FIFA technical experts see knockout stage as ‘completely new tournament’

AL RAYYAN, Qatar– Former coaching greats Arsene Wenger and Jurgen Klinsmann claimed Sunday the knockout stage at any FIFA World Cup is wholly different from the group stage, saying they believe anything can happen once teams get to the “win-or-go home” phase.

Wenger and Klinsmann, now working for FIFA’s Technical Study Group (TSG), also discussed tactical and technical trends they had identified during the group stage of the World Cup in Qatar.

But those numbers can probably be thrown out the window during the knockouts, Klinsmann said during the media briefing at the Main Media Centre in Al Rayyan, west of Doha.
“Once the knockout stage starts, it’s a completely new tournament,” said Klinsmann, who won the 1990 World Cup as a player with West Germany and then coached Germany to third place in 2006. “The mental approach is completely different. You have to switch something on in your brain. It’s a fascinating part of the tournament.”

For South Korea, that part of the tournament begins 10 p.m. Monday against Brazil at Stadium 974 in Doha, or 4 a.m. Tuesday in South Korean time. South Korea, world No. 28, will be major underdogs against top-ranked Brazil, though the Selecao will be missing a few players to injuries.

Wenger, former Arsenal boss and now head of FIFA’s global football development and TSG, also said “on paper” elements for teams don’t matter much in the knockouts, where upsets can happen.

However, neither picked a surprise team to win the World Cup this year. Wenger saw France, the defending champions, and England, as the two favorites, while Klinsmann called England a team “deep with high-quality players.”

“They were young when they won the World Cup (in 2018) and they can be the repeat champions,” Wenger said of France. “I think France went through a tough time last year. It allowed them to go back to the drawing board and come back this year with determination.”

From the group stage, the two technical experts noted teams trying to create scoring opportunities from the flanks, as the defenses tended to collapse toward the center. FIFA’s numbers showed that 58 percent of the entries into the attacking third happened either on the left or the right flank. Wenger said, in addition to attacking wingers, the ability for fullbacks to create opportunities from the flanks will also be crucial.

“Will the team with the best wide players win this tournament? I think so,” Wenger said. “That will be interesting to see.”

Klinsmann pointed out the increasing importance of goalkeepers to handle the ball and make plays from the back. With high pressing becoming a global trend, defenders are making more back passes than before and tasking their goalkeepers with relieving pressure. According to FIFA, goalkeepers made 726 off-ball movements to receive passes during the group stage, compared to 443 in 2018. And they ended up taking 356 passes, well over 177 from four years ago.

“The goalkeeper is the first playmaker,” Klinsmann said. “You need to have a goalkeeper that’s calm on the ball and technically gifted.”

As someone with World Cup coaching experience, Klinsmann also discussed a new set of challenges for top tacticians in handling an expanded, 26-man squad at this year’s competition.

“You have to deal with 15 unhappy players because only 11 can play. You have to keep the other players in good mood and full of energy,” Klinsmann said. “You want to keep your people happy and maximize players off the bench.”

Source: Yonhap news Agency

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