₦airaland Forum

TheGoodJoe:
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola insists that formations “are nothing more than phone numbers”.

The implication is that his players move from their positions so much that the stated formation they start in does not in fact matter. The players are so rarely in that shape that there is barely any need to name the formation.

The point is simple.

Pep Guardiola is not saying that formation does not matter.
He is simply telling you that a team can alter their setup during the course of a game, meaning that they can change or tweak formation.
The formation employed as the game started can be changed or tweaked as the game progresses.

Formation change or tweak is part of football tactics.

You cannot separate football formation from football tactics.

TheGoodJoe:
Why Formation Alone Doesn’t Win Matches

Many teams use the same formation yet play very differently.

That’s because what matters more is:
Player quality
Roles and instructions
Tactics in possession and out of possession
Team chemistry and understanding
Game management

This is exactly from your post and fully supports Finidi. So what is the point of posting what supports Finidi's point and try to argue against it.

Finidi is 100% right.

Formation is the basis of football. It is the foundation.
Formation provides structure, organisation and role interpretation.

You can't discuss football tactics without player setup.
There are certain offensive maneuvres that will be very hard to implement if you do not set up your players in a certain formation.

Finidi said that formation does not matter.
No one can defend Finidi.

You have added a little twist by saying formation alone does not matter. You should have left it exactly the same way it was said.

semid4lyfe:
I prefer Chelle switch the personnel. Onyeka should play Ndidi's role. Onyedika should play Onyeka's former role.

Wow, very insigniful.
When concerns are on the DM role, I believe the preferential order should be Wilfred Ndidi, Frank Onyeka, Tochukwu Nnadi and Raphael Onyedika.

Raphael Onyedika is skillful.
I feel Onyedika is not utilised fully to his potential being featured as a DM.
He has the best passing technique in the entire fold and sprays the ball like a genuine central midfielder.

Raphael Onyedika's understanding of spaces both for offensive and defensive exploitation is remarkable, the CM role is good for him.

Emmy450:
Agreed, those guys showed us way too much respect, imagine not having a shot at goal for about 80mins, and no shot on target for the whole game, i believe morrocco will be the true test for us, and if not, Senegal would be the true test. .

I didn't notice them giving us any respect.

I can remember a particular instance where the Algerian pressing was tight, we meticulously passed the ball out of their press, a passing sequence that almost led to a goal.

There was nothing the Algerians could have done.

This was a game where Riyad Mahrez's contributions were purely defensive.

This was a game where the highest rated Algerian player was their goalkeeper, according to fotmob.

Moses Simon is a good player, but he hasn't given any good reason why he is being chosen ahead of Samuel Chukwueze and Chidera Ejuke.

A lot of people have in the past labelled the present crop of Super Eagles players as average.
An opinion that i kept refuting.

I kept insisting that what we needed was a better coaching.
It is now clear for every one to see.

jihday:
In case you missed the game manage this highlight before basco posts the full highlight

Please remove this.
Not acceptable.

elyte89:
I knew dis match would be our easiest …I envisaged it would even be easier Dan d Mozambique 🇲🇿 match ,mind u ,Algeria is good o but the present style of play of eagles Dey make opponents useless

To be honest, this match wasn't our easiest.
We were just more resolute, and we have more quality.

The commentator said that "The Algerian players were only as good as they were allowed to be".
Kudos to the team.

Kog45:
Meliforme no just wan replied you..baba dey look with one kind eyes

I have given him my reply.

comodo:
If Osimhen had taken out on Ejuke that day, would anyone blame him?? Hell no, but we were cruising on the same 3 goals. The same scenario was playing out over and over again against Moz. This clip is from the same match. That's lookman with the ball and Osimhen to the left . This one worse pass Ejuke own but we dey roast the young man. Anyways wetin I know sef.
My own is, if u have a sledgehammer, just use it and crush the ant. Then other ants will fear you. SE lost its fear factor the day they started winning even minnows with only 1 goal.
Osimhen only shouted "Hey hey this is a team game!!! There is no player that will not be angry when stuff like this kept repeating itself

Please tell them.

lbrichman2:
Beautifully written

Thank you.

forgiveness:
The heatmap is showing Osimhen roaming the midfield and defence while Akor stayed in a the target man when he does so.

The Center Forward is usually the target man, and occupies the more central areas which places him in a better position at goalscoring.
The heatmap reveal Osimhen occupying the more central areas.

Osimhen and Akor may not track back at the same time for tactical reasons, but whenever the team is attacking with the ball, Osimhen runs into space primarily the central areas waiting for a pass, revealing that he is the target man.

forgiveness:
Your own insinuating. Far from what the coach deployed so far. That's 2 target man.

The image below is a heatmap showing Osimhen occupying a more central position and Akor roaming wider positions.

Mujtahida:
E come be like say Ejuke no dey this team. Meliforme what's happening?

I am not the coach, but his time will come whenever the coach deems it fit.

forgiveness:
How can claim Osimhen is the target man in an obvious 4-3-1-2 formation? What is Akor role in this formation?

