Coombs wrote:
The thing is, you can't move if there's nowhere to move to. Creating that verticality on the pitch is what top teams do so well. Just cramming forward and pressing up against 2 blocks isn't effective. You need to create vertical space in midfield in order for wingers, backs, or strikers to have channels to move into. Horizontality is basically death, and when you don't have the ability to beat the press in midfield and they match you man for man on the wings, you need to throw bodies forward and risk the counter or produce some magic. I'd argue our first goal against West Ham was the latter, and the second the former.
Neither are sustainable.
This is where there are different types of movement off the ball and all are equally important under different scenarios.
Firstly there is the more movement into space so as to be able receive the ball.
Against a compressed defence movement to create space for the player on the ball to be able to progress is more important. An example of this was AMN drifting infield when we were playing out from the back, and then going wide again as we transitioned into the midfield so as to create a pocket of space the player on the ball (Xhaka) could use to gain easy yards to progress forward.
We see similar movement from both Tieney and AMN/Saka as the look to make both overlaps and underlaps to draw the cover defence when PEA is on the ball so as to isolate the defender so PEA is 1 v 1 and able to get into shooting positions. We also do this by creating overloads on one side before a switch to the other.
The issue is perhaps not so much a lack of movement, rather than a lack of movement to create space in the final 3rd. Too often our movement is only vertical which makes it easier to defend against as it does not look to change the angels and move defenders out of position, as opposed to trying to move into space to receive the ball. We also lack the second man runs being made which used to be Rambo's speciality.
This goal by Nasri is one of my favorites because of the movement. The whole passage of play leading up to the goal was a great example of recycling possession to create depth to the attack and then movement to create space. Walcott's run on the edgee of the area ahead of the ball drags the defender with him for Nasri to move into the space created to receive the ball with time to shoot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmg7vxqlsjQ
