Opinion: Joké Mourinho & woeful tactics vs theRangers (2012); here is the tactical blueprint for how to beat theRangers

Introduction - Joké Mourinho

José Mourinho, or Joké Mourinho, as he should now be called, has managed a team which has lost to a team managed by Wee Bazza Ferguson.

Wow, that is hard to believe! One of the best managers of all time has lost ‘tae Bazza’. Football really is a funny old game!

It is clear that Mourinho no longer has the commitment to be the top level manager he once was. It looked like he had not even watched theRangers to get his tactics right for that game.

theRangers have lost this season repeatedly in Scotland, and that is because all of these teams domestically know that theRangers can only play one way successfully, & they know how to defeat these tactics.

Credit where it’s due, theRangers are a half decent counter-attacking team, and if any opposition managers look & thinks they’re rubbish, so goes gung-ho against them then, they will come unstuck.

Everyone knows TheRangers tactics & how Phillipe Clement has them set up…

Mourinho clearly just half-watched Rangers & thought to himself, “Right they’re rubbish – the tactics here are to gung-ho and pass them off the park”. That was WRONG but.

Any half decent tactical analyst who watches theRangers will immediately notice that:

• Cerny at right-wing is their best player & everything revolves round him – he is very fast & also skilful on the right-wing, and is an excellent finisher coming inside on his left either shooting or assisting, so he is a very dangerous player.

• Jefte on the other left-wing is an extremely aggressive & powerful runner who can drive forward into the final third & get the ball across to create openings.

• Dessers or Igamane are bulldozing number 9’s who will back into defenders to hold the ball up & flick it round the corner to the wingers, and though they do not have great technique nor great pace, they are strong runners in behind & if given space can score goals.

• The midfield trio of Barron, Raskin, and Diomande are all very similar players – they are all quite pacy so can accelerate to close the gap when opposition midfielders or forwards have possession of the ball, bravely & tenaciously tackle them to gain possession of the ball, then fire decent passes down the channels for Cerny & Jefte, or into the feet of Dessers/Igamane.

• The full-backs of Tavernier & Ridvan are ordinary defenders, but powerful runners going forward who are able to surge forward from deep to overlap the wingers & cause real dangers with large numbers counter-attacking.

• The 2 centre backs & goalkeeper of Souttar, Balogun and Butland are quite simply solid players – they are certainly not great, but they are simply are strong & determined and not bad on the ball.

Conclusion – the tactics to beat theRangers

So, what are the tactics to defeat this team? The answer is, sit fairly deep & defend aggressively, because when theRangers can’t counter attack then they struggle very badly to score, & they become very frustrated. theRangers really struggle badly to score when there is no space left in behind. When even teams like Queens Park & Motherwell have done this against theRangers, they have then been able to beat them. When there is no space in behind, it exposes their lack of technique, the crowd get agitated, and they change from theRangers into the ‘Ragers’.

Patience & controlled aggression is the key to beating theRangers.

This means that there should always be 3 of the back 4 sitting back at all times (if one full-back goes forward, the other one stays back), with also a sitting midfield player there. Having 4 defensive minded players back at all times will stifle any counter-attacks and make it look easy to defend against them. Then the rest of the game keep going forward with controlled aggression in attacks, & the opening will eventually come because their back 4 & goalkeeper are very ordinary and unable to hold fort for 90+ minutes.

If you watch Benfica when they beat theRangers last season, this was exactly what they did & it worked a treat – very patient & controlled aggression. Roger Schmidt was the Benfica manager & he has clearly set the blueprint there for exactly how to beat them. The likes of Callum Davidson of Queens Park, Stuart Kettlewell of Motherwell, and Stephen Robinson of St Mirren were all smart enough to see this, copy it, and then implement it.

Going gung-ho throwing men forward to leave loads of space on the counter attack is playing right into theRangers’ hands, and sadly this was exactly what Mourinho did – it was unbelievable stupidity - he was completely ignorant towards Schmidt’s tactical blueprint.

It is hard to see Fenerbahçe over turning that deficit in Glasgow, though if they get their tactics right, not impossible to get a 2 goal lead & take the game to extra time.

Let’s just hope that whoever theRangers meet in the probable quarter finals don’t underestimate them like Mourinho did, gets their tactics right, & then puts them to the sword.