Nuno Espírito Santo

[Gary Onedaysoon]

Let's hope our new MDOF gets things moving. He is the only reason I'm still optimistic things will happen this summer.

So where does Paratici's remit start and end re. outgoing players? Does it go as far as setting the selling price?

Paratici and Nuno could identify those players surplus to requirements but if Levy puts an unrealistic price of their sale, they're not going anywhere.

 

[stupops]

Meanwhile...

https://twitter.com/x/status/1410536634349666314

 

[stupops]

So where does Paratici's remit start and end re. outgoing players? Does it go as far as setting the selling price?

Paratici and Nuno could identify those players surplus to requirements but if Levy puts an unrealistic price of their sale, they're not going anywhere.

I said yesterday, if we are not realistic we will.land up with 6 or 7 Danny Roses on the spare training pitch.

 

[Departed]

This has the makings of a Pochettino appointment.

Only this time we have an MD of Football and Money.

How can you not be optimistic?

 

[muttley]

So where does Paratici's remit start and end re. outgoing players? Does it go as far as setting the selling price?

Paratici and Nuno could identify those players surplus to requirements but if Levy puts an unrealistic price of their sale, they're not going anywhere.

They will look at the bigger picture. Football finance means that you can have tiny intangible assets on the balance sheet like Kane and sell them big for huge profit. Others like Ndombele will be amortised over the life of their contract based on the high transfer value, and therefore could easy post a loss on the P&L if we sell below their value.

So if we sell Kane, Winks, Dier and Dele in one summer, Levy will have a heart attack about how much tax he has to pay on the profits. Therefore we should expect a blended approach of profits and losses on players. Ex might know more, but I'm not sure there are many players that give us a potential loss. Most are reasonably amortised on the BS and paid for in the P&L.

As you'd expect with Levy, we're in good shape but the only thing I worry about is the procrastination effect that we see all the time.

 

[stupops]

They will look at the bigger picture. Football finance means that you can have tiny intangible assets on the balance sheet like Kane and sell them big for huge profit. Others like Ndombele will be amortised over the life of their contract based on the high transfer value, and therefore could easy post a loss on the P&L if we sell below their value.

So if we sell Kane, Winks, Dier and Dele in one summer, Levy will have a heart attack about how much tax he has to pay on the profits. Therefore we should expect a blended approach of profits and losses on players. Ex might know more, but I'm not sure there are many players that give us a potential loss. Most are reasonably amortised on the BS and paid for in the P&L.

As you'd expect with Levy, we're in good shape but the only thing I worry about is the procrastination effect that we see all the time.

And if players are happy to sit on their arses for a year if they choose.

 

[Departed]

We are transitioning our management structure, as I have said before. the first manager may be a sacrificial appointment on our road to the new structure.

Whatever the case may be, he has taken up the challenge and has a great opportunity.

The key to this whole situation will be Levy. He must GTFOOTW.

Nuno is a bright and positive character. The sun is rising on his career.

He's got my backing.

 

[Spursex]

We are transitioning our management structure, as I have said before. the first manager may be a sacrificial appointment on our road to the new structure.

Whatever the case may be, he has taken up the challenge and has a great opportunity.

The key to this whole situation will be Levy. He must GTFOOTW.

Nuno is a bright and positive character. The sun is rising on his career.

He's got my backing.

always love your positivity.

 

[meee93]

"revert back to our core DNA of playing attacking, entertaining football" - what a load of management guff. Name a club that doesn't say that to their fans. Literally every fan group when they talk about what they want the manager to do say, "I want the club to play football in the *insert club name* way". I can't believe that so many fans bought into Levy's "Tottenham DNA" statement.

Nuno is a pragmatic coach and has played played some good football at wolves. He isn't this Jose style of coach that people seem to be pushing. Option 2 for me.

 

[Departed]

"revert back to our core DNA of playing attacking, entertaining football" - what a load of management guff. Name a club that doesn't say that to their fans. Literally every fan group when they talk about what they want the manager to do say, "I want the club to play football in the *insert club name* way". I can't believe that so many fans bought into Levy's "Tottenham DNA" statement.

