Europa League and Conference draws, the Italians' opponents in the X-ray

Milan, 23 February 2024 – It ended in Nyon on draw of the eighths of Europe e Conference League. Bittersweet draw for the Italians in the second continental competition, with the Milan who smiles since he avoided it Liverpool e Bayern Leverkusen, fishing instead Slavia Prague much more affordable. For Atalanta of Gasperini we return to the past, or rather to the group: the opponent will be the Sporting Lisbona. Whoever has a more difficult life will be there Rome who will face off against the Brighton & Hove Albion di De Serve in a very Italian challenge. In the Conference League, Fiorentina, who did not play in the round of 32 as they had finished the group in first place, lost Maccabi Haifa as the top seed. Let's analyze the four challengers of the Italians, seeing the typical formation, strong points, but also vulnerabilities, starting from those in the Europa League.

Roma-Brighton, De Zerbi against De Rossi

The first leg at the Olympic Stadium is scheduled for March 7th, the return leg a week later in the den of the seagulls. Brighton & Hove Albion are currently seventh in Prime minister League, with 38 points in 25 games and after a period of slight inflection he returned to grinding football, winning and having fun in full style De Zerbi ball as they call it across the Channel. To summarize the Seagulls' game, just go back to the great man's words Gary lineker, now BBC pundit: "Brighton play like Brazil." This is the summary of the football proposed by the former Sassuolo coach's team which, as in the days of Reggio Emilia, always proposes the 4-2-3-1 but the initial formation is only a way to translate the players on the pitch into graphics, given that from the first second of the match it loses almost all meaning. The team changes drastically from when they attack to when they find themselves in the non-possession phase. There maneuver offensive è thrust a lot from the two full-backs Lamptey e Estupinan, while of the two midfielders Gross is the one who most frequently lowers himself to give an initial pass to beat the opponent's pressing. And that is one of Brighton's secrets, the players adapt very well to the pressure of their opponents: the higher it is, the more vertical the development of the action will be, while if there is a wait-and-see team in front the maneuver will become more enveloping. Mix of young talent and players who already know the Premier League pitches (and European stages) very well: the former Arsenal Danny Welbeck e Adam Lallana They are playing one of the best seasons of their careers despite being both over thirty. Then the speed and creativity of players like Anshu Fati, Joao Pedro (Now injured, expected to return at the end of March, top scorer of the group stage with 6 goals) and above all the new star Kaoru Mythoma. The Japanese, who often starts from the left, is very good at aiming and jumping the man thanks to his excellent speed and ability in 1vs1, he is also very good at using his left foot, as he is a natural right-footed player. Points critical of Brighton? Estupinan and Lamptey, the two full-backs, can in some situations make mistakes in the defensive phase, in particular in terms of readings; furthermore, in almost all the games Brighton have lost this season when the outbursts of the wingers are contained and orderly and careful defensive pressure is applied, ball possession becomes sterile and an end in itself.

Education type (4-2-3-1): Verbruggen; Lamptey, van Hecke, Dunk, Estupinan; Gross, Gilmour; Goodnight, Lallana, Mitoma; Joao Pedro (Welbeck)

"You again, but shouldn't we have seen each other again?": Atalanta finds Sporting Lisbon again

In the two matches of group D of this Europe League, Atalanta of Gasperini had closed the double match against the Portuguese with a victory (1-2 in Lisbon) and a draw (1-1 in Bergamo). Now, for the round of XNUMX, the two teams will face each other again: the first leg Lisbon on March 5 (early given Benfica's presence in the round of XNUMX), while the Italian team will play the return leg at home a week later. On the one hand, the double comparison in the group gave the possibility to Gasperini to study the strengths and weaknesses of the opponents as best as possible, but also on the other side Ruben Amorim it is no less. To analyze the opponents of the Bergamo team, let's take a look at the two matches of the group: Sporting builds without fear starting from the 3 behind with the former Lecce Morten Hjulmand fixed in the central area to provide the first support. Then we think about the insertions of the midfield players, but also of the two wingers Paulinho and Pedro Goncalves. Even the center forward gyokeres he alternates forward runs with moments in which he shortens low to dictate a line and find constant superiority between the midfield and the opposing midfield. While on the one hand getting to the edge of the opponent's area isn't too complicated for the green and whites, in the event of a lost ball, large spaces open up especially in the lanes and if Hjulmand-Morita are unable to cover at their best, Atalanta will always have supernumerary situations in attack.

Education type (3-4-3): Adan; Reis, Inacio, Diomande; Santos, Mortia, Hjulmand, Ivan Fresneda; Pedro Goncalves, Gyokeres, Paulinho

Milan, beware of underestimating Slavia Prague

Of the three teams in the Europa League, the luckiest draw certainly fell to Milan who will find themselves playing the round of 16 against them Slavia Prague (went to Milan). The honorary vice-president of the Rossoneri, franc baresi, commented: "We must not underestimate Slavia Prague, they had a very important group stage against Roma. On the international field we must have respect for everyone". the team of Jindrich Trpisovsky finished in first place in group G, losing only one of the six matches played, against Roma in the first leg 2-0. Slavia, who are second in the league with 52 points after 21 matchdays (-4 behind the other Prague team, Sparta), is a team that, aware of its limitations, when facing more talented teams leaves the ball to the opponents to try to hit on the counterattack by taking advantage of the speed of external. The starting formation is a 3-4-3, where the two wingers Carnival (who could also act as a wingman, with Doudera as right winger) e Wire they have the arduous task of both following the offensive maneuver and falling back acting as full-backs to complete a 5-man unit if necessary. Up front the weight of the attack is almost entirely on the shoulders of the duo Jurecka - Chytil.

Education type (3-4-3): Mandous, Masopust, Ogbu, Holes; Doudera, Zafeiris, Dorley, Boril; Provod, Chytil, Jurecka

There is Maccabi Haifa for the viola

Favorable draw also for the Fiorentina that catches the Israelis of the Maccabi Haifa. The team of Italian, who were seeded in the draw for having won their group, avoid the bogeyman Ajax, the mangy Olympiacos and the Belgian team Union Saint-Gilloise. In the championship Maccabi Haifa is first with 49 points collected in 22 matches (15 wins, 5 draws and 2 defeats, tied with Maccabi Tel Aviv), while in the Europa League they finished in third place in Group F and in the Conference League play-offs eliminated Gent by winning the home match 1-0 and then drawing the return match in Belgium 1-1. The team of Messay Dego at home it is one of the strongest squads, but when you leave the borders all the technical limits emerge. In the European field the ideas are very clear: vertical construction, without disdaining launches, towards Pierrot e Khalaili, low defense and very compact lines. In short, we expect a team that will play with the classic lock and restart and that will have very few opportunities to do damage. What is certain is that if Fiorentina were to concede a goal and, possibly, go behind in the score, finding a hole in the opponents' five-man line could be even more complicated. The Viola start with all the odds, that's for sure, but as we've already seen a few times this season, Fiorentina's worst opponent is Fiorentina themselves.

Education type (5-3-2): Keouf; Feingold, Sudngren, Seck, Gershon, Saief; Mohamed, Chow, Refaelov; Khalaili, Pierrot.