Marcelo Gallardo- The genius of South America

Introduction

Before I cover tactics, achievements or general information, we first have to understand the landscape of Argentinian football

Obviously, every football player wants to play in Europe. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United. Every player dreams of playing in the CL, UEL or maybe even UECL. However we must remember there is football outside of Europe.

Sadly due to how dominant European football is when talking about popularity, most players are eager to leave South American or Asian teams for Europe. This means that in European and South American football in general, no team is safe.

Imagine if at any point, haaland, Messi, mbappe, pedri, Kane and benzema could leave the European landscape forever. Managers couldn’t build up systems, teams couldn’t become dynasties and top teams would always be at danger. You simply can’t build your team or depend on a player

For a top team to stay at the top, they have to have a manager with tactical flexibility. This is what gallardo thrives in.

A good example of this is when ezequiel palacios left river plate in January 2020. Gallardo’s entire team and system relied on a player like him, and he was suddenly gone. They still went on to finish the season at second.

Or current example we can talk about Julian Alvarez. He’s a great talent and was/is really important to the river plate side, and now man city snapped him up for 17 mil and loaned him back for the rest of the season. He currently has 18 goals and 6 assists in 21 games.

Tactics

Now that we have covered what it’s like to coach in the Argentinian league, let’s talk about Marcelo Gallardo

Honestly, Gallardo has played so many different formations and used so many different philosophies, there isn’t one he “usually” employs.

However, the one which he has used the most out of them all is a narrow 4–4–2, almost like a diamond. Instead of the wingers providing the width on the pitch, the full backs do.

The main philosophy which can be found in all of his styles in some way is that the cms push up to make combinations in the middle. There is near to no crossing going on, they simply want to overload the area in and around the box.

The tempo is also insanely high. Gallardo doesn’t want any of his players to dribble usually, the priority is to move the ball as fast as possible towards the goal. It’s very hectic, but it’s almost impossible for the opponent to cover and integrates a high technical ability.

He also likes to press very very high and wants his offensive, midfield and defensive lines to participate in press. It’s called the “diretta”. He does this as he doesn’t like pockets being left between any of the lines, as it promotes for vulnerability and ineffective press.

Another innovative factor in Gallardos 4–4–2 is that the wingers move into the corners of the half spaces. This is usually done by cms in a 4–3–3 to create an overload on the sidelines. Pretty much every Juego de posicion team does this.

And this style is dominant. River plate have the most key passes, deep completions, progressive passes and are the most press efficient team in the league.

His tactical flexibility is also one factor why I like him so much. For example, before the copa libertadores( South American champions league) final in 2018, he regularly used the 4–4–2 and its what boca juniors were preparing for.

He then started a 3–4–1–2 for the first time of the season in the first leg of the final and drew 2–2. Then in the second leg he switched to a 4–5–1 in the second leg and won it 3–1, securing the second Copa libertadores of his career.

Another one of his strengths is also substitutes, he’s incredibly good at reading what the game needs and at what time it’s right to sub. He’s won lots of games simply by his substitutes.

Weaknesses

Of course, no manager is perfect. So, what are Marcelo Gallardo’s weaknesses?

Well he mainly only has one, if that’s considered a weakness: he’s a cup manager. Imagine if a manager got appointed in 2014 and won the CL twice but never won the league. He at times finished 8th and 9th, but came close to the title in 19/20 where he was 1 point off their rival.

Conclusion

Well now comes the question: why isn’t he in Europe yet? Well it’s pretty unknown, but I think he’ll leave South America very soon. It seemed destined to happen a couple months ago, as his contract was meant to run out in December, but he extended it in the last second.

I honestly wouldn’t have been surprised if Barca appointed him over xavi back then. As his contract runs out at the end of the year, im sure he’ll make a move to Europe. But don’t confuse him and think that he’ll start off at some small club, he’s rated very very highly.

Whenever he goes, my expectations are that he’ll revolutionize football. His style is basically Hansi Flicks but even more offensive (which I didn’t know was possible) , and his passion and ideology replicates Jose mourinho‘s „Us against the World“ mentality

Also in a world where teams spend the entire training week preparing for a teams style a manager who’s style can change in any game no matter how important it is would throw everything off balance. Managers can’t prepare players for a team they know nothing about.

Thanks for reading.