Nuno is a pragmatic coach and has played played some good football at wolves. He isn't this Jose style of coach that people seem to be pushing. Option 2 for me.

Here's a better expression: Just win baby!

 

[RichmondSpur]

I think he will do OK providing we have a replacement in place for Harry.
I don't think Son is the answer for an entire season.
Did I read Vini has left?
We are really lacking up top if that's the case.
He will do OK. The fans have realised how far we have fallen so we have little option than to get behind the guy IMHO.

Vinicius as a striker option is what Lamela is to AM's not good enough. We have enough bang-average players at the club already.

 

[USAFSPURS]

If given a chance...and support from the DOF...he will be fine. Now we just need some luck as well...(avoiding crap timing injuries...etc...)

Either way, 5-6th this season should be the target if possible.

 

[Departed]

Number 4 needs to be split.

 

[RichmondSpur]

I'm intrigued to see what formation and style he goes with.

What players will fit his philosophy. He seems to like players that keep possession so I'm hoping that ends Aurier and Sissoko very quickly.

I'll be intrigued to see if Alli is part of that poor ball retention discharge. If he isn't can Nuno cure his amateurish habit of falling over and giving the ball away?

 

[Real Deal]

This has the makings of a Pochettino appointment.

Only this time we have an MD of Football and Money.

How can you not be optimistic?

Optimism is fine, but there are already rumours Levy is still interfering.

Time will tell but I'm not convinced things have changed.

 

[Real Deal]

I'll be intrigued to see if Alli is part of that poor ball retention discharge. If he isn't can Nuno cure his amateurish habit of falling over and giving the ball away?

At this stage I really don't have a clue who Nuno will rate or not.

I'm sure he will rate Hugo, Doherty, Reggie, Son and Kane. After that impossible to say.

 

[Departed]

Optimism is fine, but there are already rumours Levy is still interfering.

Time will tell but I'm not convinced things have changed.

That's fair. But if he doesn't GTFOOTW then:

 

[Departed]

Series
Tactical Philosophy: Nuno Espirito Santo





Published
July 29, 2015
















While this website has made its name focusing on the lesser known youth of this beautiful sport, and combined it with a tinge of tactical flavour meant for the football enthusiast, we found a large gap to be exploited in terms of combining the two. This mini-series thus focuses on young managers (below the age of 45) and their tactical philosophies, deriving what got them here and where they could go. In this piece, Hamoudi Fayad studies the eccentric manager who is leading Valencia, Nuno Espirito Santo.
Background
The whistle is blown. The stadium erupts. The gentleman jumps into the air, fist pumping, before passionately embracing his assistant. The bald, bronze-skinned tactician pointed at the fans with his utmost passion. His actions resembled a thanking feeling, appreciation for the moments of success, a token of unity and respect between himself and the Valencianistes. The feeling is grasped – the glory days are slowly returning to the fierce and vociferous Mestalla, an arena now overwhelmed by the overzealous enthusiasm generated through the voices of more than 50,000 fiery supporters.
The wrath of Real Madrid has worn out, with Isco’s downhearted face the epitome of their reception towards a masterclass.
July 4th, 2014
“It was a bad idea to get rid of Pizzi before the transfer window” mentioned a displeased Paco, before wishing good luck to Nuno. Another fan calmly highlighted the fact that Valencia never “learnt from their mistake”. Jorge Mendes’s – world football’s best agent – shenanigans, were up to no good once again, of course; if we take the Valencianista perspective at the time. “You have committed an injustice with Pizzi, not before you bowed down before Mendes”, claimed a disappointed supporter. A couple of more opinions, posing the question: “Who is, Nuno Espirito Santo?”

