July 20, 2023

As the sun set on the Jurong East Stadium, the Sailors and Swans came together for a titanic clash. Both teams arguably put up their strongest lineups and it was a fascinating game from start to finish. First Half Disrupting Albirex’s rhythm LCS’s general approach was simple. No playing out of the back from goalkicks – Zharfan went long in search for Zivkovic, and the rest of the team tried to send the ball forward quickly when transitioning from defense to attack. Off the ball, it was a clear 4-3-3 (pink) shape. There were some pre-planned moves that LCS used to harry Albirex on the ball and disrupt their tempo. Here, Lestienne is using an outside-to-inside curved run (black) to press the Albirex’s right centreback. He is making use of his cover shadow (black triangle) while advancing onto the centreback, forcing them to play to the alternate side. [Editor’s note: for those reading Zach’s analysis for the first time, what he means in human language is that he is making it difficult for the right centreback to make the pass to his right because he is blocking that passing angle] With their 4-3-3 shape, either striker Zivkovic or one of the midfielders would put pressure onto Kaisei Ogawa, Albirex’s #8, who was their deep lying playmaker in front of the defense. This was especially effective when Ogawa’s midfielder partner, Shodai Yokoyama (#14) pushed higher. As a result, Albirex had to often play the ball back or to the fullbacks, making Albirex’s buildup quite flank-orientated. At Albirex’s goal kicks, the LCS front trio (pink) would push up while the centre midfielders (yellow) would go tight, man-marking their opposite numbers. LCS would drop to a 4-5-1 shape when Albirex advanced deep into their half. The block that LCS had was generally quite solid. Here, Hafiz Nor (blue) is drawn wider as there is Fuwa #17 holding the width out of frame on the left. A space then opens up between Lionel and Hafiz Nor but is covered by Adam Swandi expertly, using his cover shadow to great effect by blocking the central passing lane (black triangle). The midfield trio (pink) also remain compact in the centre. By working as a team, LCS frustrated Albirex greatly. However, by using a 4-3-3 shape off the ball it could occasionally be bypassed and this gave Albirex’s fullbacks time and space to advance the ball, which they did not capitalize on in the first half. LCS also tried to use a 3-2-4-1 in possession with Hafiz Nor clearly much higher up the pitch than Nur Adam on the opposite side. However, with LCS slightly overzealous in getting the ball quickly forward, this often led to many turnovers and did not allow LCS to settle into a regular shape in possession. In all, it was a good half for LCS. They disrupted Albirex’s rhythm with their high-intensity approach, and even carved out chances on transitions which they should have scored. Second Half A tale of two halves Compared to the first half, Albirex came out roaring while LCS seemed slightly timid and unfocused. LCS no longer adopted the 4-3-3 shape to force Albirex back – instead they chose to sit deeper in a 4-5-1 and absorb pressure. To play this way, the Sailors had to ensure they cut out errors but this could not be further from what eventually panned out. Here, Hafiz Nor (pink) switches off and stands completely square, totally unaware of the blindsided run (black) the Albirex player makes on him. This leads to a dangerous opportunity for Albirex. At the 55th minute, having seen Hafiz Nor switch off, Rankovic took off Hafiz Nor and Adam Swandi for Mamat and Shawal. While taking off Hafiz Nor for the more defensively solid Mamat was understandable, I personally felt taking off Adam Swandi was a mistake. Adam is a very intelligent and technical player that can control the tempo of the game while offering some defensive presence in centre midfield. This would be important later. Immediately after the penalty was scored against the run of play, LCS went to a clear 5-4-1 (Shawal and Zivkovic out of frame). As you can see here, Hariss obviously has dropped into the backline as a third centre-back. However, this left a very lightweight midfield of Hami and Diego which would be important later. Mistakes cost LCS Anu had already given Tanadari an easy 1 vs 1 chance in the first half when he got attracted to the ball and stepped out unnecessarily with Zharfan bailing him out with a good save. Here, Anu (pink) is attracted to the ball and steps up aggressively. He fails to scan and does not realise Shodai Yokoyama #14 (black) is making a blind-sided run on him. He then unfortunately fails to cut out the pass, and Yokoyama did what he did. I must add, Nur Adam is also culpable here too (very ironic as the commentator had just mentioned how solid Nur Adam had been whole game). As Anu initially steps up, Nur Adam does not close the space inside (yellow) that Anu had vacated, only making a half-hearted attempt to reach the ball when Yokoyama is finally through on goal. For the second goal, I think Diego has a huge part to play in it. Here, he is jogging back with no intensity. Instead, he should be rushing back to help out the backline, busting a gut to block the cutback into Seia Kunori. Diego fails to do so, and Kunori’s shot leads to Tadanari’s goal, putting the nail into the coffin for the Sailors’ title challenge. Here, playing an offensive-minded player in a midfield pivot certainly cost LCS. Perhaps if Adam Swandi was on the pitch, LCS might have been able to play Hami and Adam in this midfield pivot with Diego in a wide position and this goal might not have happened. Both goals were extremely simple mistakes by LCS players which cost them the game. The third goal