The Peak that Never Peaked

Football teams often undergo a phase of transition from one generation to the next. They reach a peak during one or a couple of seasons where the team generally keep a couple of permanent players in their roster. Then, the players reach the dreaded 30s age group and lose some of their fitness. During that critical juncture, the club has to look to blood in younger players or they will face a group with declining performance but this new generation will need game time and be able to live up to the peak of their predecessor's generation or the club will not be able to successfully transition.

But with the hype that follows modern football and the constant press and rumor mill about transfers and signings that crop up every half a year in the Summer and Winter period, these has resulted in a faster turnover of players. In particular, clubs competing for silverware and have the financial resources would quite understandably face the pressure to sign the next hottest football stars, even when their team is soundly adept. Teams that are not financially stable or not competing for silverware too face the prospects of selling their young hot players to the bigger teams. Hence, it is becoming increasingly harder to define a football generation.

Unlike the days of United '99 or Invincibles '04 or Brazil '62, it is hard to pinpoint a particular group of players to call it the Team of '19, for example. With the number of competitions in addition to the Premier League and the pace of the modern English game, teams will need more than their best 11 to win any of the competitions. They will need atleast a best 25 players, and these are what more successful clubs such as Manchester City and Chelsea are doing. Chelsea, however, face a curious prospect of transition in recent years.

The Peak of the Last Golden Generation

Chelsea did have a proper successful but ageing generation that peaked around 2008-2009, but ever since then, they have been in a state of transition. With the introduction of Callum Hudson Odoi, Andreas Christensen and Ethan Ampadu, Chelsea academy graduates, and the leaving of prominent stalwarts, Fabregas, and perhaps Willian and David Luiz, there are talks of a new generation of footballers coming to the fore. But what had happened then of the generation of footballers between the 2008-2009 and now?

Truthfully, the Chelsea team that won the Champions League in Munich 2012 was already a diminishing one. Mourinho had built that team, buying World-Class talents in their prime and gelling them with talented Chelsea players that had matured on time to become a formidable unit. that peaked circa 2008-2009. By 2012, prominent stalwarts or Legends as they are referred to now, were ageing and started to be transferred away. They did not play the same domineering swashbuckling style as they did in their peak and looked thoroughly overwhelmed throughout their Champions League run, but that team nevertheless got their last triumphant good-bye in their highly unlikely win in Munich. So what happened of the next generation?

The Hazard Generation

No one man from Chelsea has ever risen so high in acclaim among the tongues of opposition clubs as Eden Hazard. His name rings fear and admiration among all supporters.Yet in 2019, he is to be one of the oldest remaining Chelsea players at the club. Hazard joined the team right after they had won the Champions League. He joined from Lille, citing his desire to compete for trophies and win, but also in the knowledge that Chelsea was in a transitioning phase, having not done well in the Premier League in 2012. He is what will come to be defined as the succeeding generation to the Legends.

In truth, Chelsea did have another peak after that golden generation, and if I were to pinpoint the time, it would be between Mourinho's Chelsea of 2014/15 and Conte's Chelsea of 2015/16. And to lead one more speculative step on, it is during the 2017/18 season that the team was supposed to have reached its Legendary zenith, only to be thwarted by quick-change signings and a radical change in football philosophy.

Mourinho's Chelsea of 2014/15

After winning the league in the 2013/14 season, Chelsea was harshly brought to their knees in a 10th place finish humbling in 2014/15 that also saw Mourinho sacked for the second time as Chelsea manager. But indeed, it had been a strange season where Leicester City eventually won the league and where most of the expected top sides did not do very well in the Premier League or abroad. For the other clubs such as Tottenham and Liverpool, they were in a period of transition. Manchester United was in a period of declination with poor manager choices and signing since Fergie stepped down. Manchester City had the team but not the manager to fully utilise the talents at their disposal. But Chelsea had a ready-made Champion team peaking at around that period. So what had happened?

