Nomadic Neymar

First-Half: The Domino Effect

PSG began their Champions League clash against Manchester United playing with a 4-3-3. Neymar (circled in red) started as the sole man up front for the Parisians, despite not possessing the qualities of a natural centre-forward. On paper, his role could be best described as a false-nine, but in reality, his positioning was far less precise than your average false-nine. In fact, Neymar was essentially given a free role, with the reins to roam the pitch wherever he pleased. For Neymar, this meant playing as a left-winger, alongside Mbappe, who already occupied that space.

However, PSG manager Thomas Tuchel instructed his fullbacks to push forward and make overlapping runs in behind the wingers. As a result, Neymar, Mbappe and Kurzawa were all trying to operate in the exact same area. Given that there was no longer anyone up front, any attempt to overload the wings would be fraught, as any cross into the box would not be met; unquestionably impacting PSG's ability to score goals.

Unfortunately for PSG, their formation continued to deviate from anything resembling a 4-3-3. As the fullbacks pushed up, the two outside centre midfielders followed behind them, occasionally trying to make themselves an option in the box. Yet, for the majority of the first-half, the two outside centre midfielders played as makeshift fullbacks, attempting to provide cover for Kurzawa and Florenzi, who had joined the front three. A failure to cover the vacated space could result in a Manchester United counter-attack down the flanks.

Above, you can see the result of PSG's jumbled first-half tactics. After a PSG attack, both of the outside centre midfielders have shifted into the fullbacks' natural positions. Meanwhile after recovering from their initial push forward, the fullbacks are in positions resembling wide midfielders. As a result, Danilo Pereira (circled in black) is the sole man in midfield (represented by the orange zone) for the Parisians, giving him a lot of ground to cover. This clashed with United’s midfield, which featured Bruno Fernandes, Fred and Mctominay in the middle of the park, outnumbering PSG 4:1. None of which is helped by Neymar, who has drifted into his own half, continuing to weaken PSG's forward presence.

In short, PSG spent the first-half extremely vulnerable in midfield and in front of goal thanks to several cascading tactical arrangements.

Second-Half: Damage Control

At halftime, Thomas Tuchel makes a substitution; Moise Kean comes on for Idrissa Gueye. In some ways this is the perfect solution to PSG's first-half conundrum. As a natural number nine, Kean obviously fills the void left up front. Meanwhile, the disorganized midfield three shifts into a more compact double pivot. Out of the three midfielders, Gueye made the most logical substitute because he had become involved in PSG's left-flank jumble. Perhaps the most curious tactical decision was that Neymar continued to roam the pitch freely throughout the second-half, even as many of the players around him had to be shifted in order to accommodate his unorthodox positioning.

As the second-half started to unfold, Tuchel's change began to take effect. PSG looked much more dangerous going forward and were creating better chances. Yet as their attack improved, PSG essentially played the same in possession, only now they had a natural centre-forward who could be a presence in the box. This can be observed in the 54th minute when Neymar, with Mbappe to his left, passes to Kurzawa who crosses the ball in towards Kean. The chance resulted in a corner which turned out to be the culmination of this attacking spell, as Anthony Martial headed the ball into his own goal to give PSG the equalizer.

After the own goal, neither PSG nor United were able to grab the upper hand. In fact, both teams looked a bit passive. That was, until Marcus Rashford dealt the decisive blow, once again grabbing a late match-winner at The Parc des Princes.

Big Picture: Style Over Substance

Essentially, Neymar's fluid positioning created several tactical deficiencies which ultimately cost PSG the match. As a result, you are left wondering whether Thomas Tuchel instructed Neymar to play a free role, or Neymar decided to disregard Tuchel's tactics and simply roam as he pleased. If the latter is true, than Neymar may be falling back down the path that has plagued a lot of his time in Paris.

When Neymar left Barcelona, the media seemed to reach the consensus that he made the switch in order to leave Messi's shadow and become the undisputed star player. Somewhat unsurprisingly, Neymar appeared to have the ego to match his prerogative, occasionally acting as if he was too good for Ligue 1, and possibly even his teammates. His lack of professionalism not only earned the disapproval of pundits, but also the PSG faithful, who began to turn against their €222 million man. Yet, over the course of PSG's run to the 2019/20 Champions League final, these tensions seemed to have eased (i.e. Neymar's attitude has improved and everyone at PSG has appreciated it).

However, if Neymar continues to play in contrast with the rest of the team, his time in Paris may go down as a failure because PSG will still be without a Champions League trophy. Champions League glory is essential for any team looking to assert themselves as one of the Europe's elite 'super-clubs.' So, Neymar may have provided PSG with a plethora of flicks and tricks, but he has still not given them the ultimate prize.

In other words, PSG chose glamorous brand marketing and Neymar's attacking flair over pragmatism, tactics, and ultimately success on the pitch.