After the first leg against Napoli, Eintracht coach Oliver Glasner spoke of the best team they had played against in a long time. With their clear, but also flexible 4-3-3, the Italians dominated the game and gave the Frankfurters 2-0 in their own stadium hardly any air to breathe.
How Naples exploited the mistakes was “impressive”. But it doesn’t need “a miracle”, said sporting director Markus Krösche: “In the second leg we’ll try to turn things around. I’m convinced of our boys.”
Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti has given his team a clear framework: In the 4-3-3, there is a very clear division of tasks both on offense and on defence. In the pressing, the Neapolitans always run into the opposing defensive chain in equal numbers. The three strikers exert pressure against a three-man chain like the one played by Frankfurt. If the opponent deploys a back four, eighth Piotr Zielinski moves forward and Napoli presses in a 4-2-4.
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This puts them under constant pressure on the ball. However, the spaces that are opened up behind them only exist on the tactics board: Because the defense is pushing so aggressively, the distances between the different parts of the team are so short overall that access is possible from anywhere – especially the opponent can only rarely play controlled opening balls anyway due to the man-related pressing.
SSC Naples: Midfield funnel as a pressing trap
Of course, the Italians don’t run into anger for 90 minutes, but also take phases in which they defend more deeply. Here they retreat into their own half and are in a tight 4-1-4-1. The wingers Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Hirving Lozano (or Matteo Politano) move far into the center and are slightly offset in front of the two eights. The defensive formation in midfield resembles a funnel into which the opponent should ideally be lured.
If a pass goes into the central area, Stanisvlav Lobotka in particular stabs determinedly in front of the six and leads an aggressive duel. At least one of the two eights comes along and tries to pick up the ball that may have bounced or spied away. No matter how high they defend, the narrow distances remain the core of the game idea.
Napoli football is also characterized by a conspicuous narrowness when playing with the ball. Especially in the center, the players have short distances and repeatedly form triangles or diamonds. For example, when centre-back Kim Min-Jae dribbles, he has full-back Mário Rui to his left and sixer Lobotka to his right. Because Zielinski also shows himself as an eight for the vertical pass, a diamond is created from which the ball can be run well.
One of Spalletti’s game principles can be recognized immediately here: If possible, the vertical option should be played in order to gain the greatest possible space. The opponent then contracts and the ball is placed on one of the following players, who can then act facing the opposing goal.
Kvaratskhelia: Naples’ X-factor in attack
Because the leader of the table constantly creates these difficult-to-defend structures with good passing angles in the center and in the half-spaces, many opponents make the field extremely narrow – both in height and in width. Nevertheless, Napoli initially plays some balls into the pressure and lets the ball bounce back.
In this way, the opponent is lured even more into the center and then suddenly outplays him with a quick action: This can either be a ball in depth at striker Victor Oshimen or a ball on the wings.
Kvaratskhelia, affectionately called “Kvaradona” by the Naples fans in reference to Diego Maradona, is waiting there on the left side in particular with Kvaratskhelia, an absolute exceptional talent. The Georgian combines speed, technique, creativity and determination like no other winger in world football. He is simply unpredictable, immediately takes the ball with him for speed dribbling, but waits for his opponent in the next action and lets him get out at the very last moment with a body deception.
If the right foot pulls inwards, he keeps an overview despite high speed and sees starting teammates. Oshimen in particular often benefits from Kvaratskhelia’s ingenious interface passes when running behind the chain. The winger, who can confidently be described as the shooting star of world football, offers the audience an absolute spectacle when he plays, while remaining extremely goal-oriented: he scored 13 goals and provided 15 assists in 28 competitive games in all competitions – that’s called consistency.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Fotocredit: Getty Images
Eintracht’s only chance against Napoli
The first leg was a demonstration at times, the quality and form of the Italians cannot be denied. So no chance for Frankfurt? If you let Naples play, it will be extremely difficult. If you want to disrupt the sometimes seemingly endless combinations in midfield, you have to give up so much space on the wings that Kvaratskhelia and Lozano will use with their class. Therefore, the only chance for Glasner’s team lies in a very risky and high pressing: The build-up has to be disrupted so early that Napoli has to reach for the long ball.
“We’re not going there to hoist the white flag,” said Philipp Max in the “kicker” interview and promised: “Everyone who is on the field will tear themselves apart.”
But beware: The three midfielders are very venomous in the duel for the second ball. So Eintracht would do well to clear long balls to the outside where they can put pressure on Napoli full-backs with their wingers. These are not always supported in an exemplary manner by the men in front of them, so there can be many direct duels.
In these situations, the ten close to the ball in Frankfurt’s 3-4-2-1 always has to go deeper and walk the space between the central and full-backs. For example, Mario Götze could pull one of the central defenders out of the centre. If Götze then brings the cross, Frankfurt in the penalty area with the centre-forward, the ten and the winger away from the ball have a good chance of finishing – and getting a foot in the door to the quarter-finals again.
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