Thiago Motta’s tactics and style of play

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Thiago Motta is one of the brightest prospects in football management, but it’s not all been plain sailing for the Brazilian-born former Italy international. He won 27 major honours in his playing days, but as a manager got the sack after two months and 10 games in his first head coach job, at Genoa. That was in December 2019, and it was nearly two years until he got another opportunity to put his methods into practice.

When Motta took over Spezia ahead of the 2021/22 season, the club was tipped for relegation from Serie A. Despite operating under a transfer ban, he managed to keep them up, taking four satisfying points off Genoa in the process. By September 2022, he had taken over as Bologna’s head coach.

In his first season at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, he guided Bologna to ninth – their highest league finish in more than a decade. After 29 games of the next campaign, he had the club in fourth place, improbably pushing for a Champions League spot. Impressive results, but also with a brand of football that has marked him out as a coach to watch.

Here, our UEFA-licensed coaches have analysed the Motta way of playing…

Possession style: Build-up

In keeping Spezia up in his first full season as a head coach, Motta naturally focused more on defensive aspects. At Bologna, he has since shown his preference for a possession-based style. In nearly two seasons with the red and blues, his side has placed in Serie A’s top five for most passes per 90 minutes, while averaging 56 per cent possession.

He has mostly set his team up with a back four and a three-player central midfield. The only real changes have been the dynamics of the midfield unit. He has rotated between a 4-2-3-1, with a double pivot ahead of the back line, and a 4-3-3 structure, with two number eights operating in front of a single pivot.

With both formations, his side builds from the back, often playing short passes through the thirds, with the goalkeeper and back four all key parts of the process. When building with a double pivot, the timing of the movement towards the back line is very important. Whenever Motta’s back line is pressed, the pivots drop on the angle, allowing for a bounce, switch or delicate pass round the corner to break the press.

When the opposition commits to player-oriented marking, one of the wingers may roll inside to help overload the opposing central-midfield trio. This also helps create wider spaces for bounce passes, from in to out. It also allows others to rotate in the newly created wide space. A common example of this is the full-back closest to the ball running off – as shown below by left-back Giorgos Kyriakopoulos – to then join the midfield spaces.

The winger and full-back pairing can then attack the wide spaces, especially when this forward run isn’t tracked. Because the 4-2-3-1 has a single number 10, should one full-back advance on one side of the pitch, then the number 10 widens to support the winger on the other side. This creates a second wide pairing; in the example above, Lewis Ferguson supporting Riccardo Orsolini.

The 4-3-3 operates with just one pivot ahead of the back line. As such, Motta has allowed for rotations and flexibility during the build phase, to manipulate the opposing high press or block. One example sees one of his centre-backs move into midfield, forming a temporary double pivot if needed (#31 Sam Beukema stepping forward, below). This requires the goalkeeper to step forward during deeper build-up, to fill the gap in the back line. The single pivot then readjusts their positioning, while the number eights can move higher, to help pin the opposing midfield and back line. Wide spaces remain available for forward runs from the full-back, as with the 4-2-3-1.

Possession style: Creating in a 4-3-3

Once Bologna’s build-up phase is complete, Motta’s 4-3-3 shape sees the number eights (Kacper Urbanski and Ferguson, below) move wide to support the wingers. From here, further combinations with the full-back occur, either in the wide area or via the inside channels.

Wide trios then build, rotate and progress, but in the final third they don’t necessarily look to work regular crosses. In two years with Bologna, Motta’s side have ranked lowest and (after 29 games of the 2023/24 season) third-lowest for crosses per 90 minutes in Serie A. Instead, they prefer to combine inside, patiently working their way forward. The number eights, wingers, full-backs and centre-forward all come together, progressively narrowing, to combine and penetrate. Any crosses they deliver are often from narrower positions, with lots of teammates in close contact.

This creation phase is becoming increasingly important for Motta, as he advances his Bologna side to compete higher up the league, but also because the initial build phase is becoming slightly bypassed. This is down to an increasing lack of opposing pressure high up the pitch, with sides more frequently sitting off Bologna.

Initially in this creation phase, Motta’s wingers and full-backs are quite wide, forcing the opposition to follow these runs. This creates more space and time for the pivot players to receive and play forward – or for the centre-backs to step into midfield, when appropriate.

Sometimes, opponents have formed a compact block, focusing on blocking Bologna’s centre-backs or pivot from progressing centrally. In this case, the wide pairings – and later wide trios – become the focus for Bologna’s progression. It is these winger-full-back pairings that Motta has referenced in what he labelled a 2-7-2 formation. In this case, the formation is thought of vertically, rather than as horizontal lines across the pitch. The ‘2’ refers to the pairs in the wide areas, with the other seven players being located in the central area of the pitch (below).