Auxillary (helper) striker.

elyte89:
Ejuke has played his last match as far as chelle is concerned…he was lackadaisical in d last game against Tunisia 🇹🇳 when he was introduced after 70 something minutes ,he couldn’t track back to support osayi ,playing as if he has been on d pitch since first half …he was too poor

Ejuke couldn't track back to help Osayi?
Please don't make this error in your observation as this can mar your pedigree as a house coach.

I only responded to this post because it's you.

The image below reveals Ejuke's work in helping out the defence.
The orange circle represents a successful tackle he made right on Osayi's position.
The green circles represents defensive clearances.
While the greener circle shows ball recovery.

The second image shows Ejuke's heatmap.
Does that heatmap reveal a player that wasn't tracking back?

You of all people should have an eye for these things, or at least make researches before coming out to make conclusion.

My observations on Eric Chelle's tactics

Player movements and transitions
To me, this is the most salient improvement in how we conduct our plays. We now move in sync, players spot and run into open spaces as their awareness of space is now on the increase, players are now more open to receive passes ensuring a faster transition into attack.

Tweaks in tactical formations
Eric Chelle has deployed a 4-3-1-2, a 4-1-2-1-2, and a flat 4-4-2 in the four matches that he has overseen so far.
In the match against Tanzania and Mozambique he deployed a 4-3-1-2, and in the matches against Tunisia and Uganda, he utilised a 4-1-2-1-2 and a 4-4-2 respectively.

Tweaks in personnel deployments
It appears Eric Chelle's initial idea was to deploy two wingers who can play as midfielders on the left and right midfield respectively as seen in the first match against Tanzania where Iwobi and Chukwueze started in those flanks, and also in the match against Uganda where Moses Simon and Samuel Chukwueze started in those flanks as well. The use of Frank Onyeka on the right midfield was also an important tweak as Frank Onyeka has been a right winger before his conversion to a DM. The use of Frank Onyeka has given Iwobi the freedom to roam more offensive areas of the pitch.

Ingenious discoveries and deployment of players
Ademola Lookman broke into limelight playing as a secondary striker, but playing behind two strikers as a #10 is the best of his deployments. It has given him the freedom to roam, shoot and create chances.

Alex lwobi is a player that can play and has played in almost all positions in the field of play, but his strengths lie more in possession football, stability and creativity. Deploying Iwobi deeper to help bulld and distribute play, making pre-assists from a deeper postion and making assists from a more offensive position is an ingenious intervention.

chrisooblog:
Yeah, I can see how Lookman telling Osimhen he had scored 2 goals added petrol to the fire, but again these are things that should have been sorted in the dressing room and not the field of play.

Situations like that requires immediate addressing, and not in the dressing room after all the damage has been done.

codemaniacs:
Lookman was right..

even Ndidi gave Osimhen the "calm down" touch but Lookman said it with his mouth.

they are playing for the S.E and were already leading so let them take their chances..

Mikel for the S.E took his chances while Mikel in Chelsea only scored 1 premier league goal and always passed the ball to other players and played with extreme care and the " I must not mess up " mentality..

when they get back to their clubs they will revert back to their not taking chances mentality which leads to most of them not having a good goals record like Mikel ..

Osimhen has superiority complex.

Because they were leading, teamwork should be thrown out of the window.
Lookman was wrong. Teamwork should be promoted over isolated performances.
What if team cooperation helps them score more goals, further consolidating their hold of the game.

Mikel in Chelsea should have left his role as a DM and try scoring more goals, and let's see how Chelsea would have fared.

codemaniacs:
So how was he meant to handle it

in a family, when siblings are having an argument the first words that will come to mind is "calm down" or "relax"..

it is Osimhen that did not handle it well..

When emotions are high, asking questions like "what is the problem?" works better than "calm down" or "relax". Even when "calm down" works, you can still notice heavy breathing, and a certain suppression of feelings that may not work.

Empathy demands that you try to understand what the person is complaining about, a problem shared is a problem half solved. Empathy demands that you share in the person's sorrow and then address the problem (if you can).

Lookman was wrong. Football is team sports.

lbrichman2:
You know book

Thank you.

Mujtahida:
You don't understand why Lookman told Osimhen to calm down. He felt guilty because he too did what Bruno did.

It's a good thing Ademola stood up to Victor. Yes, na men all of them be. People like that Ademola who are quiet are sometimes also stubborn oo.

Like Mikel said, I like the fire. It shows our players are madly driven to get something out of this Afcon. They are not running like a Rolls Royce, they are moving like HOWO Truck

Lookman did not handle the situation the right way.

Kog45:
1.Lookman was leaning towards glory hunting?pls tell us how.

2.Lookman telling Osimhen to calm down is a sin abi for yelling at Bruno...the whole thing happened in 63 minutes if am right.

3.Osimhen emphasis on team play and the same team play gave him two goals already within 63 minutes of play right?

4.Lookman words "calm down"lacked compassion and real comfort,so he should have said Bruno is stupid abi?

