Interesting interview with Jurgen Klopp in today's Times. The article includes the following stats which are based on last season's Champions League fixtures;
Possession per match: Barcelona, 66%. Bayern Munich, 54%. Manchester United, 54%. Arsenal, 51%. Real Madrid, 52%. Borussia Dortmund, 46%.
Pass completion: Barcelona, 83%. Bayern, 75%. Arsenal, 73%. Man Utd, 73%. Real Madrid, 71%. Dortmund, 66%.
Distance covered: Dortmund, 121 km. Bayern, 114 km. Arsenal, 112 km. Barcelona, 110 km. Man Utd, 109 km.
Lies, damn lies and statistics they say, but these numbers tell a very interesting story. I've seen Dortmund twice this year and there's no question they play at an extraordinary pace.
I wonder how we look on this basis? Be interesting. I certainly felt that we worked much, much harder than Birmingham on Saturday. Church, Jackson and the two full backs all ran themselves into the ground. Is this the way to succeed in the modern game?
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Would happily watch a Dortmund game over the boring possession and pass completion stuff.
‘I like (Arsenal’s philosophy). I love it but I cannot coach it because I am a different guy. If you watch me during the game I celebrate when we press the ball and it goes out.
‘To enjoy football you have to do this,’ pointing left-right, right-left, ‘he can win, he can win, post, goalkeeper, save — that is what I love. If, in the last four years, Barcelona were the first team I saw playing when I was four years of age — this serenity of football, they win 5-0, 6-0 — I would have played tennis.
‘It is not my sport. I don’t like winning with 80 per cent (of possession). Sorry that is not enough for me. Fighting football, not serenity football, that is what I like. What we call in German “English” — rainy day, heavy pitch, 5-5, everybody is dirty in the face and goes home and cannot play for the next four weeks.’
the game was 6-1 and lewandowski got a hat trick. I especially like mtikarian and the polish winger blazysczkowski (spelling on both). Hummels would start as CB in any world eleven i was picking.
They play a counter attacking game focussed on transitions. They fans are expectant of goals from every counter.
their transfer budget and wages are a fraction of the sky 4 and man city. Most years munich tap up their best players..gotze left last year and i expect lewandowski to join him next year (last year of contract and they refused to sell him in the summer)
I actually rate arsenals chances higher away than at home due to the styles of play both teams employ. They need scsesclny to have a blinder and be clinical on the counter.
interesting comment...are charlton the dortmund of the championship? I reckon Churchy could live with them on bleep test! But for me we dont play the pressing game so high up. We invite teams onto us confident of defending the high ball and the cross. And im not too sure how many of our goals have been lightening counter attacks.
one player who might get in their team is hamer because their keeper is awful!
But anybody who seriously wouldn't want to watch messi every week baffles me
25k lads all up for a bositerous, tribal experience but very little actual violence
Was in Dortmund for the CL final. Street party all day with lots of drinking and DJ stages and no trouble seen and everyone just walked off quiet at the end.
I will say however that there was never any spontanious outbreak of singing or chearing. Everything was orchestrated by the DJ . That was a bit strange. But then the amount and quality of the females in Footie shirts was more than a fair swap.