When searching for a new job before the start of this season, one club challenged me to create an opposition analysis report as a PowerPoint within just five slides. I produced the report shown on the images below, adapting my work that I was producing prior to matches with the club I was working with at the time. I would try to watch the two most recent games that an opposition had played to draw my conclusions, however this was not always possible due to time constraints and availability of video in the league. In this example we only had one match tape available and so we also used our past games from the previous season to assess the opponent.
For obvious reasoning the team names and league haven't been included, instead replaced with generic club and league badges.
Firstly I look at a simple head to head comparison of the two sides to give a base appreciation of form and previous meetings. Within the key data from previous meetings section, 'lowest points scoring for full backs' refers to an internal points system that was used to quantify players impact in possession. This was key to understanding if we had achieved our game plan, with certain players receiving the ball and finding success in specific areas of the pitch.
Next, I attempt to give a concise overview of the team in possession, summarising the build, progression and finishing phases. It is important for language to be streamlined throughout a club to make messages easily comprehendible. For this specifically I am referring to calling players at the base of the midfield a #6 as other clubs I have worked at also would refer to it as a #4 instead.
When analysing structure out of possession we assess how their shape changes and what triggers are used to step out of that structure and engage the opponent in different areas of the pitch. I think that using different media formats can help to engage players and give key messages in different, digestible formats. As well as pure video sessions I believe that images like this are useful by including tactics boards with concise messages to help a player or coach's understanding of our analysis.
Of course, corners are not the only key type of set piece that should be assessed with plenty of sides having intricate free kick and throw in routines both when attacking and defending. However, due to the limit of five slides I focused on corners here to demonstrate this type of analysis.
Finally, I finish with a summary of areas of exploitation to help inform the coach's game plan, with reference to our own playing philosophy.
Overall, there are some limitations to doing a report in this way. I would not usually use data in silo, always looking to compliment it with video to demonstrate a point. This also looks at different phases of the game too distinctly, without referencing or understanding how fluid and transitional it can be. However, I think such a task can be great for ensuring that you are being clear and concise and only including actionable insight in your analysis.
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