Tag Archives: Slovakia

16. Slovakia

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What Went Right?  Interesting use of a 4-4-2 formation that morphed into a 4-2-4 when they needed to get players up field. Very compact and physical team when they weren’t in possession, choosing to spend a lot of time in the middle third and wait for an opening by a forward behind the opposition backline. Midfield did a better job of interrupting the opposition attack than their defense. Did a very good job of beating the offside trap and taking advantage of opposition mistakes in the back. Switched play from side to side a lot but almost never flowed down the center, yet they were able to solidly get the ball down the flanks with relative competence. Actually were very good a crosses, though balls, and service into the penalty area. Forwards did a good job of getting on the end of service into the box, and they showed pretty refined finishing skills. Not the world’s flashiest team and their tactics were very fundamental and straightforward, but they made it work pretty well, and in a tournament like this that is huge.

What Went Wrong?  Defense was pretty bad. Ability to man-mark was lacking. Easily let players get behind them. Couldn’t defend set-pieces and 50-50 balls. Slovakia showed a degree of defensive discipline early but as soon as they got comfortable going forward they lost all semblance of shape and organization in the back. Gave up way too much opposition attack on their rear flanks. Gave up way too much possession, and when they were in possession didn’t show any real ability to build up a sustain attack. Didn’t use much of the center of the field when they attack (and they should have because on the rare occasions they did they actually were pretty good at it). Probably could have done a lot better or avoided some of the goals scored against them if they had played with the same urgency early in games that they did late.

Who Stepped Up To The Plate?  Robert Vittek was a revelation up front, scoring 4 goals in 4 games. Erik Jendrisek was a reliable target man up front and made good runs to beat the offside trap. Harek Mansik created decent distribution. Zdeno Strba and Juraj Kucka were at the heart of the Slovakian midfield, interrupting the opposition attack and moving the ball to the forward flanks quickly. Slovakia got instant offense when Vladimir Weiss came in as a sub; he should have been playing much, much more.

Who Didn’t Show Up?  If you had told me before the tournament that a backline with Martin Skrtel at the heart of it (including Jan Durica as his partner in front of goal and fullbacks Radoslav Zabavnik and Peter Pekarik on the flanks) would be as bad as it was I’d have told you that you were dreaming. I’m not really sure anybody could have kept shots out of the net the way the Slovakian backline was playing, so expecting Jan Mucha to do it was just a reach.

How Was The Coaching?  I suspect that this was about as much as Vladimir Weiss, Sr. was going to get out of this side. But he did infuse a basic tactical system that this side never wavered from, and it work pretty well.

Did They Finish Where They Were Expected?  Not hardly. Slovakia did much better than expected. Their dismantling of the defending world champions was clinical and a joy to behold. As lackluster as they played for most of their games they were actually a fun team to watch because they would suddenly and without warning come up with a score that just left you coming out of your seat.

Now What?  This is pretty much as good as it gets for Slovakia. They don’t have the talent or the support structure to do any better.

South Africa Match Observations: Round Of 16, Part III

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Some random observations after the First Knockout Round:

Netherlands 2-1 Slovakia: Positive beginning from Slovakia, who play the flanks but use a more controlled build-up down the wings as opposed to getting it quickly forward like most teams utilize the wings, using more of a midfield 4-4-2 approach that morphed into a 4-2-4. It worked early on as Slovakia got better shots on goal. Arjen Robben was back for the first time this tournament to work the football version of the triangle attack with Wesley Sneijder and Robin van Persie. Dirk Kuyt put in some surprisingly good service into van Persie from the left flank. Solid passing by both sides but no real urgency early until Robben took a long pass from the back from Sniejder through the middle, broke down three defenders and sent a lazar shot from 20 yards to pop his cherry in this World Cup (van Persie was very instrumental on this goal; his run just to Robben’s right gave the Slovakian defense enough of a pause to cause a space for Robben to shoot). The Dutch defense was very comfortable as long as Robert Vittek was the only threat up top that was getting behind them. After the goal the Dutch became much more confident, getting much more sustained attacks in the final third. Slovakia’s approach was very two dimensional, playing the ball on their feet and not getting very aerial. The Dutch still aren’t making very effective use of the center of the field, looking to use the flanks and switch play extensively. Robben was certainly making up for lost time, taking fantastic chances on goal. On the few occasions that Slovakia built up an attack through the center they got off some good shots on the goal, where Martin Stekelenberg came up huge to save Holland’s bacon. When Eljiro Elia came on the Slovakian backline was finally stretched thin, as Dirk Kuyt took a free kick behind the Slovakian defense, kept his cool, with a deft touch sent a pass into the box for Sneijder to get on the end of and finish. Slovakia played very composed all game long, never playing with any urgency even after getting down 2 goals. Stekelenberg made of stupid foul in the box for a Slovakian penalty, which was converted by Vittek in injury time, but it was only cosmetic. Clinical win by the Dutch. Madd Props to Slovakia for playing a well-disciplined tournament for World Cup minnows.

