Experience the thrill of the game

By Eduard Banulescu

Thiago Motta was a strong opponent in Bologna last season and qualified the team for the Champions League. This tactic and style of play caught the attention of one of Europe’s biggest clubs, Juventus. As things slowly turn around for the old lady, it’s time to examine Motta’s tactics and answer whether he is the right man for the prestigious job.

Remember, you can use all the information you’ve learned here when playing FootballCoin, the free fantasy football game that features Serie A games.

Thiago Motta’s career before becoming Juventus manager

When analyzing Thiago Motta’s Bologna team, I dared to call the Brazilian ‘the next great football manager’. At least one prestigious organization agreed with me: Juventus, the most prestigious team in the Italian Serie A.

However, Motta’s esteemed reputation in the football world must have motivated at least part of the decision to sign him. Motta grew up in Sao Paolo, Brazil and made a real name for himself in some of Europe’s best leagues.

During his storied career, he has represented Barcelona, ​​Inter, Atlético Madrid and PSG, some of the best football clubs in the world. Motta was valued for his skill and respected for his intelligence and integrity.

To be fair, the defensive midfielder always looked like someone who could enjoy a career as a football manager. His time with the Italian national team influenced part of his football philosophy. He won 30 caps for Squadra Azzura, having played for Brazil at youth level early in his career.

Motta began his career as a manager at an early age. Immediately after retiring as Ligue 1 champions with Paris Saint-Germain, he became coach of Genoa. He next managed Spezia and Bologna. He really impressed in the latter in the 2023/24 season.

Motta’s exciting football helped a number of promising young players gain promotion to the senior team and brought Bologna on a par with Italy’s best teams. I Rossoblu secured an expected place in the Champions League this season and Motta was called up to the top of the mountain, to struggling giants Juventus.

Does Thiago Motta’s football philosophy match Juventus’ DNA? He has some characteristics that support this idea.

First of all, Motta seems to be the right person for a rebuild. This is what Juventus desperately needs after a dark period. Inspired by Marcelo Bielsa and Joachim Löw, the Brazilian invests a lot of energy in making every player in the squad fight for the same cause.

Inspired by Bielsa in particular, Motta wants his team to attack and defend as a compact unit. Still, Motta, who has learned from Löw and German football at large, wants his teams to press aggressively and courageously. Bologna wanted to win the ball back within seconds of the loss.

Counter-pressing has historically been the main method Motta’s teams have used to score goals. When Motta regained the ball, he wanted his team to quickly create a scoring opportunity.

After all, Thiago Motta is convinced of his own brand of football. This is the main reason he has overseen a revamp of Juventus’ squad. Some famous players have left, others will follow. New, often young players were brought into the first squad to lead the team forward.

Formations and adaptability

Motta is a young manager who has a preferred formation but is also willing to adapt to the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses.

The preferred formation, used so often at Bologna and Spezia, is a 4-3-3. This usually includes technically attacking strikers and a very attack-minded full-back.

When redesigning Juventus, Motta brought some of his principles and combined them with those of the club. In their 12 Serie A games so far Juve started twice with a 4-3-3 formation. Otherwise, Motta opted for the more versatile 4-2-3-1 in all other games. This is a formation that Massimiliano Allegri also used during his first and highly successful spell as manager of The Old Lady.

The 4-3-3 is one of the most popular options for building your formation in FootballCoin’s free fantasy football game, although the 4-5-1 is always difficult to beat.

Juventus in defense

Motta’s Bologna was a team known for their high-risk, high-reward defensive strategy. The team combined aggressive, high pressing with positional defense. The risks were significant, particularly when using a counter-press approach. Bologna conceded an average of one goal per game last season.

Some of this has had an impact on Juve, although not quite as pronounced, perhaps due to the nature of the squad. However, the four goals scored by Inter and the two goals scored by Parma recently are cause for concern.

But that’s beside the point. Juventus currently has the best defensive record in the league.