 I can give two reasons for the disastrous 2014/15 campaign. One, complacency. This reason was also reiterated by Mourinho and some of his players even after his eventual sacking. After their triumph the year before, Mourinho had seemingly cut a lot of slack on his returning Champions, even giving them more time to enjoy before returning for the pre-season. As a result, the team came back with a lot of fitness backlog as well as an overconfidence that belies their real need to catch-up. Other teams punished the Chelsea team early in the season, dishing out surprise defeats where they least expected. When analysing the Chelsea games, I concede that Chelsea was playing horrible football. There were almost no chemistry, nor good tactics, among the players. But when analysing the players individually though, I noticed that each of the players are brilliant in their own individual positions. 

Thus, this brings me to the second reason. Luck. Pundits were telling how Hazard was having a horrible season, with a goal draught that extends almost a year, but they failed to see how much of an impact he was giving to the game. He dribbles and opens up spaces week in and week out and in the later part of that season, he should have scored much many goals have it not been down to luck. For example, the keeper was having a good day or he hits the post but when one re-watches the game again, one will see that he was not playing badly. That was the reality of Hazard's 'down' season. It was pure luck, just like how a badly performing Leicester City could win the league. The same goes for almost the entire 2014/15 squad.

Conte's Chelsea of 2015/16

Hence it was to no surprise actually that Conte's team stormed to a Premier League finish the next season. People may say that it was due to Chelsea not having more football matches than the other top teams. That is partly true, but it is also because the particular team inherited by Conte contains the core of a team that has reached its peak. Conte improved the team in some areas but, in my opinion, he has weakened the team in others. Except for a small handful of players, the main squad of the team however, comprise of Mourinho's 'disastrous' team.

From front to back, this Chelsea side is loaded with individuals that had reached their peak. Courtois was a Chelsea loanee recalled to the Chelsea team from Athletico Madrid. He was the supposed successor to the legendary Petr Cech and he has rightfully displaced the latter. David Luiz has been recalled back, supposedly matured and improved since his PSG stint, and he too has reached that peak at around 28 years of age. Fabregas is still technically brilliant and have slightly reached the dull end of his peak. Matic was still good and reliable, a midfield enforcer. Up front, we had Eden Hazard of course, together with Willian and Pedro who are all players who could easily walk into any other top teams around the World around the 2015/16 season. They have reached their peak in terms of football abilities. And at the front, we had Diego Costa, the successor to King Drogba of the Legends team who one might say is an upgrade to Drogba himself as he possesses Drogba's physicality and shooting capabilities but also had speed and technical abilities.

Some of Conte's signings complimented the team and further boosted their peak potential. In particular is N'golo Kante, the ever-running midfield enforcer. When Kante came, he still was a work in progress, like many of Conte's signings. Kante is good in his job as a breaker of play and winning balls, but he was neither a good passer nor a good dribbler. It took him months in the Chelsea team before he was sufficiently 'good' in that department. The other signing that helped is Antonio Rudiger, the supposed questionable mark beside David Luiz. Rudiger was a surprise addition in a squad otherwise teeming with talented CB players and he only arrived due to Conte's use of a 3-4-3 system, but Cahill was never going to be a prominent football figure in this peak side, a probable Bosingwa of the Chelsea Legends team, while Christensen, while offering lots of promise, was indeed just a young defender prematurely coming to the fore. His inexperience showed in the later half of the season but his time will come in the coming years.

The Peak that Never Was

Chelsea's recruitments in the 2015-2017 season was a strange one. Conte preferred to sign players that are almost raw gems and hence undervalued. He was under the impression that the team was in transition, especially with John Terry, the last Legend leaving, and on the back of Chelsea's ill-fated 2014/15 season. But that was anywhere but further from the truth. John Terry stuck around because he is a loyal Chelsea player who is there to ensure the new generation fulfilled their potential. He was there until someone could fill his boots and play better than he did, which eventually came under Conte. And the Chelsea team did not fail due to a transition the previous season, but rather due to unpreparedness and overconfidence.