Really surprised you're trying to blame Lookman on this,pls do you really played this game on the street or you in school cuz football is 90 minutes movements and a lot happening within that minutes....do you know the meaning of having captain in a team?is for player to pass their messages on the field,simple Osimhen should have called Ndidi or on his own talk politely to Bruno or do we say Bruno too is going for personal glory.

Well,we have game against Algeria, things have been resolved,hope to see goals and assists from both cuz they're vital to the team so far

1. Osimhen was emphasizing teamwork, Lookman was like "You have scored two, allow others hunt for their own glory."
Victor was insinuating that the person in a better position should be the person to shoot. Again, the main striker's primary role is to shoot at goal. In a team every component has a main role. If Osimhen who is the target man finds himself in a position to shoot, and demands for the ball, he should be given the ball. Football is a team sports.

2. The best way to calm a person that is hurting is to address whatever it is, that is causing his pain, not to question or dismiss his reasons for feeling pain. Ademola should have tried to understand Osimhen's grouse and address it before confronting him to calm down. That Osimhen is already on two goals is not a good reason to jettison team play. Is Lookman supporting chaos?

3. Should we throw teamplay out of the window because it is the 63rd minute and Osimhen is on two goals.
I think you should reexamine the situation and consider thoroughly your stand.

4. Lookman's words lacked compassion. It lacked empathy because it did not attend to Osimhen's hurt feelings. Was there any substance in Osimhen's complaint? Why should it be dismissed under reason that the he is already on two goals. The focal point is teamwork not individual performance.

Lookman should have condemned Bruno's act expressing his sympathy and solidarity with the team not insinuating that Osimhen should not have complained since he is already on two goals. How does that make sense? Football is teamwork pass the ball when you are supposed to.


I don't normally tell a hurting person to calm down first of all. Instead i try to discern the source of his hurt and then exploit ways to address the cause of the upset, afterwards, that is when "calm down" will work.

Regarding Osimhen and Lookman's saga

Lookman's behaviour towards Osimhen is like administering Paracetamol (an analgesic) as a cure for Malaria.

Lookman should have joined in the cautioning of Bruno and the entire team, instead of providing a dissent making it look like Osimhen doesn't know what he is saying.

Lookman did not attack the real problem. This made Osimhen more upset.

Osimhen's emphasis was on teamplay. Lookman's was leaning towards glory hunting.
The number of goals Osimhen has scored should not banish teamplay.

Lookman's words lacked compassion and real comfort.
He is more deserving of the stick.

I believe that every professional should be educated in the principles of conflict resolution, so that they can settle conflicts without exacerbating it.

[quote author=ChrisKels post=138056617]Match never even start ooh, Mr Passion go dey fight opponent's goalkeeper. We have to tell this boy the truth. Nna gi needs total reorientation because he too do.

ECOWAS Ragnar Lothbrok

Peace is NEVER an option pic.twitter.com/RUJOvdJf4E

— SIR CHUCHO 🎖️ (@SirChucho) January 7, 2026

wins are psychological.
Psychological dominance is key.

Sometimes people who are born winners may be oblivious of the facts that make the win.
Osimhen needs no orientation. He is getting it right in football.

In that particular scene, that goalkeeper was wrong.

charlesemeka85:
Lookman wasn’t deployed as a 10 by Chelle but as a false 9/Auxilliary striker who make runs to the middle when the 2 deployed strikers (Akor and Osimhen) are down on the flanks

Rest the agenda abeg

I believe you need more information regarding playmaking and the attacking midfield.

I made a post years back suggesting that Ademola Lookman should be deployed as a No 10.
I have been looking for that post in the myriad of posts that I have made on this thread.

Meliforme:
I went cold with shivers as i read what you wrote.
"Those guys were creating goals from next to nothing", was it for me.
I went cold because i did not know that someone can make those kind of assertions.

I said it earlier that Victor Moses basked and benefitted from the services of Mikel Obi and Ogenyi Onazi. He profited from a better midfield, and here you are saying they create goals from nothing, and even included Ighalo of all people.

Ighalo is yet to become the player Osimhen is.
Ejuke and Chukwueze are class above Victor Moses when emphasis is on wing forward play.
We have now a superior attacking caste.

Let us see what a midfield that has Ndidi, Frank, Iwobi and hopefully Raphael Onyedika will bring

I said this some years back.

I would like to see a midfield that has Akinsanmiro, Ndidi, and Iwobi. Or Onyedika, Ndidi, Iwobi.

FiveFootNinja:
Oboy the way these small teams dey rush big teams for this knockout stage. Hmm. I know how shaky we can be at the back o. Make Mozambique no go wipe us wetin no good. We need to control the pace of that game because Mozambique go wan dey form speedsters on the ball.

Their rushing will be very good.
Their highline will be fantastic.
We will exploit through balls for Osimhen to finish off

Why is Akinsanmiro not in the starting line up.
FDB starting ahead of Akin has nothing to do with footballing reasons, except Akin is not fully fit.