The enigmatic character to save Valencia, the renowned underdogs of the early 21st century from deleterious downfall is Nuno Espirito Santo. More than 20 points separated Los Che and the infamous competition that saw their very own demise in two consecutive finals. The gentleman, with an almost perfectly trimmed grayish beard hails from the Portuguese-speaking archipelago of Sao Tome and Principe. Little did the Valencia faithful, in fact Spanish La Liga fan base, know what type of wave was about to hit them.
Standing at 1.88m tall, with a bulky chest – well formed since his retirement as a largely backup journeyman goalkeeper in Portugal – his eyes signalled passion and vigour. His body movement sent a message no different, with his debut match signifying his enthusiasm as Lucas Orban scored Valencia’s maiden league goal under Nuno; a late equaliser against Sevilla.
“Our football will be organized, balanced and with fight”, Nuno claimed to the press on his first day out. An indifferent stint at Rio Ave backed up by a Taca De Portugal Final appearance – thus qualifying for the 2014-15 Europa League – saw hipsters alike praise the action taken by Valencia’s new board of directors headed by Singaporean businessman Peter Lim. Nuno disclosed his thoughts on more sophisticated issues that wouldn’t be solved swiftly: the fans. “The fans will be proud. I believe in people.”
It is no mere coincidence that Sao Tome and Principe’s motto is “Unity, Discipline and Hard Work”, revealing the embodiment of Nuno’s philosophy to be applied at the Valencia that led to the ultimate goal: “…the Champions League, and I am convinced we will be there.” Jorge Mendes may have well just discovered another star in the making.
Tactical Philosophy
Shape – How does Nuno set his team out?
Versatility: Nuno Santo sets up his starting XI with either of these 5 shapes [4-2-3-1; 4-3-3; 4-4-2; 3-5-2; 4-1-3-2 – the latter used for a single game] based on availability, suitability and capability. “The versatility of the squad can help us achieve what we want,” assured Nuno after the historic defeat of Real Madrid at the Mestalla.
For clarification, the 3-5-2 was brought in for a couple of games against Eibar and Real Madrid (and a set of other games in the Copa Del Rey) possibly looking at accommodating the incoming quality in the form of Enzo Perez. However, with Jose Gaya’s suspension and Nuno’s reluctance to play Lucas Orban as a wing back due to Piatti’s month-long injury, Valencia were (in essence) forced to shuffle with the tactical system. I say in essence due to the fact that Valencia’s supporters were baffled with the amount of tactical changes seen under Nuno; equalling to five (and more, in-game) different systems of play in the space of 23 games. “Nuno has not opted for any scheme [shape], but it is not considered important. It is the style. According to him, the only thing that keeps you alive in the game is the level of play no matter the distribution of players on the pitch”, claimed a writer from SuperDeporte.es before adding a phrase from Nuno emphasising that the “level of play is the most important”.
Moving onto the 3-5-2: the contrast in quality between the teams just mentioned is vast, therefore we will begin the investigation of Nuno’s train of thought through games and decisions akin to these. In Eibar, you have an ambitious team from the autonomous Basque county punching above their weight while in Real Madrid, you have the most successful European team who were then on a 22-game win streak.
A gritty, hard-fought 1-0 win led by a Derek Boateng mistake signalled the end of the game regardless of the time on the clock. Eibar had just over an hour to balance the outcome however with a team performance provided by the newly-shaped Valencia defence and a regular hard-working, tenacious job up front from Sofiane Feghouli and Paco Alcacer, Valencia didn’t need to worry. Up next, Real Madrid. Nuno opted for the now sacrosanct 3-5-2 with Enzo Perez superseding the promising Rodrigo De Paul. Andre Gomes, Valencia’s prime creative outlet moved into the role behind the strikers whereas Perez partnered Javi Fuego.

 

[Departed]

Build-Up

3-5-2 On-Ball Dynamics

Valencia build up play through Otamendi, the central defender in the back 3. Perez sticks to his left, offering an option and keeping a 2nd line overload as the attacking 3 of Real Madrid (Bale, Ronaldo, Benzema) specifically the wingers, stuck to their opposing centre back.



In this situation, Otamendi is bereft of passing options. Ronaldo positions himself intelligently, preventing a pass towards Dani Parejo. Perez’s positioning in this situation did no good, as Benzema blocked the possibility for any connection to occur. A possible reply to this would be for Perez to drop deeper, vacate the space and allow Andre Gomes to receive in between the lines. In Chess, this is called a discovered attack where you move your own piece out of the way in preparation for an attack on the opposing piece positioned on the matching file. Nevertheless, the versatility of this Valencia team was perceptible in 1) Otamendi’s long passing ability 2) Negredo/Alcacer’s aerial ability 3) Negredo/Alcacer’s capability to link up and receive the ball with their back to goal.



