451 rather than a 4231. If you were to have nasri set up as an advanced playmaker/attack and pehaps ticked as playmaker. Ribery could then be perhaps an inside forward support or attack

Yeah 4-5-1 probably is a better shout actually, completely forgot about Malouda. Ribery is definately an IF although support or attack is a different question. Probably more supporting really because he does pick up the ball in less advanced positions and helps to link up play.

[dz47]

Sounds pretty good to me

[ZdlR]

Hmm, I suppose you have a point about Nasri's role. Still, I wouldn't move him to the wing, personally, based on he England game.

I guess the tactic itself might work, really, but it is very personnel-dependent. I think I would also lower creative freedom go 'default' and passing to 'shorter' because France had a very high pass completion and one of the reasons that they didn't break England down was a lack of creativity.

[jimbobBRFC]

He definately wasnt a winger, youve got the formation bang on I think

[JR Becks]

Hmm, I suppose you have a point about Nasri's role. Still, I wouldn't move him to the wing, personally, based on he England game.

I guess the tactic itself might work, really, but it is very personnel-dependent. I think I would also lower creative freedom go 'default' and passing to 'shorter' because France had a very high pass completion and one of the reasons that they didn't break England down was a lack of creativity.

England's system is a very intelligent one as they are pretty well-covered in all danger areas. They have Terry/Lescott/Parker/Gerrard on Benzema + anyone who's trying to find space in between the two banks of fours; full-backs + wide midfielders on the wings so France will struggle to create anything/get behind their defence apart from a few long shots at goal. (which they eventually got their goal from) Perhaps they could have brought on an extra striker to better occupy the center-backs as Benzema tends to drift deep especially in the second-half. However, I still see them scoring a few goals against Ukraine and Sweden unless the two teams can keep their shapes like how England did.

[ZdlR]

England have only implemented that system for about 60 days. With more invention, I think they could have broken through England. Whether through instructions or different personnel, however, is up for debate.

Btw, apologies this thread isn't as in-depth as others on Euro 2012 teams. I just don't have the time to write loads. Will probably just do the same as above for the rest of France's games.

[JR Becks]

England have only implemented that system for about 60 days. With more invention, I think they could have broken through England. Whether through instructions or different personnel, however, is up for debate.

Btw, apologies this thread isn't as in-depth as others on Euro 2012 teams. I just don't have the time to write loads. Will probably just do the same as above for the rest of France's games.

They could have tried to stretch the England defence more with more runs behind or playing wider, they looked dangerous when Debuchy/Evra bombed forward.

No worries ZdlR, you have done a good job!

[jimbobBRFC]

England have only implemented that system for about 60 days. With more invention, I think they could have broken through England. Whether through instructions or different personnel, however, is up for debate.

Btw, apologies this thread isn't as in-depth as others on Euro 2012 teams. I just don't have the time to write loads. Will probably just do the same as above for the rest of France's games.

Yeah definately, although I think either Benzema staying up top and not dropping deep or bringing a second striker on would have created a lot more problems. The defence had a relatively easy job second half as Benzema kept dropping deep. With someone like Giroud playing up top with Benzema I think they would have caused a lot more problems.

[Cleon]

They could have tried to stretch the England defence more with more runs behind or playing wider, they looked dangerous when Debuchy/Evra bombed forward.

No worries ZdlR, you have done a good job!

But then Young and Welbeck would have run the French defence ragged. The French are very vulnerable at the back and I felt if they pushed on more and committed more men forward then England could have picked them off quite easy.

[JR Becks]

But then Young and Welbeck would have run the French defence ragged. The French are very vulnerable at the back and I felt if they pushed on more and committed more men forward then England could have picked them off quite easy.

Agree with you there, everything is about finding a balance isn't it? Wanted to add that Diarra was vital that day on Young, he totally stopped his influence on the game didnt he?

[ZdlR]

Agree with you there, everything is about finding a balance isn't it? Wanted to add that Diarra was vital that day on Young, he totally stopped his influence on the game didnt he?

I saw on Zonal Marking that he had 100% pass completion (something like 35) and 100% tackle success (5). Not sure about interceptions but, regardless, that's pretty damn good.

[JR Becks]

I saw on Zonal Marking that he had 100% pass completion (something like 35) and 100% tackle success (5). Not sure about interceptions but, regardless, that's pretty damn good.

He was the key to stopping Young and he is one big lad too. He had that pin-point header saved by Joe Hart too, definitely a key player for France!