Conte's change in the system may have also altered or even reduced this peak. Sure, it is not without flaws, with Chelsea still needing a replacement at left-back or right-back since Ashley Cole and Ivanovic left, and they do still need a technical player to link up play in the midfield, but Conte's radical change in the system created new openings for players with a drastically different kind of skillset that the peak generation do not have. Hence, drafted in are the likes of Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses who are not really a Legend-material, but not necessarily bad, in a conventional 4-3-3. His other signings too are simply unpolished products meant for a transitional squad, the likes of Batshuayi,Danny Drinkwater, Ross Barkley, Giroud and Alvaro Morata. They are not only not at their peak, their peak may not even be as promising as the Legends team. To make matters worse, he offloaded first Matic and then Diego Costa, both of whom are quite obviously playing at their current top forms. This blunting of the peak generation eventually led to an understandable bad finish in the Premier League, this time not because of unrealised potential  but because of a hastiness to transition when the team has not fully reached the top.

Conte's Vindication
For all of Conte's doings (or undoings), he did however solved one thing that the Chelsea new peak generation required; a discipline to realise that potential. His time with Chelsea was a time with mixed reactions. It was true that every Chelsea player from the Mourinho-inherited squad knew that they had not done well and each one knew that it was down to their complacency. The iron fist of Conte was just the desired punishment or stimulis to get them back on track to realising their potential and realise them they did, when they won the Premier League in 2016.

New Peak Generation?

A peak generation usually lasts only a season or two, that is the nature of football. When one reads about ageing players moving on, especially a few at a time, that is when one can roughly predict a transitioning side. Tottenham has not recruited much players the past few seasons and that is because they are cultivating a main core of peak squad players who are currently nearing their peak. Liverpool too, has done so and may have reached that peak now. It can be said that Guardiola has created his own peak generation with a big core of capable players. With money to splash, a peak generation can be created quickly, just like Chelsea's Legends team for example. It is still a few years before we can see the current Manchester City squad decline, and with proper youth investments, the transition could be smooth and define a long era.

Many have said that current Chelsea players in their 30s are losing their fitness and edge, players such as Pedro and Willian to name a few. That is probably true as they have passed their peak period. The question now is if Chelsea can successfully transition into a new peak period, not too raw without experience, but not at their very best yet. Sarri has been quite fast in the transfer market, bringing in Jorginho, who is not an unpolished gem but also with potential to improve, and trying to blood him in quickly. Players like Kante and Hazard have a few more years to give at their best. Young academy players are coming in, although Callum Hudson-Odoi offers the most promise to reach that peak more quickly. Ampadu may take a lot more years while Christensen less. Others will still need time to fully develop, players such as Ross Barkley and Alvaro Morata. Kepa was simply a like-for-like replacement for Courtois but is ready. I rather hope Kovacic will remain in Chelsea because like Jorginho, he is a finished product in his ilk and still young. Hence, this team is a mix of players who are close to nearing their peaks, still a distance from their peaks or already mooning towards the end of their peak. Unless a drastic change occur, this irregularity will continue, resulting in a mixture of playing potential being realised for the coming years. Over time however, with ample time for replacements and the core of the team being established in all the general areas of the squad, much like Manchester City, Chelsea can be a stable dominant force with a healthy peak and transition.

It will simply take time, patience and wise decisions.

Chelsea 2018 New Year Flashback!

What a year it has been for Chelsea FC! As a Chelsea fan, I watched with a mixture of curiosity and anticipation at the many changes that happened throughout the year. Indeed, it was a time of transition, marked by the sacking of Antonio Conte as our head coach and the appointment of Maurizio Sarri as his replacement. Of course, in between this transition, after a largely disappointing season in which we finished 6^th (and out of the Champions League) we also had the chance to watch 14 of our players play in the World Cup and shine they did! So here is a recap of our season and highlights!