In another such attack, Alcacer won the header off of Otamendi’s pass, ultimately losing out on the lose ball to Pepe. Valencia are hit on the counter attack, with counter pressing from the nearest 3 on Pepe (Alcacer, Gomes, Gaya) however he was able to bypass the press with a ball in to Bale, who enjoyed qualitative superiority over Orban. Valencia re-shape with a back 4, Perez dropping into the defensive line but showing the merits of such a high-risk tactic (Valencia’s wing backs acted as wingers as shown above) where Enzo Perez could proactively press the ball-carrier while having 3 defenders to provide support.

The post-Perez situation sees Dani Parejo drop slowly into the RCB zone to prevent Benzema making a run in behind as Otamendi characteristically presses Ronaldo on the ball. Mustafi moves behind him and the back 3 shape is kept intact.

Valencia’s ability to play through the central midfield trio of Gomes, Perez and Dani Parejo coupled with the energy of Barragan and the technical ability of Gaya/Piatti is an indicator of their universal capabilities. Thus, looking at Nuno’s philosophy merely from an on-ball sense from their 3-5-2 shape, brings us to the conclusion that there are varied ways of play through direct passes from the back 3, lung-bustling runs from the wing-backs, circulating ability of Perez and Parejo with the final ball provided by the promising creative outlet Andre Gomes.


Andre Gomes slips in a through ball to Dani Parejo, who’s lack of pace hinders his ability to receive the ball in space.

 

[Departed]

Form #1 of Attacking – Crossing

Gaya is proficient in this aspect, with 83% (5/6) of his assists coming from crosses. The technique he places on his crosses is different to many other full backs. Gaya possesses a knack of curling his cross, a decoy as his accuracy while curving the ball is an example of efficient crossing – the irony there being that crosses are one of the most inefficient uses of the ball in football.

Once the ball curves on the outside, the striker can get on the end of it by positioning himself – something Negredo does well – in the centre of the box or at the far post. Gaya can alternate with his crosses too, adding dip to their landing thus feigning the opposition.

This is a top example of a strong aspect from Nuno’s strategy, as he makes use of the wings extremely well. Feghouli, Piatti and Barragan aid in this section too.

Form #2 – Combination Play

Dani Parejo is the man here. Almost always involved in these situations, he is the main man for Valencia in the centre because he brings what Javi Fuego (defensive work) and Andre Gomes (creativity) together, to a lesser extent. His long shots are a brilliant asset towards Nuno’s teams’ ability to break down the tight defences in the La Liga.

As mentioned before, most of Valencia’s play comes down the wings:



This, once again, moves in Nuno’s favour. On the flanks, you only have a 180-degree turning possibility compared to 360 in the half space or the center. 1) Use of the flanks suggests that Nuno’s players are effective in tight spaces 2) The image above counts the half spaces as the flank, therefore the half space is also a key factor in Valencia’s attacking. Breaking all vertical and horizontal lines, as shown in the picture of Negredo receiving in that area against Real Madrid.

Parejo Combination play goal:

Here is the combination Valencia create on the flanks, especially the left:


Piatti moves towards the ball consequently dragging a player into the centre leading to Gaya preparing for a run while Parejo is there for support.


Parejo receives the ball and plays it in the channel to Gaya, who receives it in space. The referee brings the move to an end as Piatti is fouled.



The first photo is another indicator of Valencia’s long ball ability, as Paco Alcacer draws Miranda – who was on the end of a poor game after Nuno targeted him specifically – out, jumping for the header yet missing out on it. Andre Gomes is seen drifting into the space behind it, and the photo to the right is a blurry image of Alcacer receiving and back-heeling the ball into Andre Gomes’ way who easily dribbles past and scores. Various aspects of Valencia’s attacking play.

It is important to take note of the fact that it was Miranda who scored the own goal when Valencia targeted him for the first goal (through a long ball at the goalkeeper who was tricked by Piatti’s run) and the third goal was scored from a corner kick by Otamendi.