What can Jesse Marsch's Leeds United reveal about CanMNT's plan vs Netherlands, France?

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As he gets set for his first games in charge of the Canadian men's national team, Jesse Marsch faces a unique challenge.

The Netherlands, France, and Argentina will be his first three opponents – a trial by fire, and then some.

It's a task made even more difficult because of the fact that Marsch will also be looking to implement a specific style of play and tactical identity into a group that's never really had one, instead defining themselves on heart and adaptability in equal measure. But those growing pains can be quickly exposed by some of the top teams and players in the world... they're playing Virgil van Dijk and Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi in the span of a few weeks, after all

At the same time, this isn't a mission Marsch hasn't embarked on before; having coached at Leeds United, RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg, the American manager has been on the sidelines for some marquee billings... and managed to craft some remarkable results in them, too.

In particular, he managed a few games for Leeds in which he can draw parallels to what he’s about to face with Canada. At Leeds, his squad was valued at just under $300 million, which makes victories he had over Chelsea and Liverpool in 2022-2023 seem remarkable given that both clubs he beat are worth nearly $1 billion apiece (via Transfermarkt). 

Now, he’ll look to find similar magic for Canada in their next three matches. A Canadian side valued at just under $200 million, they’re set to face a France side worth over a billion dollars, a Netherlands side that’s worth just under $900 million, and an Argentine side that’s valued at around $870 million (all via Transfermarkt). 

As a result, one can immediately look at that discrepancy and make the parallel that Canada’s matchups this summer aren’t too dissimilar to the ones Marsch’s Leeds had with Chelsea or Liverpool, for example. 

With that in mind, it leads to an interesting question - if one were to rewatch one of those Leeds victories, could that offer a glimpse into A) how Marsch will set up this team tactically and B) how he could set up to win his first matches in charge?

Here’s a look back at one of those Leeds victories, a memorable 2-1 result over Liverpool at Anfield, and a deep dive into how this Canadian team might look if they’re tasked to emulate a similar performance against the Netherlands, France or Argentina. 

The story of the game

Starting with the game itself, it ended up being a perfect storm for Leeds. A key to beating big teams is to score first, and Leeds had the fortune of doing so within five minutes after a big error from Joe Gomez gifted Rodrigo with an empty net tap-in. 

At the same time, that didn’t end up affecting the game state too much, as Liverpool responded through Mo Salah in the 14th minute, as the prolific Liverpool winger slotted home a cross on the second phase of a set-piece to tie things up. 

From there, that set up a dramatic late Leeds winner, as Crysencio Summerville was able to stun the Liverpool fans with an 89th-minute goal, which came off a cutback into the box from Wilfried Gnonto to Patrick Bamford, whose touch bounced perfectly to Summerville to finish. 

2012 - Crysencio Summerville's 89th minute winner for Leeds was the latest winning goal scored against Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League since Robin van Persie's 90th minute strike for Arsenal in March 2012. Cautioned. pic.twitter.com/5f3AkRI9A8

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 29, 2022

With that, it secured a big win for Leeds, who deserved at least a point on the balance of play, although they were made to work for it by Liverpool, as they came close to conceding a few times. 

Yet, this game showed off some key principles of Marsch’s play, as Leeds were relentless out of possession, direct when they won the ball back and weren’t afraid to take risks at both ends of the pitch. 

Those risks paid off in this game, such as on the first goal, and they nearly cost them at other moments, yet that’s the crux of Marsch’s set-up - maximizing attacking opportunities and nullifying defensive opportunities. 

It took a lot of work off the ball, as Leeds held just 31% of possession, but the xG was 1.77 to 1.74 for Leeds despite that (per FotMob), showing the success of their set-up in this game.

Here are some ways they were able to do that. 

Organized defensive shape and press:

(All videos and screenshots via Sky Sports)

To begin, there is the most important element of Marsch’s system, which was evident when watching this game - the press, and more specifically, how his team was set up without the ball. 

A hallmark of the Red Bull system, and a buzzword that has become commonplace in the sport, pressing was very important to Leeds's success in this game, more specifically.

Interestingly, however, it wasn’t as high-octane and unhinged as some might expect. Instead, it was calculated, as Leeds tried to stay compact when the ball was central, before launching forward whenever Liverpool tried to play through their full backs (as seen below).