Possession style: Creating in a 4-2-3-1

The 4-2-3-1 operates in a very similar way, except with a second pivot. Between this second pivot and the number 10, they rotate, drift and take up pockets of space – all with the goal of working similar structures and shapes to those described with the 4-3-3. The 4-2-3-1 delivers more fluidity, despite still working to an overall structure. This formation is often used by Motta when the opposition marking is player-oriented against his central-midfield trio. Dragging opponents elsewhere often frees up passing lanes into the wide pairing or central forward.

This is part of an impressive feature of Motta’s Bologna: recognising a defensive shift from the opposition, especially in game, to then adapt and react with a new attacking approach. Even more impressive is that this does not sacrifice their domination of the ball, or their style of consistent short passes.

Defensive block at Spezia

With Spezia fighting to survive in Serie A, Motta often prioritised defensive compactness. Their low block often formed a 4-4-2 or a 4-4-1-1, with the nine and 10 screening as much central access as possible. Whenever they operated in a staggered front pairing, with one in front of the other, they could work on to the centre-backs. There they would force the ball wide, with the other screening the deepest pivot (below).

This often worked to their advantage, as the wingers worked back early and recovered into the midfield line of four. Once they forced play wide, Spezia had players in cover and support, ready to continue forcing the ball wide or regain possession.

There was sometimes a slight gap within the inside channels, however, with the wingers ready to defend just ahead of the full-backs. This often came because the two central midfielders worked so closely together when defending. While this enhanced protection around and just ahead of the centre-backs, it also meant they sometimes conceded inside-channel spaces. Motta’s block was tested most when teams worked the ball around Spezia’s front line, to then dominate the inside channels and penetrate the midfield unit.

Spezia’s PPDA was the highest in Serie A throughout the 2021/22 season. This indicated their preference to arrange and reorganise before applying pressure or committed challenges on the opposing ball-carrier. In rare moments when Spezia’s back line squeezed higher – especially on backwards passes – or they committed into a brief period of aggressive pressing, it would often be led by the centre-back and corresponding central midfielder ahead.

A key trigger was the opposition forward dropping to receive in midfield. Here, Spezia’s centre-back tightly followed. The central midfielder then jumped in the next phase, with the nine and 10 pairing supporting the press.

Player-oriented marking at Bologna

After his move to Bologna, Motta increased the defensive intensity of his team in comparison to his time with Spezia. Bologna’s combination of duels, tackles and interceptions, per minute of opposition possession, was the highest in Serie A in 2022/23. After 29 games of 2023/14, it was the second highest. This indicates a counter-pressing presence when the ball is lost. Bologna are also among the top clubs for PPDA, again highlighting their ability to chase and hunt the ball deep into the opposition’s half.

A key aspect of their defending is a mid-block, or high block starting well in the opponents’ half. If they don’t win the ball back quickly, they fall into a block similar to that seen with his Spezia team, but higher up the pitch and for much longer periods. As a result, the back line has to be comfortable with defending the space in behind, which ismuch bigger than at Spezia. The goalkeeper must also focus on becoming a sweeper-goalkeeper, to deal with through balls or clipped passes over – especially those landing in the central spaces.

Motta’s Bologna have focused on covering forward runs, rotations and general opposition movements, by taking a player-oriented approach to marking (below). It is not dissimilar to the famed approach of Marcelo Bielsa, although not quite to the extremes of the Argentinian coach.

Bologna typically employ this approach when they adopt a mid or high block. Should the opposition full-back make a lengthy run forward, then Motta’s winger will track it. If the opposing winger rolls inside aggressively, then Motta’s full-back will track them. When an opposing midfielder runs from deep, all the way into the spaces in behind, then Motta’s central midfield will track the movement.

This reliance on going player-for-player places an increased physical demand on his team. It is an approach to defending that explains why Bologna rank so high for challenges per minute of opposing possession. Out of possession, someone is almost always duelling, tackling or intercepting in 1v1 moments all over the pitch. Although this may pull some of Motta’s players into new areas defensively, a 2v1 overload is often created by his centre-backs. The free player is then able to cover and protect others when needed.

It is an approach that has served Motta and his teams well so far. He could soon be adding managerial silverware to his impressive haul of playing honours, if he keeps up his progress as a head coach.

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Author: The Coaches' Voice