The defensive structure is almost entirely Motta’s creation. He insisted on loaning Monza goalkeeper Michele di Gregorio, a surprising but inspired decision.

Motta opts for a four-man defense and typically opts for a central defensive partnership consisting of Federico Gatti and Bremer. Although Gatti was technically limited, his tactical awareness and concentration helped him produce 2.7 clearances and 0.8 interceptions per game. In these areas, Bremer’s strength and ability help balance things out.

The 24-year-old Andrea Cambiasso plays as a right wing-back, while the more attacking Nicolo Savona acts as a left wing-back. Neither are great passers, but both develop their skills under Motta’s tutelage.

Juve’s defensive principles

In addition, the technical concerns are not often felt. Surprisingly, Juventus is leaning toward adopting a middle block this season. Players are not encouraged to press aggressively, but rather to remain compact and force the opponent into wide areas where Juve’s players are numerically superior.

Instead, Juve’s young players put in a full shift. It is tactically that the team shines. Defenders know how to block passing lanes. The wingers will always drop deep to help the full-backs defend on the flank. And when it comes to putting pressure on the opponent to make a mistake, the entire team will act as a compact unit.

Central defenders like to climb towards the midfield line and even swap places with the midfielders. All this is done while maintaining a tight structure that does not allow teams to play between the lines.

Fullbacks are essential to building a strong fantasy football team. The full-backs who can provide assists are particularly valuable in the FootballCoin game, which offers daily prizes.

Juventus in attack

Motta acts differently at Juventus than at Bologna. What he has retained, however, are the quick attack transitions. Juventus tries to block passing lanes efficiently. When they win the ball back, the Juventus attackers are instructed to create a scoring opportunity within seconds. This is done through direct passes and the attackers’ runs between the defenders.

Another goal that Motta is working towards is an extremely diverse squad of players. Almost everyone in the starting lineup can play multiple positions. This is helpful because Motta not only wants to switch roles throughout the game, but also wants players to move to accommodate numerical superiority.

It is not uncommon for the pivots, center backs or wingers to make quick defensive runs to help build play. And although some players still lack technical skills, they have taken Thiago Motta’s tactical plan very well.

But the players who are very technical and can exploit space are playmaker TEun Koopmeiners and midfielders Manuel Locatelli and Khephren Thuram. They interpreted Motta’s instructions best play between the opponent’s lines. Your job is to find space and distribute a direct pass to Dusan Vlahovic or simply to unnerve the opposing defender.

Juve’s build-up

After all, Motta’s Juventus is not just a team that gets on the scoresheet by passing long balls to the striker. Most of the game is spent trying to keep the ball in the middle of the pitch through short passes. This is done through good control of the ball, but also by ensuring that a numerical advantage is always maintained in the central areas.

How about the rating? Juve are still benefiting from the consistent goalscoring record of one of Serie A’s best strikers, Serbia’s Dusan Vlahovic. Wide forwards/attacking midfielders Timothy Weah and Kenan Yildiz also get on the scoresheet often, rewarding Motta’s faith in them.

Vlahovic is currently ranked 4* on FootballCoin. Given his great, consistent record, it’s hard to imagine that he won’t be able to achieve the highest ranking in the game, 5*, in the near future.

What’s next for Thiago Motta and Juventus?

Thiago Motta was a surprising choice for the position of Juventus coach. But he makes risky but smart decisions.

For the 2024/25 season, Motta reshuffled the Juventus squad without any additional spending. Many of the squad players are young and underestimated, but are determined to prove themselves. They have carefully followed Motta’s tactics and this has made Juventus a difficult team to beat.

Will this be enough to make Juventus the top team in Italy again? At the moment this seems to be a big challenge. However, it’s easy to see what Motta is trying to build, and the early results exceeded expectations.

If Motta gets Juventus to a Champions League spot this season, his job will become easier next season as support grows. The club’s fans are excited, as they should be.