2018 FIFA World Cup: Belgium pays the price of the strange tactical decision of coach Roberto Martinez against France astute



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St. Petersburg: Sometimes the towers are ahead of the master. When all you try is coming off, you tend to believe that another experience may not be too far away. Tuesday, Roberto Martinez has once again cracked for the lure of change. But in the process, he ended up breaking what was in perfect condition.

   Belgian coach Roberto Martinez gives instructions to Nacer Chadli. Reuters

Belgian coach Roberto Martinez gives instructions to Nacer Chadli. Reuters

Against Japan, Martinez's substitutions changed the game while Brazil in the quarter-finals was defeated by a tactical change that saw Belgium overtake the champion five times. However, the manager's attempt to compensate for the absence of Thomas Meunier back against France leaves only a more complicated solution to Belgium.

Croatia will face England at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow in the semi-final on Wednesday at 23:30

After the match, Martinez insists that it is the small margins that separate his team from Blues . But minor details ultimately sabotaged the chances of the World Cup in Belgium. To replace Meunier, Martinez chose Nacer Chadli who was basically asked to handle the entire right flank while Jan Vertonghen was no longer in the role of a traditional lateral on the other wing.

This meant that Chadli was pushing, spaces appeared Blaise Matuidi of France to break into the box. The Juventus midfielder did it brilliantly, and the corner that won the match for France was won after one of those races.

Even though the goal arrived at the beginning of the second period, the threat was obvious. However, Martinez did not answer and simply stood on the sidelines, arms crossed, hoping that his tactics would work by itself. It was strange to a manager who built his career on an ability to react proactively to situations.

Tournament football is arguably the strongest suit of Martinez. His only trophy in interclub competitions involving first division teams was the FA Cup victory over Wigan Athletic in the 2012-13 season. It's as if Martinez was more comfortable with each opponent separately, a problem-solving approach that works best without the frequent distractions of the league.

But even in a format that works best for the Spanish coach, he relies on his own visualization of how a match would be played. Given the resources available to Belgium, Martinez can be sure that his multitude of stars will be decisive in most occasions. But a day when Hazard and Lukaku are marginalized by its system, it becomes an exercise in hope rather than waiting.

After the victory over Brazil, Martinez claimed: "As a coach, I have never lost a match tactically, I have lost a lot on the field and today. Now, it's not tactics but the execution of these tactics. "The performance was certainly not the best in Tuesday's semifinals, but it's not the only way to do it. was also a contentious contest, Belgium presented a lot of threat but showed little bite in the last third.

In the first half, the unequal formation of Belgium offered a glimpse of what she could offer. "With Hazard and Chadli overtaking the French defense early on, there were opportunities to pbad the ball to the six-yard surface or crack the ball to Fellaini who was pushing forward to get closer to Lukaku.

introduced. Vertonghen lost the ball three times in his own half during the first half, while being occasionally given by French teenager Kylian Mbappe. In addition, France's direct pbades have kept goals behind the Belgian defense. Such an example came in the 12th minute when Paul Pogba put on a half-way pbad to Mbappe, opening the opposition.

This did not skew Belgium, since it dominated the possession with Toby Alderweireld symbolizing the offensive prospect. he made no less than 12 badists in the last third in the first half, much more than any other player, and closer to scoring in a corner.

But the attackers were not so threatening. During the evening, Kevin de Bruyne went from the right infield to a wider position before settling deeper in the center. But his influence was limited as much by France as by the absence of a liaison game from Belgium. If Didier Deschamps's players had been more clinical, a goal would have arrived earlier but the game was based on a defensive gap. Eventually, in a World Cup that saw about 44 percent of set-pieces goals, the decisive moment came at a corner.

The fact that Fellaini was beaten by Umtiti was a surprise; The failure of Manchester United midfielder to deceive his replacement Dries Mertens has only reinforced the idea that it would not be the day of Belgium. Eventually, Fellaini was replaced by Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco in the 80th minute, Martinez giving up his big tactical plan for something more predictable.

Hope still shone for Belgium, while the clock was beating 90 minutes. It was six minutes of extra time to find the equalizer, the Red Devils had desperately searched for most of the second half. But some mistakes made by Chadli and Vertonghen marked the conclusion of Belgium's campaign for the World Cup

. Another of Martinez's smart plans failed thanks to the tactical indiscipline of his players and the slowness of the problems encountered. not. For at least one time, Martinez had also lost a match tactically. It could not be called simply the defeat of Belgium; Martinez lost much of the aura that he had recovered during this World Cup. Doubts will come again. Just like Belgium in Saint Petersburg, for the match for third place on July 14th.

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