Sacking of Antonio Conte

Let’s be honest, towards the end of his tenure, Conte had become a hugely unpopular figure among the players. Looking at past interviews and comments from the players (past and present), a number of reasons cropped up. Firstly, and perhaps most importantly, he did not maintain a good channel of communication with his players. This was often cited by the likes of Willian, David Luiz and Diego Costa and even subtly hinted by the other players such as Eden Hazard and Cesc Fabregas (where they avoided directly answering questions on the players relationship with the coach). It appears that he is the kind of coach who analysed games and his team on his own and then force his ideologies onto his players through a tough regime.

This brings to his second failing, his unwillingness to compromise. It is well-known that Conte’s training sessions are unforgiving. Morata and Christensen once said that after Conte’s training, the players had to recover for the entire day or they will have trouble with fatigue and fitness for the next training or match. Essentially, the players had no free time for themselves, especially with the added fixture of Champions League football in 17/18. Coupled with a strict diet regime at the club and punishment of being dropped from the squad if they do not do as Conte please (See David Luiz and Diego Costa), it is no surprise that players such as Willian wanted to leave Chelsea If Conte isn’t sacked.

Finally, the transfer of Diego Costa in 2017. Diego Costa’s transfer came as a shock to all Chelsea fans worldwide. Everyone could see how good Diego Costa is. A target man. A hardworker. Like Drogba, but more technical and faster. But essentially, he is a strangely good and nice guy on and off the pitch. Just listen to Chelsea players talk about him, read about his charitable deeds or follow his Instagram stories. It is only the media that seemingly stereotype him as the pantomime villain of the EPL. Conte’s decision to drop Costa was a slap in the face to all Chelsea fans and perhaps the last straw to a growing toxic relationship. (Other smaller reasons include Jose Mourinho’s influence and largely disappointing transfers.)

World Cup

As a Chelsea fan, it was a great time to watch the World Cup. I actually did go to Russia to watch two matches, England vs Panama and Croatia vs Denmark. Owing to Eden Hazard playing for Belgium, I chose to support them last year. Of course, this Belgium team is at its peak of a golden generation. From front to back, the team is loaded with world class players. I initially thought, from watching the Qualifiers, that this team just couldn’t gel, but from the first match on, I was proven wrong. Roberto Martinez had found just the right formation and tactics to fully utilize the mammoth strength of this crazy talented squad. Thibaut Courtois and Batshuayi plays too. Victor Moses and the forgotten Kenneth Omerou plays for Nigeria, although they exited early in a tough group. Rudiger and Dave too, exited early with Germany and Spain’s surprising early exits. (Though it is tough to see them play in their teams…) Other players include, Gary Cahill, Andreas Christensen, Willy Caballero, Loftus-Cheek, Willian, Kante and Giroud. Kante and Giroud went on to win the coveted World Cup. In particular, Loftus-Cheek stood out as a promising youngster, Willian showed the world that he is still a phenomenal player (his play with Brazil was really good), Kante proved why he is a much-loved defensive enforcer (he really ruined Belgium’s smooth style of play, although Croatia seem to get the better of him) and Giroud has the funny accolade for not scoring a goal as the main striker in a World Cup winning team.

Overall, Chelsea players showed their incredible worth and talent in this World Cup, in particular Eden Hazard where he truly shone as probably the best player in this WC edition.

Appointment of Maurizio Sarri

Much has been speculated about his appointment before Sarri was officially appointed as head coach. His style of play has gained a fearsome reputation, Sarriball as they call it, a fast-paced vertical passing style of football. He came in late on, with much of his main squad unavailable due to World Cup commitments. But his first few matches brought to light a much different style of playing as compared to the largely defensive Conte’s side. Chelsea immediately came playing with a large number of possession, although to its effectiveness, it is yet to know. The message he brought are also positive and reassuring. Thrown away was Conte’s need for ‘suffering’ and came Sarri’s message to ‘love football’.