Set up in the famed Red Bull 4-2-2-2 out of possession despite being listed as a 4-2-3-1 on the team sheet, that was because their attacking midfielder in that formation, Brendan Aaronson, ended up pushing up alongside their striker, Rodrigo to make it a 4-2-2-2. 

From there, the 4-2-2-2 was fluid, sitting sometimes like a 4-4-2 like in the above screenshot, but also returning to that 4-2-2-2 in other phases, like the one below, which shows the 4-2-2-2 in action.

And speaking of the 4-2-2-2, that seemed to be a key reference out of possession, as Leeds hardly spent much of the game out of that shape, with their attack sometimes even being influenced by that, as most players didn’t veer too far out of position to ensure they’d be able to return to that shape as soon as they lost the ball. 

Within that shape, the triggers were clear - whenever Liverpool played the ball to their full backs, Leeds's strong side players reacted, sending the wide player up on that side, with the striker, midfielder and full back also often reacting. 

This next shot gives an idea of what that looked like, with Summerville pouncing forward as soon as Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold received the ball there.

One thing to note in that sequence, however? The circled Rodrigo, who struggled in his pressing in the first half as a striker, even if he was the one to score on a similar action (although that was on as much Gomez’s poor pass as it was Rodrigo’s pressing). He often struggled to stay on the same line as Aaronson, which created gaps for Liverpool to play through, as they could’ve in that last shot with Fabinho, who was wide-open due to Rodrigo’s pressing. 

When watching the game, I wondered if that was perhaps by design or something I’d missed - but Marsch seemed to confirm that he wasn’t pleased with Rodrigo either, as he took him out of the game in the 52nd minute despite his goal. 

Returning to the defensive shape, another key aspect was how involved the full backs and midfielders were in the press. Whenever the ball went wide, the strong side full back often pushed forward, which led the strong side central midfielder to drop in and cover, as was the case below.

By doing this, the goal was to limit Liverpool from isolating anyone out wide, which Mo Salah often tries to do at the edge of the box. By pressing those wide players early, it kept them engaged away from Leeds’s goal, which was key. 

Lastly, returning to the midfield, that was the other thing to note in Leeds's shape - how their midfield pivot operated. 

Often, the pair of Tyler Adams and Marc Roca operated on a different line to the other, with one stepping up and the other dropping back, with usually the strong-sided one doing the former and the weak-sided one doing the latter, as was the case below.

Part of that might’ve been specific to Liverpool, as Thiago Alcantara was wonderful in this game whenever he was in possession, something that Leeds were wary of and tried to react to, but it appeared to be mostly by design. 

By doing that, it ensured that Leeds would avoid being caught out by Liverpool’s midfield trio, who was looking to create overloads and triangles with Leeds's double-pivot. By ensuring the midfielders were constantly on a different line, it made it tougher for them to do that, especially with Aaronson sometimes dropping in to make up the numbers, something the weak-side winger also did on occasion. 

That’s something to note with Canada, as they’ve sometimes struggled to play teams with midfield trios when defending in their 4-4-2, something that Marsch will look to fix if he’s to employ this defensive 4-2-2-2. 

Elsewhere, a few other notes from this game are that the aggressive nature of their full backs did nearly cost Leeds a few times, especially when Liverpool crafted a build-up sequence that saw them shift the ball from their full back to a midfielder and then to a winger in one fluid motion. That ended up having a chain effect, as the out-of-position full backs caused the centre backs to have to compensate, leading to a whole breakdown that created some dangerous Liverpool attacks. 

Other than that, however, the system mostly held up as hoped, even if the near-misses could’ve very well ended up in their net, yet that’s also a credit to the team they were playing and the reality of playing a club like that, who can take over a game at any moment with swift actions. 

Therefore, don’t be surprised for Canada to emulate a similar defensive set-up in their matches to come. They’re familiar with the set-up, often defending in a 4-4-2 under Herdman, so it won’t be anything they’re not used to. 

Plus, they’ve got a few players who can fit into that defensive set-up quite nicely. Up front, Jonathan David will fit perfectly into the role that Rodrigo filled and will offer even more defensively than him given his ability to cover all sorts of kilometres on and off the ball. 

