World Cup quarter-final review: Alex Keble talks tactics after last eight games
Alex Keble looks back at more thrills and spills from the World Cup quarter-finals and picks out his best and worst performers of the round.
An exceptionally entertaining World Cup has been whittled down to the final four, and although there are at least three brilliant games of football left there is already a sense of loss in the air. The increasingly large gaps between matches give us time to reflect on the disappointment in South America, with all four semi-finalists coming from Europe. More worrying still, half of the players left in Russia ply their trade in the Premier League.
Brazil were unlucky to lose to Belgium in the best game of the round although Roberto Martinez deserves credit for some wild, courageous tactics. Uruguay lost meekly to France in another relatively dull game from Didier Deschamps' team, while Russia went out on penalties and England breezed past Sweden.
Manager of the quarter-finals: Roberto Martinez
Belgium's formation and tactics in their 2-1 win over Brazil were absolute chaos. Out of nowhere, they put in the most complex and confusing tactical performance of the tournament and for that Roberto Martinez deserves great credit – even if they almost threw it away in the second half. He abandoned the tried-and-tested 3-4-3 for a 4-3-3 formation that, with Nacer Chadli in a bizarre hybrid role of central midfielder and left wing-back, flipped between a back three, back four, and back five. Brazil had no idea what has going on.
Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne, and Romelu Lukaku consistently swapped positions as the front three, which caused all manner of problems for Brazil's back four, although their most common setup was Lukaku on the right and De Bruyne as a false nine. The Manchester City man dropped deep, arriving late into the number ten space and thus unmarked, while Lukaku arced in from the right to take up the centre-forward positions De Bruyne had vacated. It was a very intelligent strategy that recalled Martinez's use of Lukaku as a winger at Everton, with Steven Naismith the false nine.
Elsewhere, the double afro midfield of Marouane Fellaini and Alex Witsel stunted Philippe Coutinho, while Thomas Meunier had arguably his best game of the tournament. However, it took Martinez far too long to react in the second half to Brazil's pressure. Forced into a deep 5-2-3 shape, Brazil found far too much space in front of the Belgium full-backs.
Team of the quarter-finals: England
It took England a good 25 minutes to settle into the game, but after their nerves died down this became one of the most composed, organised, and worry-free knock-out games in English history. Harry Maguire's exceptional heading ability made it virtually impossible for Sweden's long balls forward to find their target, which meant the Swedes' only attacking plan was stopped.
In the second period England's midfield rotated possession in a manner that reflected the top-level coaching these players get domestically. Raheem Sterling, Jesse Lingard, Kyle Walker, Harry Kane, and Dele Alli were passing the ball in neat triangles – pulling the opponents to one flank before switching play with a long diagonal – just as they are taught by Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino.
Sterling's runs on the shoulder of the last defender stretched the Sweden back line, reaffirming his importance to the side in spite of his unpopularity among the general public, while Kieran Trippier and Ashley Young were their usual selves. Both players crossed the ball expertly throughout.
Player of the quarter-finals: Luka Modric
Croatia's exhausting knockout stages probably means their run will come to an end against a fresh, vibrant England side, but nevertheless Modric has given himself a decent chance of winning the Ballon d'Or this year. He is single-handedly dragging Croatia through this World Cup, acting as chief orchestrator of virtually every attack.
He was top of the charts against Russia for chances created (four), passes in the final third (30), successful dribbles (eight), fouls suffered (four), and passes completed (89). He also completed more ball recoveries (15) than any other player in any match at the 2018 World Cup, highlighting the important defensive role he plays for Zlatko Dalic.
England need to make sure they double up on Modric, but if they can keep him quiet then the semi-final should be comfortable for Southgate.
Worst of the quarter-finals: Cavani-less Uruguay
Sadly, Uruguay just didn't turn up for their quarter-final clash with France. The loss of Edinson Cavani, their standout player of the tournament, was badly felt as Luis Suarez searched desperately for somebody to pass to when the opportunity for a counter-attack arose. He was totally isolated, meaning Uruguay simply couldn't get out or build momentum. Cavani's replacement, Cristhian Stuani, was pretty dreadful, completing just five passes and five touches in the opposition penalty area.
The goalkeeper Fernando Muslera dropped a clanger, compounding their bad day, but it is unlikely Uruguay would have found a way into the match regardless. Uruguay had looked increasingly composed since switching from a flat 4-4-2 to a diamond 4-4-2 after their second group game, but star playmaker Rodrigo Bentancur gets lost at the tip of the midfield. He isn’t a natural number ten, and it shows: Bentancur averaged 84 passes in his first two World Cup games and 15 in his final two. Without his creativity, France were comfortable.
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