Sarri’s transfers were also really reassuring. His first transfer was Jorginho, a technical passer. Jorginho’s strengths lie in his fast decision-making, knowing when to receive and pass. He does not really have the vision or passing range as Fabregas, but he is more fast and defensively nous compared to his compatriot. With these attributes, he is able to dictate the pace of the game really well. Sarri also brought on Kovacic on loan from Real Madrid. This was a true icing on the cake. Kovacic is an extremely talented player, very technical and forward looking. His dribbling is a joy to watch. His only flaw lies in his shooting capabilities, where he is woefully bad at. Kepa Arrizabalaga too was drafted in as a replacement keeper for Courtois. The past matches has seen him in good form and I do rate him very highly. He is agile, quick and overall really solid between the posts, perhaps a contrast to 2018 Thibaut Courtois.

With his new style of play, some players benefitted while others didn’t. The more technical players with good passing abilities clearly benefited. David Luiz, for example. Victor Moses was dropped from the squad altogether as he was deemed not good enough as a defender yet not good enough as an attacker. Christensen, although solid, does not have Luiz’s range of passing. Fabregas was a weird choice out. He is amazing in Jorginho’s role, if not better. But he does eventually need to make way for youngblood which is a shame as he is a really good player. Some standouts in Sarri’s era includes Loftus-Cheek, who has grown to be a really confident player, good in dribbling. Ross Barkley too came with new skillsets that shone; he has a lethal shooting boot and dribbling wise he is not too bad himself. Hudson-Odoi is the hugely talented new star. One can see that he can become a world class talent, but he is not there yet and Sarri’s choice to not play him is understandable. Perhaps a loan out to a top side would do him good.

Retirements & Departures

A number of Chelsea Legends recently retired from football. King Drogba hung up his boots after his stint as player-owner at Phoenix Rising in the US. John Terry officially hung up is boots after his contract with Aston Villa ended.  He is now the assistant coach of Aston Villa. And Joe Cole too has retired at the age of 37 after playing for the Tampa Bay Rowdies since 2016.

Prominent exits in 2018 includes main goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. I know and saw many Chelsea fans deriding him for leaving us and calling him a snake. But I just want them to remember his prominent role in the 2017-18 season where he made many spectacular saves in which we won by 1 goals and that eventually adds up to our PL title. His decision to leave is rather not straightforward, with him citing family reasons, although there seems to be more to it. (Perhaps Conte). Whatever it is, he is having a tough time at Real Madrid and we wish him all the best for his upcoming season.

Looking on

There are still many matches to look out for. As of Gameweek 20, we are 5 points above Arsenal who is in 5^th place but 11 points off Liverpool at the top of the table. It seems quite unlikely we will be Champions this season, though we should be able to get in the top 4. Other things to look out for also includes the European Cup and FA Cup which we are still inside. Thus, we Chelsea fans wish them all the best and hope for a great 2019 ahead!

