Europa League preview: Liverpool vulnerable to pace, Stepanenko the key for Shakhtar

For most of the season the Europa League, with its bloated schedule and Thursday night football, fails to excite the neutrals but after 910 matches spread over ten months just four teams remain from the 191 that entered. Now it gets interesting.

Sevilla are searching for a record-breaking third consecutive title and are strong favourites to defeat Shakhtar Donetsk over two legs. Liverpool’s dramatic 4-3 win over Dortmund in the quarter-final signalled the strength of their challenge for that coveted Champions League spot but Villarreal, a fascinating young side with an excellent tactical shape, stand a good chance of progressing to an all-Spanish final. For all four teams the journey has been long and gruelling, but with little to play for domestically the Europa League semi-finals promise to be of the highest quality.

Villarreal v Liverpool

1) Will Coutinho and Lallana find the space to weave through Villarreal’s 4-4-2 defensive blockade?

Villarreal utilise a narrow 4-4-2 that focuses on extremely well organised pressing and quick counter-attacks; their tightly compressed defensive blockade is extremely difficult to break down (they conceded just once in four games against Napoli and Bayern Leverkusen) and thus Liverpool’s attacking midfielders will need to work extremely hard to find spaces in between Villarreal’s lines of defence.

As exemplified in the recent 2-2 draw with Barcelona, Marcelino instructs his wingers to tuck inside and become part of a very narrow midfield four aimed at minimising space in central areas when the opposition has the ball; this could hurt Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp’s attacking midfield three look to float in the half-space between defence and midfield, playing very narrowly in order to create high tempo short passing in the final third. Adam Lallana and Philippe Coutinho will have to be constantly on the move in order to pull Villarreal’s midfield out of shape, and will require Divock Origi to pull into the left flank to provide width.

Unfortunately, Liverpool have begun to look static since Jordan Henderson’s injury. Neither Emre Can nor James Milner are mobile enough to create unpredictable passing lines and destabilise a defensive shell; as such, the away side may rely upon the directness of substitutes (Jordan Ibe and Sheyi Ojo) to make the break through.

2) Are Liverpool ill-prepared to cope with Villarreal’s lightning counters?

Part of the reason Klopp’s furious gegenpressing football is so exciting to watch is that high pressing creates a very wide, lopsided formation that is highly vulnerable to conceding goals; in the 4-3 victory over Dortmund Liverpool twice conceded from counter-attacks as the away side easily dribbled through central midfield and slipped through ball in behind the defence.

As mentioned above, this issue partly stems from Can’s and Milner’s occasionally awkward partnership at the base of midfield although problems will persist regardless of Klopp’s team selection. Unlike Villarreal, Liverpool are less able to close out gaps by falling back into a deep shell because when pressing so high there is simply not time to do so; they made just ten interceptions against Dortmund, with only three of these coming from Can and Milner.

Quick, centrally located counter-attacks are at the heart of the Villarreal tactical model. Roberto Soldado drops deeper to become the link man, holding up the ball and feeding Denis Suarez – a tricky dribbler who weaves from right to centre as the fulcrum of their breakaways. It is not difficult to envisage Suarez gliding past a flat-footed James Milner and attacking the oft-shaky Mamadou Sakho head on. At least for the first leg in Spain, Klopp needs to use a more conservative style or risk accusations of naivety.

Shakhtar Donetsk v Sevilla

1) Who will win the battle on the right flank: Darijo Srna or Yevhen Konoplyanka?

The two most dangerous players on the pitch will occupy the same flank in Ukraine, and the outcome of this match could rest on Yevhen Konoplyanka’s ability to keep Darijo Srna pinned back. Sevilla’s primary source of attack will be via incisive counter-attacks (average 46.3% possession away from home) led by Konoplyanka and Vitolo, and indeed this is likely to be successful against Shakhtar if Srna is given licence to pour forward.

Srna has looked very shaky this season against bigger clubs (he missed 46% of his tackles in the Champions League group stages) and if Shakhtar rely on him too heavily in attack (1.8 accurate crosses per match, two assists) then Konoplyanka will take full advantage of the space left behind him. Few teams in world football counter with the speed and efficiency of Unai Emery’s side; Shakhtar don’t stand a chance unless Srna curbs his creative instincts.

2) Can Sevilla’s sharp pressing blunt Stepanenko’s distribution from the base of midfield?

Sevilla will expect to dominate the game but their aggressive pressing in central midfield could leave them open to Shakhtar’s wingers. 75% of the Ukrainian side’s attacks come down the flanks where Brazilians Taison and Marlos attack directly towards the byline; it is not the most complex of tactical systems but one that could prove successful if Taras Stepanenko can outmanoeuvre Sevilla’s press from central midfield.

Stepanenko’s most obvious role for Shakhtar is as a defensive stopper (4.2 tackles and 2.8 interceptions per match), but equally important is his distribution to the flanks; it is the Ukraine international’s crisp passing into the channels that instigates those quick Brazilian assaults.

Ever Banega (2.0 tackles per match) plays at the tip of the midfield triangle in Emery’s 4-2-3-1 formation and as such leads the line in pressing; it will be up to him to pounce quickly onto Stepanenko and prevent him from playing the long ball into Taison or Marlos. Such a straight forward tactic should not be difficult for Emery to work out and nullify; Sevilla are firm favourites for this one.

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Can Sevilla’s sharp pressing blunt Stepanenko’s distribution from the base of midfield?

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Can Sevilla’s sharp pressing blunt Stepanenko’s distribution from the base of midfield?

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