[ZdlR]

While Laurent Blanc persisted with the same organisational structure, the underlying strategy and tactics were tweaked along with a couple of personnel changes. Needing realistically to win in order to progress as group leaders, against one of the host teams, the match was suspended after five minutes due to torrential conditions and some worryingly close lightening.

The personnel changes were twofold: PSG's Jeremy Menez came into the side, ostensibly for Malouda, with Manchester City's Gael Clichy replacing Manchester United's Patrice Evra at left back. These were not quite straight swaps, however. While Clichy certainly got forward, his remit was largely defensive, especially in the second half. Menez lined up wide on the right, with Nasri dropping back into midfield, although certainly getting forward whenever possibly.

There are a lot of arrows on that diagram, reflecting the added fluidity that was necessary against another defensive opposition who would concentrate largely on counter-attacking. However, Ukraine were not about to sit deep and soak up pressure on the edge of their box like England, they countered from a much higher position on the pitch, albeit with equally narrow and shallow a formation. This afforded France much more space in behind, which suited Benzema far more than his blunt performance against England.

At the back, Debuchy still got forward whenever he possibly could while, Rami, Mexes and Diarra still formed a defensive triangle in front of goal. However, in the second half especially, Gael Clichy powered back to add a forth body - and some much needed width to the defence - with France taking more risks going forward and Shevchenko finding some space in the channels.

In midfield, Cabaye retained his place - although he played a slightly different role in the second half which resulted in him getting a goal. He was joined by Nasri who took on Malouda's role of the attacking creator in the midfield three. He was a lot more active than Malouda.

Jeremy Menez provided much more width on the right hand side, although only in his starting position. The fluidity of roles within the France set up ensured that very few players were restricted to only one area of the pitch. His goal came from overloading the Ukraine right hand side, cutting inside and finishing neatly. Ribery did largely the same and in the England game, showing a lot of neat touches and flair. Benzema was far more mobile, dropping off, getting in behind and working the channels at various intervals.

France's tactics were conservative but probing in the first half before Blanc realized he needed to gamble a bit more first the second half and France went for the jugular. It worked - although it came at the cost of opening the game up which simultaneously benefited Ukraine, too. While the game went end-to-end for a few passages of play, The added presence of Clichy in the backline meant that France almost had a back three plus the screen of Diarra - Rami pushing across to almost a DCr position. This kept Ukraine's shots wide in the channels and it would have taken an excellent effort to beat Lloris.

First Half Tactics:

Lloris (GK): Sweeper Keeper [Defend]

Debuchy (RB): Wingback [support]

Rami (CB): Defender [Defend]

Mexes (CB): Defender [Defend]

Clichy (LB): Fullback [support]

Diarra (DMC): Anchorman [Defend]

Cabaye (MCr): Deep-Lying Playmaker [support]

Nasri (MCl): Advanced Playmaker [Attack]

Menez (AMR): Advanced Playmaker [Attack]

Ribery (AML): Inside Forward [support]

Benzema (ST): Complete Forward [Attack]

Balanced, Control, More Expressive, Zonal Marking.

Second Half Tactics:

Lloris (GK): Sweeper Keeper [Defend]

Debuchy (RB): Wingback [support]

Rami (CB): Defender [Defend]

Mexes (CB): Defender [Defend]

Clichy (LB): Fullback [Defend]

Diarra (DMC): Anchorman [Defend]

Cabaye (MCr): Box-to-Box Midfieldr [support]

Nasri (MCl): Advanced Playmaker [Attack]

Menez (AMR): Advanced Playmaker [Attack]

Ribery (AML): Inside Forward [support]

Benzema (ST): Complete Forward [Attack]

Fluid, Control, Zonal Marking, More Roaming

As shown above, Cabaye became more of a box-to-box midfielder for the second half, which contributed to him receiving a great threaded through-ball inside the box and he took his chance well. Rather than cutely try to play around Ukraine, they increased their movement, mentality and decreased their creative freedom. This made them more straightforward in their approach.

At this point, after two games against beatable opposition, there are a couple of questions remaining - how will France adapt to playing a better team, such as Spain or Germany, and how can they prevent Benzema from becoming frustrated at his lack of goals - even if his overall play is positive?

[DeadPanda]

Good, and quick, post match review there. Like the translation into simple FM terms too.

I do think that France looked a much better side the second half, but still, not a side good enough to challenge and win the Euros. As you say, they pushed forward more and took a less conservative approach in the second half and it paid off. My concern, other than Benzema, is that of the French central defence.