Arsenal Succumb To In-Your-Face Dortmund

The hipster’s dream and a pressing machine; Dortmund find themselves looking to go one better on last year’s runners-up spot and just as Jurgen Klopp prophesised last season, the Germans are becoming the kings of pressure football.

“We are building a new team, a pressing machine,” were the words that rang from the innovative coach’s mouth after tasting defeat to domestic rivals Bayern Munich last May. Against Arsenal they showed the whole of Europe just what he meant by that statement and what to expect if they come across this new footballing powerhouse.

Dortmund started with a narrow, but high, defensive line that allowed Kevin Großkreutz room to venture forward down the right side of the pitch. His relationship with Jacub B?aszczykowski was key as the pair harried the Arsenal team, forcing them into holding possession in their own half. With Dortmund pressing so hard it seemed inevitable that a mistake would come and when it did it showed the importance of Klopp’s high-pressure tactics. Rather than losing the ball near the half-way line like against less enthusiastic teams,Aaron Ramsey conceded possession on the edge of his box – an error that led directly to the opening goal.

You can compare Arsenal’s action areas against Dortmund to the ones they posted in their victory over Napoli. Against the Italian side, Wenger’s men controlled the game much further up the pitch and even though possession stats are similar in the two games (58% to 55%) it’s the areas they had the ball that differed the results.

The high defensive line Dortmund played was impenetrable without the pace of the injured Theo Walcottand with the Sven Bender/Nuri Sahin partnership guarding the two centre back’s it was an impossible task for Arsenal to break through.

A lot of the Gunners early play came through the middle without the width of Walcott and despite Santi Cazorla giving them a more attacking option when he came on, many fans will feel he should have started the game instead of Jack Wilshere.

Topping the interceptions table in the Champions League yesterday, Dortmund once again showed another key aspect of Klopp’s pressing style. The positional play between the two holding midfielders – Bender and Sahin – is exceptional and cuts out attacks at key moments that allow them to hit the opposition on the break. The midfield duo made 10 of the side’s interceptions as well as completing 75% of the tackles they attempted (3/4).

With Arsenal starting with no natural wide players in the attacking areas it’s no wonder that Bender and Sahin bossed the game – Wilshere’s heat map showing just how much Dortmund’s dynamic duo neutralised Arsenal’s midfield.

These interceptions and Dortmund’s overall pressure play disrupted Arsenal’s usual passing style, resulting in a drop of 3% in from their usual pass completion percentage. It forced the home side to switch their attacking play down the right, as they found no luck in the centre, resulting in only 1 key pass coming from a central area in the entire match. The introduction of Cazorla saw Mesut Ozil switch to the right where they finally found a solution to Dortmund’s plan, with four of Arsenal’s key passes coming after the 60th minute when Cazorla was brought on.

This tactical epiphany came a little too late for Arsene Wenger though, and he was dealt a killer blow as his side began to push further into Dortmund’s half. Just another asset of the German club’s glorious system is their ability to counter-attack if they get trapped in their own half. Last night was a perfect example, as Großkreutz found himself charging forward to cross to the controversial figure of Robert Lewandowski. In a flash Arsenal again found themselves trailing to another asset of Dortmund’s revolutionary system; the deadly counter-attack, once the key to Arsenal’s gold, left them feeling the bitter taste of defeat for the first time in 11 games.

Wenger isn’t the first and won’t be the last manager to fall under the spell of Klopp’s imposing men, as the German manager continues his quest to bring the Champions League trophy back to Dortmund.