Vincente del Bosque 2001-2002 Tactic with Real Madrid | FM23

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Here’s Vincente del Bosque 2001-2002 tactic at Madrid. The year 2002, was a significant one for Real Madrid. Under the management of Vicente del Bosque, the team achieved a historic milestone by winning the UEFA Champions League for the ninth time in the club’s history. Even though they had world superstars like Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, Raúl, and Luís Figo, they narrowly lost the Laliga to Rafa Benitez’s Valencia.

With that being pointed out, let’s get into the details of the tactical replica that I created with the German team, Freiburg. You don’t need any extra database to use the tactic, but you can always try.

Vincente del Bosque 2001-2002 Tactic | Setup

In Possession

The build-up play from behind wasn’t expected back in 2002, therefore Real Madrid didn’t apply that to their style. They mostly went direct from a goal kick.

In terms of approach play, They focus their plays mainly through the sides of the pitch, more than central areas. del Bosque’s men did use shorter passes to control possession, and their tempo while circulating the ball was higher. They prioritize overlaps rather than underlaps, on both sides of the field while in the final third.

In Transition

The team engaged in a fairly wide attacking width, during the transition. When Los Blancos won the ball on the break, they proceeded with counterattacks, their counterattacks were fluid due to their shorter passing directness – they occasionally use direct counterattacks. In the final third, they could shoot from a distance often, work the ball into the box or hit early crosses.

When Real Madrid’s men lost possession in the opponent’s half, they would counter-press to win back possession quickly. Lastly, The goalkeeper either distributes quickly or slows the pace down, and could distribute the ball with any distribution method.

Out Of Possession

In terms of their pressing approach, Los Blancos tended to press when the opponents reached their high press line of engagement, with a more often pressing intensity. When the opponents were in possession of the ball in their own half, Madrid’s defensive line was higher.

Furthermore, the Spanish boss equally instructed the defenders, to remain compact by trapping the opponents outside. The defenders equally stepped up more the defensive line, to compress the midfield space ahead of them and trapping opponents in offside traps, when the opponents go direct with the ball.

Formation Lineup

Freiburg players that I chose to represent the roles of the Real Madrid starting eleven.

Flekken – Cesar/Casillas

Ginter – Fernando Hierro

Kubler – Helguera

Gunter – R. Carlos

Lienhart – Salgado

Rohl – Makelele

Keitel – Santiago Solari

Eggestein – Luis Figo

Sallai – Zinedine Zidane

Holer – Raul

Gregoritsch – Morientes

Vincente del Bosque 2001-2002 Tactic | Role Selections

GK

The goalkeeper was a sweeper keeper on defence duty.

CDs

Fernando Hierro and Helguera were ball-playing defenders. They were comfortable with the ball, especially Hierro who was a natural midfield. They could pick up teammates at advanced positions via diagonal passes. Due to him being on defence duty, Helguera stayed along the defensive line, to close down the opponents, marking attackers and preventing the ball from getting into the box. Hierro was stepping above the defensive line to close down opponents.

FBs

Roberto Carlos was a complete wing-back on attack duty. As a complete wing-back, his own inclination to impact the game better in the opposition’s half. He was more like the “2017 Marcelo” before Marcelo. Carlos also had great long-range shots and would roam from his position often.

Salgado was a traditional fullback on support duty. He was more defensive-minded than R. Carlos. Salgado still provided width at the right flank, making overlapping runs in the final third.

DM

Claude Makelele was a ball-winning midfielder on defence duty. Arguably the greatest ball-winning midfielder of all time, that defensive midfield is nicknamed “the Makelele position”. His duty was to close down opposition attackers, winning the ball and turning it into attacks.

CMs

Some people might say that Santiago Solari and Figo were wingers, but I see them as mezzalas, midfielders who act as half-wingers/half-midfielders. Luis Figo was on attack duty while Solari was on support duty. They were also creative, taking risky passes that created dangerous opportunities in the final third.

AM

Zinedine Zidane was an attacking midfielder on support duty. He would drop to the midfield, to receive the ball and dribble his way into the final, to shoot or create scoring opportunities. His role was similar to an advanced playmaker, except Zizou did take long-range shots often.

CFs

Raul was a trequartista. Although he was positioned at the centre forward position, Raul still covered the role of attacking midfielder. Raul also moved around, inspecting space to make offensive runs behind the opposition’s defensive lines.

Morientes was a complete forward on attack duty. He was positioned in more advanced areas than Raul. He led the attacking lines of the team and could create scoring chances for teammates or score for himself. Morientes also roamed to the flanks to connect with teammates positioned there.