Earlier in the season after the 2-1 defeat at the Nou Camp, many doubted Ancelotti’s tactical capability. The critics were out in numbers as they claimed that this team unlike Mourinho’s lacked a sense of direction and personality. Months later those critics are no way to be seen, as Ancelotti is being hailed as the savior of Real Madrid.

Aside from lifting the Copa Del Rey, Carletto masterminded his sides drubbing of the reigning champions. No previous manager had humiliated a Guardiola side, quite like the Italian did last week. And here’s how he did it:

1)  The Re-Birth of Catenaccio:

With the ever-changing nature of football, we often forget the genius of the past. In the 1960’s, Inter Milan manger Helenio Herrera changed the sport of football, by creating catenaccio. In Italian the word catenaccio means “door bolt” which implies a highly organized and effective backline focused on nullifying opponents' attacks. This style of play became popular after Herrera’s Internazionale side became near impossible to score against. Obviously, a tactic used 50 years ago, can’t possibly as effective as it was in the past. Carlo Ancelotti managed to tweak a couple of details while maintaining the original idea of “you can’t attack if you can’t defend”. The emphasis on a structured defense with eight men behind the ball while having the capability to break with speed is Ancelotti’s brilliant adaptation of catenaccio.

2) High-Press Into Making Errors:

Last year under Heynckes, Bayern understood that to be successful one must have a stong defence. Pep however, like he did in Barcelona, chooses to primarily focus on attack rather than solidify his back line. With world class players such as Lahm, Dante, Boateng and Alaba, there should be no possible reason to why you get hammered 4-0 at home. However, as many reports in Germany are currently suggesting, Pep spends nearly all of his training sessions on rehearsing attacking plays. This lack of confidence has made the Bayern back-line a bit edgy when in possession. To make it worse, Pep insists that Bayern begin every attack from the back with carefully placed ground passes.  Taking note of Neuer’s atrocious passing, Ancelotti was quick to implement a high line of pressing. Every time Bayern got a goal kick, Ronaldo, Benzema and Bale would endlessly press the backline into making errors. This inability to start attacks in their usual manner not only hindered Bayern, but rendered them incapable of playing with the fluidity they have grown accustomed to.

3) Allowed Space

When in Barcelona, Pep was lauded as the man who revolutionized football. What many didn’t realize was that his brilliant tactical system, could only be played with a certain set of players.  Most people associate Tiki-Taka with passing, but in reality it requires not only talented passers but also talented dribblers. You can pass the ball as much as you like, but in the end there is nothing as decisive as a dribble. In Barcelona, Pep had players such as Pedro, Iniesta, Fabregas, Sanchez and Messi that had the ability to dribble with the venom to score. In Bayern, with the recent demise of Ribery only Robben can dribble with the similar venom. Ancelotti’s system of sitting deep when defending, almost dared Bayern to try and dribble. Players such as Kroos, Schweinsteiger and Muller were forced into trying to either run with the ball or shoot from distance.

4) Discipline

Coming into this tie, many pundits predicted a Bayern triumph by claiming that Pepe and Ramos don’t have the discipline to nullify the attacking potency of Die Roten. When Bayern entered the Madrid half, Ancelotti implemented a deep lying back six. This essentially made Alonso and Modric sit where Ramos and Pepe usually would. Whenever the ball would get past either Alonso or Modric, Pepe and Ramos would come steaming in to sweep up the play. This guaranteed that neither Pepe nor Ramos would ever be in a position in which they felt compelled to make a desperate tackle.

Check out the artist who makes my graphics, he makes quality stuff: https://yascene.deviantart.com/

Check out my blog: http://realmadrid.sportsblog.com/