Liverpool 2005 Final Tactical Setup
The year 2005 was an amazing one for this manager, these players, these fans.
One night in Istanbul changed their club’s history and we are here to talk about how that happened…tactically.
Before we do that, we need to understand how Liverpool got in that position in the first place and how Rafa Benitez adapted his tactical setup to match what Carlo Ancelotti planned.
After signing Rafa Benitez as their new coach, Liverpool had to solve another problem – Steven Gerard was courted by Chelsea.
The Spanish manager’s first task was to keep the Liverpool legend at the club. He managed to that in the end, but was unable, however, to convince Michael Owen to extend his contract.
He was subsequently sold to Real Madrid. Later in the summer transfer window, Rafa Benítez signed several players from La Liga, most notably Luis García and Xabi Alonso.
Benítez also gave new life to existing Liverpool players, transforming Jamie Carragher from a utility player to one of Europe's top centre backs, alongside Sami Hyypiä.
During his first season, Benítez was unable to improve Liverpool's form in the Premier League. Key players missed much of the season through injury, and the team failed to challenge Chelsea and Arsenal for the league title, finishing fifth.
Benítez, however, they did reach an English domestic cup final, the League Cup but losing it against Chelsea at the Millennium Stadium, 3–2 after extra time.
Rafa Benitez had managed a few clubs before Liverpool and had already formed a tactical setup that he tried to implement, with a few tweaks, wherever he managed.
Benitez started his managerial career as a youth coach in Real Madrid’s setup, before being appointed manager of Real Valladolid for the 1995–96 season.
But that reign was not successful and in the 1996–97 season, the Spanish manager took over at Osasuna in the Segunda División, but after only nine games and one win, he was dismissed.
He tried his hand at a few other clubs like Extremadura or Tenerife, with some success, before being appointed the manager of Valencia in 2001.
Valencia of 2001 was no pushover. They were a club on the rise and Rafa Benitez helped them reach their peak by 2004.
Valencia fans were soon won over by Benítez, after he introduced a more attacking style of play than his predecessor.
In 2002, his tactical setup saw Benítez lead Valencia to their first La Liga title in 31 years, winning it by a seven-point margin over second-placed Deportivo La Coruña.
However, the following season was a disappointing one - the club failed to win the league title, finishing 18 points behind champions Real Madrid, and missed out on the top four by a single point. The season also saw Benítez make his debut in the Champions League, where his side reached the quarter-finals, losing to Inter Milan.
In the 2003–04 season, though, Valencia won La Liga with three games to spare, and beat Olympique Marseille 2–0 in the UEFA Cup final.
Despite this success, Rafa Benítez fell out with Jesús García Pitarch, the club's director of football, over control of new signings, and the club's failure to reinforce the squad with the players he wanted.
These differences of opinion saw Benítez resign as Valencia coach on 1 June 2004.
Being on a high after the success he had with Valencia and Liverpool hit some lows, the match was a perfect one.
On 16 June 2004, Benítez was appointed manager of Liverpool, replacing Gérard Houllier, becoming the first Spaniard to manage in the Premier League.
As mentioned, the club finished 5th in the league and lost out in the League Cup final. But the UEFA Champions League is the stage on which Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool found success.
The Spanish manager has employed a 4-2-3-1 system almost wherever he managed. With variations. In an episode of the Coaches’ Voice, he explains how he setup his Valencia side for success and how he adapted depending on the game moments and the opponents.
However, in the 2005 UEFA Champions League final, he set up his team in a 4-4-1-1 formation.
His calm demeanour and tactical changes at half time of the 2005 UEFA Champions League final were said to give players belief they could battle back from 3–0 down.
Benítez often played key players in unorthodox positions to suit a formation.
He was also a firm believer of tight marking and making the most of the team’s possession. And all of this was shown in the second half of the 2005 UEFA Champions League final. In which, you will never guess, he used a 3-4-2-1 formation, making a substitution - Dietmar Hamann replacing Steve Finnan and playing John-Arne Riise and Šmicer on the flanks, Xabi Alonso and Dietmar Hamann as holding midfielders and Steven Gerrard playing as an attacking midfielder.
These tactical changes seemed to have surprised the AC Milan players, with Liverpool scoring 3 goals in 13 minutes.
In the end, the AC Milan players got back to their senses and balanced the game out again, but they never fully recovered from the shock they went through.
To set up as Liverpool did in the second half of that UEFA Champions League final, we need versatile players that can play and interpret different roles.
I chose a sweeper keeper on defend duty, just to keep up with modern times. But a goalkeeper role with do the job also.
The back three seemed to be two ball playing defenders on defend duty and a central defender one on defend.
Due to the attacking nature of the setup, the wide center backs need to stretch the pitch a bit and help recycle the ball when the team is in possession.
The two holding midfielders are a defensive one and a deep lying playmaker. They are both on support duty, but I initially used the defensive midfielder on defend. I changed after I noticed him playing too far back in attack, leaving a small gap between him and the rest of the attacking players, which better teams exploited often.
However, with this setup you do lose a player from the defensive setup. So, use this wisely.
No player instructions for this role means that the player’s approach to the game is going to be dictated by his traits, so do take this into account. The defend duty comes with a set of instructions.
Two wingers on support were employed on the flanks. Their role is to move up and down on their flanks, both defending and attacking.
Defensive wingers could also be used, but if you want to replicate Liverpool’s second half tactic, you do need them to be more present in the attack as well.
To compensate for their high up the pitch positioning and the lack of natural wing backs, I would recommend choosing players with some defensive abilities and high work rate for these two roles. In this way, they might also defend when the team regroups in the initial positions.
And the front three are an attacking midfielder on support duty, an advanced playmaker on attack and an advanced forward.
Mark tighter for all three players and stay wider for the advanced playmaker. This player should try and cover his flank as much as possible, or at least play in the half spaces.
A trequartista would also accomplish what we need here, but I found that an advanced playmaker was more balanced overall.
As mentality, I chose positive.
In possession, fairly wide attacking width, slightly more direct passing directness and a slightly higher or standard tempo. And be more disciplined, to make sure that the players do not go out of the team’s shape.
In transition, counter-press, counter and distribute the ball to the defence.
And out of possession, a high press and a standard defensive line. Trigger press more often and trap outside.
Playing with three at the back and no natural wing backs requires the team be as narrow as possible in defence, to make it harder for the opposition to find passing lanes or attacking channels.
I have also made a 4-4-1-1 formation, trying to cover Liverpool’s initial setup in the 2005 UEFA Champions League final. This tactic was not tested, but I can make it available if you want it.
The 3-4-2-1 setup helped us win the Premier League, the Carabao Cup and the FA Community Shield in my save with Manchester City.
I think the setup is an attacking one to use for a full season and would require a few tweaks to make it work in the long run. As it was meant to help Liverpool recover a deficit of 3 goals, in 45 minutes.
But it can work.
Rafa Benitez’s career built up to this moment and afterwards, in my opinion, he had nothing else to prove.
In my opinion, he will always be one of the greatest football managers out there.
