Ángel Ramírez may be a name not many are familiar with just yet.

But this ‘yet’

is definitely key in this sentence. The 35-yearold coach is currently managing
Independiente
del Valle ove As soon as the goalkeeper receives the ball, it
activates the press from the nearest forward,
who leaves his original marker to charge for the
ball. At the same time, the pivot will quickly drop
deeper to offer an additional passing channel
that will only be used to lay off the the ball can quickly be returned back to one of
the wide centre-backs who then step out into
the open space and advance the ball by simply
carrying it forward, as can be seen from the
image.
Let’s observe an in-game example below as
well. The pivot once again drops between
the centre-backs and the other midfielder
remains close to ensure the superiority. A quick
combination between the backline and one of
the midfielders ejects the centre-back who can
push forward and progress the ball into open
space.
16
ball to the
free centre-back on the other side who can then
advance up the pitch.
It’s a rather simple method that is once again
using the numerical superiority against the
opposition, this time achieving it by involving
the goalkeeper in the build-up tactics. But that
works best when the opposition decide to press
all the way up the pitch.
Still, when they are pressed in a 4-3-3 structure
that marks their three-man backline r in the Ecuadorian top-flight and
has even managed to se secure his first title at the
club by clinching the Copa del Sudamericana in
2018/19.
His team is well known for its attacking and
exciting tactics, positional play and possessionbased style of football that often both
impresses
and mesmerises the crowds. In this tactical

played
analysis, we will

her cross in front of the

defenders secure his first title at the
club by clinching the Copa del Sudamericana in
2018/19.
His team is well known for its attacking and
exciting tactics, positional play and possessionbased style of football that often both
impresses
and mesmerises the crowds. In this tactical

played
analysis, we will

her cross in front of the

defenders cure his first title at the
club by clinching the Copa del Sudamericana in
2018/19.
His team is well known for its attacking and
exciting tactics, positional play and possessionbased style of football that often both
impresses
and mesmerises the crowds. In this tactical

played
analysis, we will

her cross in front of the

defenders for a potential
tap in, but intelligently pulls
it back instead.
Similarly, looking at her off-
the-ball movement,
Cascarino’s ability to
understand space and
use it effectively is a key
trait when playing
as a winger. Often wingers
s
the space in behind the full-
back and aims to
capitalise on the movement
made by Gauvin to
drag the centre-back away,
widening the gap
even more. A darting run
into the vacant space
sees Cascarino latch onto
the pass with her
pace allowing her to g ino
possesses intelligence and
speed
that would be top-flight and
has even managed to secure his first title at the
club by clinching the Copa del Sudamericana in
2018/19.
His team is well known for its attacking and
exciting tactics, positional play and possessionbased style of football that often both
impresses
and mesmerises the crowds. In this tactical
analysis, we will take a more in-depth look at
those tactics and try to explain why he just
might be one of the coaches of the future.

Build-up tacticsM ctics iguel

R amírez’s philosophy revolves heavily around positional play and

outmanoeuvring
the opposition with passing, movement as well
as space creation and exploitation. The basis
of his tactics, as we will see further down the
line of this tactical analysis, lies in creating
superiorities across the pitch.
On paper, Ramírez prefers to deploy his team
either in a 4-1-4-1 or 4-4-2 systems but on most
occasions those formations will transform on
the pitch, depending on whether the team is in
or out of possession and their current phase of
play.
The most common structure we will see
Independiente utilise is a back three against the
opposition’s front two. In that scenario, where
they have to resist the press of only two players,
the pivot will often drop between the centrebacks to create the back three and
establish a
numerical superiority against the pressers. You
can see an example of that structure down in
the image below.
By pushing the full-backs higher and wide on
the pitch, Ramírez ensures they occupy the
wide midfielders while Independiente’s own
central midfielders form a double pivot and drop
behind the opposition’s second line to ensure
numerical superiority in the first phase of buildup.
The above example shows us a 5v2 situation in
which bypassing the first line of press is a mere
formality for Independiente. By recycling the
ball along the backline, they can easily stretch
the pressing duo and then combine with either
of the two pivots to progress the ball. In case
the midfielders are then pressed from behind,
And since an additional midfielder has dropped
deeper to combine with the backline, he pulls
another marker with himself, opening space for
the centre-back to exploit with his run.
Of course, good ball-playing centre-backs who
are brave and secure in possession are a must
for these tactics to work and Ramírez has them
at his disposal. But there are many variations
for beating the pressing squad and advancing
the build from the backline that they utilise in
addition to that.
Generally, they are not afraid to recycle
possession until they see an opening and then
they exploit it. Creating numerical superiority
in the first phase of play, however, is the
foundation on which they build their attacks
further. This gives the centre-backs the freedom
to move forward safely without having to
engage the opposition in duels.
Usually, one midfielder will drop to connect with
the back three and outplay the pressing duo
while the other midfield works together with the
full-back to push the other markers higher up
the pitch, creating a pocket of space to exploit.
These are, however, just one of many variations
that mostly depend on the opposition’s structure
and how well they are pressed during a game.
Luckily, they can use their goalkeeper and fullbacks in other ways to manipulate the
other
team’s movement.

Using the goalkeeper

to beat the press
A nother important aspect of Independiente’s build-up phase is their use of the
goalkeeper and full-backs to escape the press.
Using the goalie is a great way to stretch the
opposition’s frontline, especially if they match
the backline man for man, usually in a 3v3
scenario, considering that’s the most common
build-up structure they will use.
In that scenario, the goalie will work together
with the rest of the squad to create that
numerical superiority and bypass the press. We
can see a clear example of that in the image
below. Both the centre-backs and the pivot have
a marker following them closely but by involving
the goalkeeper, Independiente suddenly have a
one-man advantage.
17
and the
double pivot, they can still use the goalkeeper’s
passing range to find the free man in space.
Usually, that free man will be the full-back
but the main idea is to put the opposition in
a situation where they have an impossible
decision to make.
You can see the basic structure behind those
tactics in the image above. The opposition’s
midfield has to decide whether to press the
full-back or one of the midfielders but choosing
either frees the other man as a direct result.
Of course, the goalie then has to find his
teammate with an accurate pass and by failing
that, the whole concept and the attack break
down immediately. Still, even if the opposition
invest more players to mark out of the options,
Ramírez also likes to drop his wingers deeper
to receive the ball either directly from the goalie
or from the backline, whoever is in possession
at that time. This, once again, ensures the
numerical superiority is always on their side.
But there’s also an interesting concept I’ve
noticed them utilise in a couple of games and
that is the use of inverted full-backs. These
tactics are both used as a tool to advance the
play from deep and occupy the right spaces and
markers higher up the pitch to set up different
attacking movements.
We’ll explore that further in the following section
of our tactical analysis.

Inverted full-backs in
build-up and
offensive tactics