Then, out wide, Canada has a plethora of names who can fulfill the defensive responsibilities that Marsch asked of Summerville and Jack Harrison, with Alphonso Davies, Tajon Buchanan, Liam Millar and Jacob Shaffelburg all capable of playing in those roles. 

In midfield, expect Stephen Eustáquio to play a similar role to the one played by Adams, who was very aggressive off the ball, something Eustáquio can do, having played in a 4-4-2 for Porto.

Ismaël Koné’s fit is less clear alongside him, so expect Eustáquio to do a lot of heavy-lifting defensively as Koné figures out how to fulfill Marsch’s demands. This could also lead to the insertion of Samuel Piette alongside Eustáquio as another natural defensive midfielder to push Koné up the pitch, which is something to watch.

Then, at full back, Canada should be well-off, with Alistair Johnston a perfect fit for this system. At the other full back spot, however, questions lie, especially with Sam Adekugbe’s absence due to an injury, as he’d be another perfect fit, although Richie Laryea should be a fit given how aggressive he can be, within reason. 

Of course, Alphonso Davies could also be a fit at full back and could be tasked to fill in there with Adekugbe’s absence, while Kyle Hiebert and Dominick Zator could play a role. In particular, the last point is key - Marsch’s full backs were quite conservative in this game, which would suit a defensive-minded player like Hiebert or Zator playing that role, for example. 

Otherwise, the centre backs are worth watching, naturally, with Moïse Bombito a favourite to start given his profile, although Leeds didn’t employ a wildly high or aggressive defensive line in this game, which doesn’t offer a clear indication of who between Derek Cornelius or Kamal Miller is favoured to start alongside Bombito, or if the pair might slot in ahead of Bombito altogether (although that’s unlikely given Bombito’s right-footedness, speed, size and the fact that he’s playing underneath a former Marsch assistant in Chris Armas at the Colorado Rapids, giving him familiarity with this system. 

Lastly, however, that leads to the big question - the Aaronson role. In this game, Aaronson was tasked with putting in a lot of tireless work off the ball, playing a key role in maintaining his team’s shape, engaging in 14 duels, the second-most of anyone in this game. 

In this Canadian set-up, Mathieu Choinière is best set for that role, while Jonathan Osorio could also fill it, although it’d remain to be seen how he’d handle the physical demands given recent injuries. Jonathan David could also fill that role, leading another striker like Cyle Larin or Iké Ugbo to play up front, which is something to watch, too, should Choinière not be picked to fill that spot. 

Especially with Larin’s position as the CanMNT’s all-time leading scorer, Marsch might be tempted to fit him in to give a goalscoring threat, which could lead David to play deeper defensively. It’s worth noting that Larin’s a dangerous goalscorer in transition, making up for his lack of pressing game, especially if David can compensate for that with his work rate, similar to what Aaronson did for Rodrigo in this game. 

Therefore, it appears that a fit is there for Canada to play this defensive system, with there being players at each position who can step up. It may lead to the insertion of some new faces, but that’s part of the natural transition of bringing in a new coach, who might see different roles for certain names. 

With that in mind, here's a look at a few looks he might employ defensively. 

Direct offensive play:

Of course, while a lot of focus will be on the defensive side of Marsch’s system, especially given the attacking talent they’re about to face, one can’t forget the offensive side of Canada’s game, as they’ve got a few talented names of their own.

And the big thing that stood out when watching the game was how directly Leeds played. A key buzzword of Marsch’s, “verticality”, one could see on full display in this game. 

Rarely did Leeds pass the ball side-to-side, rarely doing so for prolonged periods, if at all, emphasizing instead pushing the ball forward as quickly and as direct as possible. That came at a cost, as they completed just 63% of their passes, including just 13% of their long balls, but they were efficient enough to generate the chances to win this game. 

Just look at three key attacking sequences, which give an idea of what that verticality looks like.

First, there’s the sort of direct play they often showed when forced to face a set Liverpool defence in possession or off set-pieces - a straight long diagonal ball straight forward, and then reacting to the outcome of that ball, be it Leeds controlling it, trying to win the second ball or pressing.

Then, there’s the other sort of play they did, which was when they caught Liverpool out of possession, as they then pushed the ball forward as quickly as possible, attacking the space in front of them.

