In the game against Paris Saint-Germain, two defensive questions need to be answered: how to stop the attacking collective and how to stop Kylian Mbappe?
It’s not a simple equation, because even if you disrupt PSG’s rhythm and limit their chances, a moment of brilliance from Mbappé can turn things around. “It’s hard for me to think of a better player in the world than him at the moment,” Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe told TNT Sports before his side took on the French champions on Wednesday night.
“He has that mix of technical ability, great athleticism and speed, as well as the ability to score goals. We have to stop him, but we also have to stop the supply of him. We can’t just focus on one player, even if we know how good he is.”
As difficult as this equation was to solve, Newcastle did it – but how?
The start wasn’t promising. Initially it looked like PSG’s four attackers would disrupt Newcastle’s defense, with Randal Kolo Muani and Mbappe switching positions on the left.
Four minutes later, PSG manage to overcome Newcastle’s high press as Mbappé Jamaal Lascelles goes wide…
… create space for Kolo Muani to attack. Lascelles is forced to focus on Warren Zaire-Emery’s pass to Mbappe, allowing Kolo Muani to attack the space…
…which causes Fabian Schar and Dan Burn (white) to go over and move markers. The consequence is that Ousmane Dembele is completely free to play on the right side…
… and Mbappe finds his French teammate…
…whose shot narrowly misses the target.
Perhaps that’s what Luis Enrique had in mind when he started with four attackers in a 4-2-4 formation.
However, the numerical disadvantage they had in midfield against Newcastle trio Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali made the build-up phase much more difficult for PSG, especially as Newcastle’s defense defended confidently man-to-man.
As Newcastle moved deeper into the middle block, this approach also helped stop Mbappe. The French striker’s man-marking as he looked to drop from the central position meant PSG couldn’t easily play through Newcastle’s defensive block.
Whenever Mbappe tried to drop to offer a passing opportunity, Lascelles followed him onto the pitch…
… to limit Mbappe’s time on the ball until Newcastle’s midfield trio has recovered.
In this example, Lucas Hernandez passes the ball over the line to Bradley Barcola, who came on as a substitute for Kolo Muani in the second half…
… but because Lascelles pushed forward, Mbappe is no longer a passing option for Barcola. Under pressure from Kieran Trippier, Barcola loses the ball on his first touch and Newcastle regains possession.
After Dembele’s shot in the fourth minute, Lascelles and Trippier became much more alert when it came to changing markers. Here Mbappe tries to move towards the left wing to offer himself as a passing option, but Lascelles is already signaling for someone to cross the PSG striker.
Then when Hernandez plays the ball into Mbappe…
… Trippier changes his focus and leaves Kolo Muani for Lascelles to pick him up. The pressure from the England right-back results in Mbappe being unable to turn and being forced to return to his defence.
PSG’s 4-2-4 formation also benefited Newcastle as Howe’s side defended in their own half…
…because the success of the Newcastle defenders in their one-on-one duels meant that one of the Newcastle midfielders could drop off to support without having to worry about PSG’s double pivot in midfield. Here Longstaff moves over to support Newcastle’s right side against Mbappe…
… and if he tries to connect with Kolo Muani…
… Guimaraes drops to win the ball as there is no threat from a third PSG midfielder or a player moving between the lines.
In another example, Trippier and Lascelles cover Mbappe and Kolo Muani, while Newcastle’s three-on-two in midfield means Longstaff (Newcastle No.36) can move forward to support the right side of defence.
As Mbappe and Kolo Muani try to combine on the left wing, Longstaff drops…
… and prevented Kolo Muani from completing the one-two with Mbappe.
In the second half, Mbappe’s initial position was more central, next to Goncalo Ramos, and you could see how much Newcastle’s right winger – whether Miguel Almiron or Jacob Murphy – wanted to block the passing lane to Mbappé.
In this example, Murphy stands between Vitinha and Hernandez while Milan Skriniar plays the pass into Vitinha.
As soon as Vitinha receives the ball, Murphy quickly drops to block the passing path to Mbappé, even if it means Hernandez is free.
Afterwards, Lascelles’ tight marking and the extra player Newcastle have in midfield with Guimaraes suffocate Mbappe as he receives Vitinha’s pass.
Mbappe manages to win a free-kick in the center circle, but Newcastle’s main task of containing their threat is accomplished.
All of these features of Newcastle’s defensive approach could be summed up in one sequence in the 70th minute of the game. Here Almiron looks over his left shoulder to scan the surroundings and know the positions of the players behind him. With Longstaff in a higher central position…
… Almiron moves into a narrower position to block the passing lane to Mbappe rather than going wide to press Hernandez.
The Paraguayan waits for the ball to be played into PSG’s left-back and then moves outwards to press it while blocking the passing angle to Mbappé. Hernandez then plays the ball over the line to Barcola…
…as Longstaff comes back and Lascelles moves in to mark Mbappe. With Guimaraes and Elliot Anderson again able to keep up with PSG’s double pivot (black), Longstaff can drop and support his right side without having to worry about a midfield run behind him. This allows the Newcastle midfielder to be more aggressive when tracking back and in this example win the ball.
As Howe explained before the game, it’s not just about stopping Mbappe – it’s about stopping him while maintaining the overall defensive organization and limiting PSG’s attack as a whole.
Stopping the collective while neutralizing the threat from the individual is football’s ultimate defensive task – Newcastle achieved this in their 4-1 win against PSG.
GO DEEPER
Newcastle’s Cup Odyssey, Part 11: A night of madness for Newcastle. Who knows what could happen now?