Talking Football: The Rise of the English Clubs in World Football

The worlds most popular sport, football (or soccer to the Americans), have glorified the names of ordinary men and produced numerous incredible tales of triumph. It is a sport like no other; capable of changing the lives of otherwise destitute people and even reshaping the political and economic landscape of whole nations. The team embodies the hopes and spirit of the people who supports it; creating myths, legends and small talk in a stormy Saturday night at the bar.
Since the spread of the religion that is football to the far corners of the globe and the creation of leagues to pit the best teams within and between different geographic regions, there came a time when it became possible to compare and contrast the best teams there are out there. As such, we come to know of the great Brazilian players with their technical skills and the organized Italian defence with their astute tactics. The rules may have changed over the centuries and as such, perhaps different skillsets and football philosophies became the determiner for success in winning matches. Nevertheless, the beautiful game still manage to capture the imagination of billions.
The Best League in the World
In the turn of the 21st century, certain football philosophies and teams came to predominate the game. Of course, in terms of league, the European leagues are miles ahead of the other leagues in the world due to the huge difference in capital and structure invested into the leagues. Interestingly, although the English Premier League, self-proclaimed as the best football league in the world, had the most capital and fan base worldwide, the teams had not produced the teams that dominate European competitions. With their embarrassment of riches and astonishing wages offered to players, the English Clubs are still unable to produce the greatest team in Europe and the best players do not play there. (See Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo).
Early 2000s
Perhaps around 2000 to 2005, English teams had some fantastic teams such as the vintage Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal 'Invincibles' but most would say the Italian clubs spearheaded by AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus were the best teams then. These teams then had the best players playing for them. AC Milan, who won the 2002-03 Champions League, Europe's premier football competition, had Rivaldo, Rui Costa, Paolo Maldini and an up-and-coming Andrea Pirlo. AC Milan won again in 2006-07 with players such as the original Brazilian Ronaldo, Cafu and the developed Andrea Pirlo. A particular characteristic of these clubs, emulated by the Italian national team, the Azzuris, who won the World Cup in 2006 is their tactical astuteness and robust defence.
Late 2000s to 2010s
Around 2005 to 2017, another kind of football philosophy came to emerge and dominate the footballing landscape. That is, the rise of 'tiki-taka' football. Some might say this football philosophy died way earlier around 2015, but no, this football mentality which wins games are still embodied in many winning teams as of 2018. The league that encapsulate this idea of football? No less, the La Liga. In 2010, the Spanish national team won the World Cup and in 2012, they won the Euros employing the tried-and-tested philosophy used by Barcelona. Barcelona itself is predominated by Spanish players who were trained in the football philosophy in the famed football academy, La Masia, who have produced football greats such as Andreas Iniesta and Lionel Messi. This football style, greatly attributed to the legendary Johan Cruyff, is simple in philosophy. 1) Positional Awareness 2) Movement. 3) Pass. Ultimately, this translates to the goal of Retaining Possession. The idea is that if the opponents cannot get the ball and have fewer chances, they are more likely to lose. As such, Barcelona and Spanish teams often have high percentages of possession of around 60-70% on most games. In reality, it takes a high calibre of players to be able to play this style of football; one who is comfortable with the ball and who has excellent tactical understanding.
The English Teams
Throughout this period, the English teams do have their own football philosophy. It had developed all the years in England, with the manic supporters and their clamour for entertainment. The people wants hype and speed. Arsene Wenger showed them how. English clubs are known for their physicality and pace of the game. Both elements combined makes for a widely more watchable and entertaining game than the slower paced games of other leagues. The wingers move at pace, the defenders tackle with no remorse. This unique football environment tests the best of foreign players who wish to try their luck in this league and many has failed. Particularly, Andriy Schevchenko, regarded as one of the best strikers in the early 2000s failed miserably in Chelsea colours. Radamel Falcao endured a torrid career in England, first for Manchester United and then Chelsea. From a staggering FIFA rating of 88 to a woeful 80 by the end of his time in Chelsea colours. When he left, 'El Tigre' incredibly regained his form and reputation as one of the 'hot' strikers in the world under Monaco in League 1.
This could be the reason for why chances to play in the Premier League are passed up by the best players of the day: their innate footballing talent are not being appreciated by the league. But on a more troubling note however, is the possible realisation that perhaps more-athlete, less-technique will not win you games.
Now