Lastly, in a similar vein to the second note, there was the direct play Leeds employed when trying to beat Liverpool’s press. This next clip, isn’t the perfect example of that, as they had just won the ball off Liverpool, but they didn’t waste any time in letting Liverpool try and counter-press, breaking forward to create a dangerous chance.

For Canada, those are all things they’ll like to see, as they’ve got the horses to play that sort of game. Starting up front with David, who has scored some of his best goals for Lille in transition, and then going into their litany of fast attackers such as Davies, Buchanan, Millar, Shaffelburg, Theo Bair, Charles-Andreas Brym and more, they’ve got players who are comfortable running into space. 

Then, they’ve also got midfielders who can give those quick players the ball, which is where someone like Koné could be key, with that being a strength of his game, something Eustáquio is pretty good at, too. Interestingly, the midfielders didn’t push forward too often, which leads to the idea that Koné could be looked at as #10, allowing him to be more involved in the final third instead of sitting more as a ball progressor as is typically asked of Marsch’s midfield pivot.

One other thing to watch is that Leeds full backs hardly got involved in this game, which is going to be intriguing to see how Canada manages that, as they’ve got plenty of wide defenders who can join the attack, sitting as a strength of Johnston, Laryea and Davies, in particular. Especially with there being a lot of emphasis on maintaining shape out of possession, that’s a dynamic to watch, as it may force Canada’s full backs to sacrifice the offensive side of their game or to get ready to run some extra miles if they want to be involved at both ends. 

Elsewhere, set-pieces were a big key for Leeds, something that will be key to note for Canada, which could give an edge for the pairing of Bombito and Cornelius to start at centre back with those two being the biggest threats in this squad. 

Lastly, one key note offensively is in goal, where Maxime Crépeau could provide some benefit in possession. When watching this game, Leeds’s goalkeeper, Illan Meslier, struggled on the ball, sending everything long. 

When comparing Meslier’s numbers from that season to Crépeau’s now, Crépeau has a clear edge in possession, sitting excellent on short and medium passes, but even blowing him away in long passes, too, completing 55% of his long passes in 2024 - Meslier completed just 31% of his long passes in 2022-2023, by comparison.

(Here are those numbers, with Dayne St.Clair's 2024 season added in for a comparison point, via FBRef).

Because of that, Crépeau could give Marsch something different in possession, helping give them even more verticality if asked to go long, while offering them the possibility of building up short, too, which isn’t unreasonable given that Bombito, Cornelius, Miller, Johnston, Davies, Laryea and more are all comfortable in doing so. 

We might not see much of that side of Canada’s game in these first few games, but there will be moments where they’ll need to be brave in possession, and they’ve got players who can fill that role. 

Getting ready for Netherlands, France and Argentina:

So overall, it’s positive to see parallels between Leeds in that game and what Canada has at its disposal, as they won’t have much time to onboard Marsch’s tactics before they get set for their summer gauntlet.

Yet, as Marsch referenced when he was hired, this isn't too surprising to see, as he feels this team is suited to how he wants his teams to play the game. 

"I like to play the game in transition, I like to be dynamic, I like to impose our will upon the opponent and in all phases of the game," Marsch said when he was hired. "And I think that this player pool has the athleticism, the intelligence and football quality, and that combination of intelligence and athleticism will provide us with an opportunity to be able to compete against the best teams in the world."

Certainly, there are a few questions that remain, mainly centred around the starting XI and where certain players fit in, as well as other intricacies of their game such as how they plan to play in possession in games where they might see more of the ball, but this gives an idea of how they’ll look defensively and in transition, where they’ll need to thrive to have any chance of beating one of the Netherlands, France and Argentina. 

The good news is that players in this team have experience in these games now, either with their clubs or through their World Cup experience, and they’ll now hope to hit another level under their new coach. 

Meanwhile, speaking of that new coach, he’ll look to strike similar magic as he did in this Liverpool game, perhaps leading to a new version of these iconic images from his celebrations of that victory in front of Jurgen Klopp.

Can he replicate that against Ronald Koeman, Didier Deschamps or Lionel Scaloni? It remains to be seen, with the odds being stacked against him, but one thing is clear - this blueprint will be central to those efforts.