Sunday Oliseh, a former Super Eagles coach and current member of the FIFA Technical Study Group for the 2022 World Cup, has identified three crucial talking themes from the World Cup games.
The former Eagles player provided a detailed analysis of the first 16 games played at the ongoing World Cup in Qatar during a briefing in Doha that also included TSG members, Italian coach Alberto Zaccheroni, and former Colombian goalkeeper Faryd Mondragón.
Oliseh, Zaccheroni, and Mondragón identified several trends in their investigation, including the usage of long balls to escape intense pressure, a rise in cross-shot goals, and counter-pressing with numerous players.
Long balls and goals scored on the counter-attack were two topics that the former Juventus player covered in great detail.
“We’ve seen teams that press high, but also other teams that accept pressure, with defensive tactics that allow them to counter it.”
In Qatar’s first 16 games, the TSG noted that 56 crosses resulted in efforts on goal but just 14 crosses resulted in goals. After the same amount of games at the 2018 World Cup, only three crosses resulted in goals, while 35 crosses produced a shot on goal.
Regarding Ecuador’s first-half goal against Qatar, Enner Valencia, Sunday Oliseh remarked, “This is a great example of it. He plays the ball back in, and the cross is going to be whipped in…he whips it in towards the second post. In my opinion, he does that to avoid the congested middle and as a result, they got that goal.”
The TSG examines each game and offers analysis, including performance information and trends, under the direction of former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
