EAGLE-EYED fans spotted a never-before-seen tactic from Inter Milan against Atletico Madrid.
The Italian giants bagged a 1-0 win against the Spaniards in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
GettyInter MIlan played a never-seen-before tactic in their win over Atletico Madrid[/caption]
GettyMarko Arnautovic scored the only goal of the game in the Champions League tie[/caption]
Watched on by Kanye West, Marko Arnautovic scored the only goal of the game as Inter dominated both the possession and the attacking stats.
And supporters have now discovered the way Inter kept Diego Simeone’s men at bay.
The Serie A leaders usually play a 3-5-2 formation under Simone Inzaghi.
However, while in possession of the ball against Atletico, Inter would transition to a 4-3-3 shape.
It saw the wing-backs pull deep, with striker Marcus Thuram and midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan providing width in more advanced areas.
But bizarrely, the change also moved remaining midfielders Nicolo Barella and Hakan Calhanoglu to centre-back.
While the three defenders – Benjamin Pavard, Stefan De Vrij and Alessandro Bastoni, pushed forward to create a midfield triumvirate.
The incredible tactical change allowed Inter to build up possession from the back with more speed.
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And the centre-backs in midfield gave the Italians the physical edge over Atletico’s three of Saul Niguez, Koke and Rodrigo De Paul.
Simeone’s side were completely outfoxed by Inter’s clever plan.
Inter saw their defenders push into midfield as the two groups swapped places
And fans were also blown away, with one comparing it to the date system used in the USA.
One said: “This is like a visual representation of the American MM/DD/YY date format.”
Another declared: “Inzaghi is a fascinating coach, you don’t see many teams with 3atb using the wide CBs to overlap in attack.”
One noted: “So like counter-counter pressing. I don’t think I can brain this right now.”
Another added: “Why park the bus in front of goal where it’s so close to danger when you can park it in the middle of the pitch.”
Inter’s tactics are certainly paying off this season, with Lautaro Martinez and Co top of the Serie A table.
They are nine points clear of Juventus with a game in hand after losing just one all term.
Inter are also the top scorers with 59 goals, and boast the meanest defence after conceding just 12 times.