In the past 2-3 years, however, there seems to be a revival of sorts of the English teams. With every revival and improvements, there must be a shift in football mentality. As the game is now, the one in charge of the football mentality is the coach, more than anyone else. The coach brings his entire team -physios, trainers, goalkeeping coach, scouts, scientists etc- and models the team to his regime and idea of football. The club owners take a chance with the couch and his ideals and is paid for in service and results.
The Great Coaches that started the Shift
 1. Mauricio Pochettino, the Developer
He started coaching with Espanyol who were third from bottom in the La Liga and guided them to comfortable mid-table positions in the league. He then went on to Southampton in 2013 and couched them for a year before being poached by Tottenham Hotspurs in 2014 where he have continued working ever since. He is valued for his development of players, turning average or undervalued players into world-beaters. His work came to light when he coached Southampton where he developed an attractive yet decent team made from mostly homegrown players such as Luke Shaw who have since moved to Manchester United. In fact, during and just after his tenure, Southampton had become a sort of farming ground for the bigger Premier League clubs.
Currently, with a stronger financial base and greater ability to retain players, his team, the Spurs, has become a major title contender in the EPL, one of the Top 6, with players such as Harry Kane, Delle Alli and Christian Eriksen.
Pochettino's style of play is to play good football, a sort of combination of 'tiki-taka' football coupled with a good defensive shape and ability to launch quick counter attacks. Thus, it is seemingly an English hybrid of the Spanish style of play.
 2. Jurgen Klopp, the Geggen Presser
Klopp started his official managerial career with Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga but he is more affectionately known for his work with Borussia Dortmund. The Bundesliga is dominated by the Bavarian giants, Bayern Munich, who have significant economic advantage and global presence, no less due to their history. However, in 2008, Klopp took a team that had placed 13th to a respectable 6th before going on to be title challengers in the next few years. He actually won the Bundesliga title in 2011 and 2012 where he won the domestic double when he beat Bayern Munich in the DFB Pokal Final, the FA Cup equivalent of the EPL. This was an incredible feat considering Bayern Munich operated with a net worth of USD$2.7 billion compared to Borussia Dortmund's USD$808 million (Stats as of 2018). Eventually of course, Dortmund sold many key players to Bayern Munich including Mat Hummels, Robert Lewandowski and Mario Gotze.
Klopp is famous for his tactics dubbed 'Geggen Pressing'. Geggen pressing is a tactic of pressuring the opponent in numbers and pace with atleast two players often pressing the opponent's players with the ball. The tactic requires the forwards to press the defence, thus ensuring the opponent cannot move out of their own half, and keeping a high backline, thus you often see the defence nearer to the halfway line than their goal. The constant pressure aims to force the opponent's player to pass prematurely thus they may lose possession and lose their team shape.
A characteristic of Klopp's team is their excellent attack with skill and pace and their woeful defence although it really is no fault of his defenders, with his style of play which leaves sometimes acres of open spaces behind for an opponent's counter attack. Back in Dortmund, he had Marcus Reus and Robert Lewandowski upfront. In Liverpool now, he have the excellent Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane (whom he must have spotted his talent from his time in Klopp's Southampton). All are devastating players with speed, shooting and dribbling abilities.
His Liverpool team now, with no surprise, (as of 23rd May) challenges for the Champions League title against Real Madrid.
 3. Antonio Conte, the Defensive Master
Antonio Conte came to Chelsea following Chelsea's woeful 10th place finish in the 2015-16 season and was back then an almost unknown entity. Formerly a player in a world-class Juventus, he went on to coach several smaller Italian teams such as Siena, Atlanta, Barri and Arezzo with different success rates before coaching Juventus where he rose to prominence. Following that, he coached the Italian national team where he surprisingly took a squad without any star names and bereft of talent since Italy's heydays, to the quarter finals of Euro 2016.
Conte is reknown for his famous 3-4-3 formation with three defenders at the back and the use of wingbacks to overload defence or attack where required. His teams are drilled in a specific manner to restrict any spaces left in their own half by defending deep before counterattacking when the opportunity arrive. Most of the time, the team plays in a 5-3-2 in their defensive shell. Some might call it parking the bus but against smaller and less technical teams, this formation often becomes a 3-2-5 and they will have the majority of possession. The idea is, if the opponent can't score, we just have to score one to beat them and there will be lapses in the opponent's defence.
The tactic he introduced opened up the idea of tactical changes in England where before, the managers are reluctant to move away from the favoured 4-4-2 which they felt were crucial to not get a beating due to the pace of this league. Conte showed that it was possible with his remodelled Chelsea team and they went on to win the EPL in 2017.