Brazil 3-0 Chile: You knew that two attractive attacking sides were going to fly around the pitch in this fixture – neither side disappointed. Chile was going to try to use the flanks a little more than their counterparts with a more direct attack. It took until just after four minutes for Brazil to finally get out of their own half – so solid was Chile firmly in control on the attacking end early. Great ball movement by both teams as both moved the ball all over the field on the attacking ends, but you just got the sense that Brazil was slightly better at an attacking buildup than Chile. A Slightly quicker counterattack by Chile, although it lacked a certain quality and inventiveness. Chile was actually able to find space to get into going forward but Brazil did a great job of anticipation and reading of the game to get in front of Chilean passes going into space. Way too many corners allowed by Chile, which is dangerous against a team as good at them as Brazil. It finally mattered, when Juan got on the end of a great cross by Maicon and headed it home. Upon scoring, Brazil began to counter with speed. A counterattacking triumvirate of Robinho to Kaka’ to Luis Fabiano resulted in their second goal moments later. Chile lost all semblance of discipline and shape after that. It became academic after that. We all talk about the otherworldly skill of Brazil, but head coach Dunga has put together probably the biggest, tallest and most physically aggressive team the side has ever had. Chile didn’t give up, having a real go at the Brazilian end, but you knew Brazil was going to take advantage of the gaps created by Chile sending numbers forward (a score by Robinho proved that). For all Chile’s offensive flair they only scored 3 goals in four games, so clearly they are more bark than bite. Brazil is hitting on all cylinders right now – this is clearly the time of the tournament they live fore – but so is the Netherlands, so the quarterfinal between the two at the very least should be entertaining.

— daveydoug

South Africa 2010 Match Observations: Group F

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Some random observations after the third group fixtures:

Paraguay 0-0 New Zealand: Paraguay was the aggressor early, but New Zealand pulled everyone back on defense, forcing long shots only. Paraguay dominated possession in the first half, but the Kiwis’ discipline on defense frustrated them and neither goalie was tested. The All Whites opened up somewhat in the second half, but still played very conservatively. Paraguay earned the first corner of the game 15 minutes into the second half, but the crowded penalty area prevented several shots from getting through. New Zealand brought on a defender for a forward and then a midfielder for another forward in the second half. Apparently the Kiwis are more concerned with preserving a tie instead of going for the win that would advance them. Unable to get through passes, La Albirroja tried to get some long balls into the box but could not connect on those either. The Kiwi defense really took the Paraguayans out of their game. The draw still netted Paraguay the top seed out of the group. New Zealand, the lowest ranked team in the World Cup, failed to advance as expected, but should be proud to have finished with three points and ahead of the defending champs in group play.

Slovakia 3-2 Italy: As with earlier group fixtures, the Italian offense was stale and unable to penetrate the box early on. Slovakia, which had played leadenly in its prior game, came out with much greater intensity against the Italians. The Italians lacked any kind of coherence and gave away the ball far too often. Daniele De Rossi played an extremely poor pass in front of his own box that was easily intercepted by Juraj Kucka, who then struck a through ball to Robert Vittek and he beat the goalie with a well hit shot to the left post. The Italian defensive reputation has taken a real hit in the group fixtures and their lackluster play calls Marcello Lippi’s decision to field the oldest squad in the Cup into question. They nearly gave up another goal in first half stoppage time on an excellent volley by Kucka from 35 yards out that was barely wide. The Azzurri came out with a little more energy in the second half, but were still slow and inaccurate on their passes. Andrea Pirlo, the star of the 2006 World Cup winning Italy team, came on a sub early in the second half, his first action since a calf injury just prior to the tournament. The Slovaks pulled back into a more defensive posture, but found some counterattacks as they out-hustled Italy all over the field. Midway through the second, the Italians got their first real opportunity when Fabio Quagliarella fired a half-volley from the corner of the goal box that was blocked by a defender’s knee at the goal line. It was very hard to tell if the ball crossed the line before hitting the knee and no goal was given. Minutes later, the Italian defense again failed on a poor clearance of a cross that got pushed right back to Vittek near the right post and his quick turn and shot to the near post caught the goalie off-balance for Slovakia’s second goal. The Azzurri finally broke through when a blocked shot deflected to Antonio Di Natale who easily put it into the open goal. The goal finally woke up the Italians. After not testing the Slovakian goalie all game, they began peppering him in the last 10 minutes. Another Italian goal got called back for an offside. Their defense failed to react quickly on a long throw-in to the box, however, and Kamil Kopunek simply raced past the defenders and lifted a chip over the on-rushing goalie for Slovakia’s third goal. Italy struck right back though when Quagliarella lifted a beautiful chip from 20 yards out over the goalie. It was too little too late and unbelievably, Italy’s loss sent them home, just like fellow 2006 finalist France. Both teams played poorly in their first two fixtures, but Slovakia earned its invitation to the second round because they played a full 90 minutes when it counted and the Italians did not.

-amwoods13