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Today is the day of days. The big one. City vs. Madrid round 2.

Here’s what we’ve got for you:

• Inter give Milan the sleeper hold 😴 

• City vs. Madrid round 2 💥 🧨 

• Folarin Balogun commits to the USMNT 🇺🇸 

INTER GIVE MILAN THE SLEEPER HOLD 😴 

TLDR; 🏃 💨 

Inter score third goal in tie to advance to final 🔵⚫️ 

• Milan had 2 great opportunities to cut Inter’s lead in half in the first 38’ of the second leg with attempts from Diaz & Leao.

• Maignan made a great reaction save at 39’ from a point blank Dzeko header.

• A cagey start to the second half kept things at 0-0 (2-0 aggregate).

• Substitute Lukaku assisted Latauro’s 74’ goal to put the tie out of reach at 3-0 aggregate.

Review of the tie 🔍️ 

Inter keys to success ☑️ 

Set pieces ♟️ 

• Džeko used his physicality to score the first goal of the tie from a corner kick.

• He nearly scored another around the 39’ mark in the second leg, if it weren’t for a Maignan reaction save.

Bench depth 💺 

• Having trusted depth, like Lukaku, to come on & run at the tired legs of Milan’s defenders was a huge advantage for Inter.

• Lukaku helped put the tie to bed with an assist for Latauro’s goal.

Late attacking runs from midfield 🏃‍♂️ 

• Mkhitaryan’s goal came from a late run from midfield, where he burst into the area, snatched the ball, and scored.

• These types of goals define the style & formation that Inter play.

Where it went wrong for Milan🔻 

Not efficient in front of goal 👎️

• Milan had 2 great opportunities to get the tie to 2-1 in the second half of the first leg, from Tonali’s strike from distance & Pobega’s shot at the center of the penalty box.

• In the second leg, Diaz missed a sitter that Tonali put on a plate for him after an impressive run (around the 11’). In the 38’, Leao missed a big chance on his left foot that he flashed across goal.

• These chances could have really brought the tie back to life.

Poor defending 🔓️

• The first two goals of this tie came from lapses in concentration from Milan’s defense. Maignan can only do so much.

• The third goal was not ideal defending or goalkeeping, but tired legs and tired minds contributed.

No “Plan B” from Pioli 🤷‍♂️

• After the first tie, you could sympathize with Milan’s manager Pioli. He was without Leao & Bennacer, two key players.

• Where were the changes to revive the game/tie?

  • In the first match, Origi was lively when he came on. Throughout this tie, Giroud has been completely neutralized.

  • Origi, De Ketelaere, anyone. This team needed:

    • An injection of something different, earlier in the game

    • A wildcard that Inter had not accounted for

      • Inter knew they could shut down Milan’s attack by shutting down Leao.

• It felt like Milan went down without a fight in the second leg.

  • Especially the second half of the second leg

CITY VS. MADRID ROUND 2 💥 🧨

Can Madrid do it again? 🤨 vs. 👨‍🦲 

Madrid’s keys to success ⬜️🗝️ 

Neutralize Haaland… again 🔐 

• Rudiger & Alaba did an outstanding job of this in the first leg, fighting fire with fire & matching Haaland’s physicality.

Let City play their game, then hit on the counter ◀️ 

• With Haaland & KDB, City become even more dangerous on the counter attack. Do not let them run into open space.

• Let City play Pep’s possession-dominant game in your defensive third, even if it means 75% possession for City.

• Seize the ball & be off to the races with a signature Madrid counterattack.

• This is exactly what Los Blancos did to a tee in the first leg:

City’s keys to success 🔵🗝️ 

Contain Vinicius Jr. 🔐 

• To be fair, Kyle Walker did just about the best job possible on Vini in the first leg, defending rainblow flicks & crazy dribbles.

• Like Haaland, it only takes one moment for Vini to punish you.

Set pieces ♟️ 

• City have the most set piece goals in this season’s Champions League, with 6.

• This sounds more like something you’d hear about Simeone’s Atletico, not Pep’s City. But it’s true.

• With their 4 centerbacks, Haaland, & Rodri on the field, they can be sure to attack & defend every set piece opportunity.

• It also helps that they have some of the best set piece takers in the world…

Shot volume ➕ 

• It may sound rudimentary, but City often control the ball for extended periods of time without shooting.

• Against a team as ruthless as Madrid, who shoot at any opportunity, City could take a page from their book.

• With City’s attacking quality, sometimes just getting clean shots off can be a better strategy than finding the perfect shot.

• Take KDB’s goal from the first leg for example:

He didn’t wait, he just ripped one.

Rumored formations 🔢 

City 🔵 ⚪️ 

• 3-2-5

  • No major changes expected. 4 “centerbacks” with John Stones joining Rodri in holding midfield.

  • City will try to overload all attacking areas with 5 attackers, while having 4 centerbacks to lock down their box & set pieces.

Madrid ⚪️⚪️ 

• 4-4-2

  • It has reported that Rodrygo will likely be replaced by Militao, moving Camavinga into midfield.

  • Vini-Benz; Camavinga-Modric-Kroos-Valverde; Alaba-Rudiger-Militao-Carvajal; Courtois

  • This will give Madrid more defensive stability, in hopes of:

    1. Hitting on the counter to go up 1-0

       1. Even though they lose Rodrygo in attack, they have Camavinga & Valverde as transition monsters in midfield.

    2. Keeping it 0-0 until the second half when they can play their hand & go for the win

Gaffer’s Bet 🃏

• City draw first blood, but Madrid retaliate. Madrid squeak out a win in extra time. They are inevitable. 🤨 

FOLARIN BALOGUN CHOOSES USMNT 🇺🇸 💥 

Why should I care? 🤷‍♂️ 

Key to unlocking USMNT’s talent 🔓️ 

• For any American who watched the World Cup, the clear missing piece in the team was the #9, the striker, the goalscorer… whatever you want to call it.

• The USMNT is a team full of players who need the ball at their feet to do something special. Pulisic, Reyna, Aaronson, Weah, the list goes on.

• Balogun brings complementary qualities to the attack.

  • Making runs in behind for passers/creators

  • Manipulating defenders by moving off the ball

  • A nose for goals. Being a “fox in the box”. A poacher.

Tipping point for other dual nationals 📈 

• The USMNT has long been made up of dual nationals, meaning they were eligible to play for another country besides the US.

• Balogun is the highest profile dual national to ever opt to play for the US.

  • Top Premier League academy product, from Arsenal

  • Led Ligue 1 in scoring for lots of this season

  • Only 21 years old

• The US Soccer Federation will hope he can be a tipping point for other high profile dual nationals to come join the USMNT’s project.

Wednesday also means Champions League.

Until then— good day, Free Agents. 🫡 

That’s all from The Free Transfer for today, share the love with your friends 👇️👇️