Maybe perhaps, it is not the ideal world-beating formula but this tactic is seemingly the importation of the Italian model of the 2000s (which are still used in Serie A) which had grown out of fashion. Conte's teams produce excellent defenders (including midfielders who are made to defend), such as Georgio Chiellini, Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, Arturo Vidal and N'Golo Kante.
 4. Jose Mourinho, the Charismatic Manager
The affable manager started his managerial career at Benfica when he moved up from his post as assistant manager to Jupp Henckles (of Bayern Munich fame). Everywhere he went, he experienced success over success. After Benfica, he went to manage an unknown Uniao de Leiria where he guided them to a fourth place finish. Afterwhich he went to Porto where he won the Champions League in 2004. After Benfica, the Special One enjoyed success at Chelsea where he created a stellar team and a permanent slot for Chelsea as a Top 6 team in the EPL. At Inter Milan, he again won many trophies including the Europa League and made Inter Milan into a top team in the European stage, getting into the finals of the Champions League in 2010 where he lost to Barcelona. After Inter Milan, he went to Real Madrid where he had a topsy turvy spell of success. In truth, he did win a trophy or a title every season during his time there but due to the high standards of Real Madrid, his last season in 2013 where he won the Spanish Super Cup was deemed as his career's low. After Real Madrid, he went to Chelsea again where he won the league in his second season in 2015 before being fired the next. He then went on to Manchester United where he won the EFL trophy on his debut season.
Mourinho is perhaps one of the most successful managers in the modern era but to put a finger on his style of play, it is perhaps harder than it seems. With Chelsea and Manchester United, he is accused of 'parking the bus' by getting his players to defend in numbers constantly with limited focus on attack. However, that is never closer to the truth. His teams only defend where they had to and if they could they wouldn't. It is really due to the style of play in England that it seems that the team is constantly defending. Mourinho style of play is simply put, get the best players in the game to join the team and watch their talent shine through. Most importantly, he trusts his players to understand the game and play as they see fit. It is not a hard kept secret that every top player wants to work with Mourinho. Having him be interested in you shows that you are a good player. All his past players have a good word of him and spoke fondly of him. Mourinho keeps contact with all his past players and develop a great relationship with every one of them. His charisma is what brought the teams he manage success. Of course, his teams have to have the potential to buy the top players. As such, he would naturally go into the teams with the financial clout to develop a Mourinho all-star team such as Real Madrid, Abramovich's Chelsea and Manchester United.
Some players who have joined a Mourinho team includes Ricardo Carvalho, Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Diego Costa and Willian.
 5. Pep Guardiola, the Total Football Dominator
Guardiola was an excellent midfielder in his playing career and started his managerial career couching Barcelona B in 2007. In the following year, he became the manager of the main team. In that year, he offloaded many famous and important players such as Ronaldinho, Deco, Eto'o and Thuram to name a few but he still won the treble, including the Champions League. After three successful seasons, he took a sabbatical in New York City before returning to manage Bayern Munich a year later in 2013. He won the Bundesliga and DFB Pokal in his debut season and in 2014 and Bundesliga in 2015. He then moved on to Manchester City where his incredible team dominated the league by the end of the 2017-18 season with a whooping 100 points, 19 points above second placed Manchester United.
Guardiola is the epitome of perfect football designed to win games. It is not surprising, considering how much of his playing and managerial life revolved around Barcelona. His football philosophy centred around La Masia's, hence Johan Cruyff's idea of Total Football, as mentioned above. The players he retained or recruited all possess similar attitudes that he wants or requires: technical ability and tactical astuteness, which is required to play Total Football. Although Manchester City already has a formidable squad with the likes of Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne, Guardiola still recruited many more players, at lofty fees, in order to create a behemoth of a team. He famously dropped club favourite Joe Hart for the supposedly technically better Claudio Bravo (although he endured a tough first season) before recruiting Ederson Moraes, an excellent keeper good with his feet and at shot-stopping.
The Rise of the English Clubs
With these five managers, gone is the era of pure athleticism and here emerges an exciting era of clashing football philosophies that could stand a chance of winning other European clubs who employ various other football philosophies. Just a few years ago, English clubs are constantly out of the Champions League in the early stages, and deservedly so, but with the introduction and maturing of these new football philosophies in the English Premier League landscape, one might wonder how far the English clubs can go now. Who will triumph? The homegrown talent world-beater? The fast paced, high octane boss? The hardworking, hard-knuckled manager? The charismatic Special One? Or the Football maestro? The next couple of years would be an exciting time for English football clubs.