Tactical Tidbits: Eleven’s new guys use width to punch Kickers
Photo credit: Jessica Stone Hendricks Photography
On a roster chock-full of them, a few new faces were inevitably going to make a significant impact for the Indy Eleven in their USL inauguration. They did, as a starting XI consisting of exactly zero returnees from 2017 helped the Eleven snag three points on the road Saturday against the Richmond Kickers with a 1-0 win.
Jack McInerney provided the game winner with his torso, flinging himself into a dangerous service to the far post from fellow forward Soony Saad.
On the surface, the match statistics supported the notion that the contest was quite evenly played. Ultimately, however, the ability to use the width of the pitch and crispness in the final third proved the main differences between the two sides.
Possession (52-48 percent), total passes (409-377) and crosses (18-17) were practically neck and neck, favoring Richmond by a slight margin. But Indy’s ability to get more out of its forays into opposing territory told a different story.
The Eleven outshot the Kickers 10-6, while also putting three of their efforts on frame compared to Richmond’s one. And half of the hosts’ attempts came from outside the box.
Why on earth might Richmond not have been incredibly sharp in the attack? Well, the Kickers barely even touched the ball in their opponent’s box in a 4-1 thrashing last week at the hands of Bethlehem Steel. In that match, Richmond was essentially forced to all-out retreat and shell up. It wasn’t pretty:
Last week, the Kickers conceded gobs of space & got owned. Here are their heat map & touch map from their 4-1 debacle in Bethlehem. Ugly.
What do most teams do after getting run rampant on? Bunker down & clog mid w/ extra bodies. If I’m Rennie, I’m funneling ball out wide today. pic.twitter.com/ODw8FfSH6L
— Kevin Johnston (@KJboxing) March 24, 2018
That’s not exactly a recipe for clicking on all cylinders in the final third overnight.
As for Indy’s new guys, head coach Martin Rennie rolled ’em out in a 4-2-3-1 with Welsh goalkeeper Owain Fon Williams in net. The Eleven looked relatively in sync considering all the fresh faces and brief amount of time Rennie had to assemble a roster. And it was their tactical approach that was perhaps most impressive.
After conceding so much space up the gut last week, it probably made sense for Richmond to bunker down a little more and play conservatively. Rennie’s been around long enough to know that the best way to dissect a team that clogs the middle is to funnel the ball out wide and attack from the outside in. That’s precisely what Rennie had his side do, and it worked as far as generating the more quality chances on the day. Here are Indy’s heatmap and touchmap via Opta/USLsoccer.com:
While far from a dominant performance by the visitors, it was a winning one. Rennie anticipated Richmond trying to shore up passing lanes in the middle, and his players successfully implemented the game plan and found space.
Despite all the newness — league, coach, squad — Indy delivered a bold statement in its USL debut. Version 3.0 of the club looks like a force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference.
Photo credit: Jessica Stone Hendricks Photography
The Eleven welcome USL attendance juggernaut FC Cincinnati to town this weekend to christen Lucas Oil Stadium. FC Cincy defeated the Charleston Battery 1-0 on a goal from ex-Indy player Blake Smith in its season opener March 17, then had this past weekend off.
Soc Takes contributor Nipun Chopra will guest on Cincinnati Soccer Talk this week to help preview the match, so be sure to tune in for that.
Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KJboxing.
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