Batista’s Blueprint: How Venezuela topped Copa America Group B and strategic insights for their clash with Canada – tactical analysis
Venezuela have secured the top spot in Group B for the first time, marking a historic achievement for the team. Their journey to this point has been marked by a series of impressive performances driven by smart tactical decisions that demonstrate their flexibility and toughness. As they prepare to take on Canada, a team recognised for its resolve and strategic prowess, the upcoming match promises to be thrilling.
This tactical analysis of Fernando Batista and his side delves into the key tactical strategies that pushed Venezuela to the forefront of Group B, considers potential tactics they might employ against Canada, and provide an analysis of how Canada might respond to these strategies to secure a win.
When analysing Venezuela, we will highlight their tactical plans in different phases: in possession and out of possession. For in possession, we will examine their build-up play, starting with the ball at the centre-backs as they look to advance into the opponent’s half, and consider the players’ positioning. For out-of-possession, we will focus on their playing style philosophy and defensive cover in the wide zones of the pitch.
In possession
Venezuela typically line up in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation, but this is only their setup on paper. In possession, they utilise a deep-lying playmaker who drops between the centre-backs, pushing them wider. José Martínez often assumes this role; when he drops back to receive the ball, the full-backs are pushed higher and wider on the pitch. Essentially, during build-up play, Venezuela shifts into a 3-5-2 formation, aiming to stretch the play on the ball and exploit gaps in wide spaces, which then allows them to work the ball centrally.
This build-up strategy was evident throughout their opening game against Ecuador. The images below showcase a perfect example of how effective this approach can be. If the ball is moved quickly enough to their full-backs, the amount of space they have becomes apparent. The opponent’s full-backs focus on covering the space behind the two midfielders, who are pushing up for Venezuela and are marked in yellow. This leaves space and gaps in wide zones for Venezuela’s full-backs to exploit.
Out of possession
Venezuela employs a hybrid of two different mid-blocks when defending out of possession. They alternate between a 4-4-2 and a 4-5-1 formation, depending on the ball’s position. When the opponent works the ball centrally, Venezuela adopts the 4-4-2 formation to compactly block central passing options. As the ball shifts to wide zones, one of the two strikers transitions into that area, transforming the setup into a 4-5-1. The images demonstrate this shift: initially, while the ball is central, the 4-4-2 formation is evident.
As the ball moves to the flanks, the striker marked in yellow drifts wide, facilitating the switch to a 4-5-1 and creating a five-man second defensive line. This strategic flexibility allows Venezuela to generate numerical superiority in wide channels, creating overloads against the opponent and facilitating quick ball recovery. This is part of Venezuela’s high-intensity, Gegenpressing style, emphasising numerical superiority to regain possession.
However, when a striker from the 4-4-2 setup cannot transition defensively in time, the full-backs are instructed to press aggressively. This pressure is intended to create stressful situations for the opponent, buying time for another Venezuelan player to join and maintain their numerical advantage philosophy. This approach is evident in their match against Mexico, where the Venezuelan players quickly close down an isolated Mexican player, leaving him without options—a recurring theme in Venezuela’s first three matches in Copa America. This can be seen in the first image below.
As we’ve seen throughout the tournament, Venezuela’s strategic deployment of numerical superiority continues to be a cornerstone of their tactical execution. This approach has enabled them to effectively control the midfield and wide areas, frequently overwhelming their opponents with greater numbers in critical phases of play.
By consistently creating overloads, Venezuela has maintained defensive stability and catalysed their attacking manoeuvres, turning what might seem like ordinary situations into significant advantages. The first two images below are examples from the match against Mexico.
In contrast, the third image is another example of this high-intensity press is shown against Jamaica, where Venezuela managed to confine the Jamaican players, effectively neutralising their offensive capabilities and maintaining a clean sheet.
Key players
Several standout players for Venezuela have been in this campaign, but we will highlight two in particular: Rafael Romo and Yangel Herrera.
Yangel Herrera’s performance across all three group stage matches shows his dominance in various zones of the pitch. As a deep-lying playmaker alongside José Martínez, Herrera orchestrates the play and serves as a crucial creative outlet for the team, contributing significantly to both offensive build-ups and defensive actions. The provided heatmaps and images highlight his extensive defensive efforts across the pitch, illustrating Venezuela’s high-press strategy, with Herrera playing a pivotal role in enforcing this tactic.
In terms of his distribution skills, Herrera’s passing statistics are particularly impressive. He completed 12 progressive passes against Ecuador, five against Mexico, and three against Jamaica. Progressive passes are defined as those that advance the ball towards the opponent’s goal line by at least 10 yards. With an 84% passing accuracy over the first three group stage matches and an average of 3.3 progressive carries per game (carries that advance the ball 10 yards towards the opponent’s goal), Herrera’s contributions are vital in pushing the team forward and maintaining pressure on the opposition.
Rafael Romo’s performance in goal for Venezuela has been outstanding, particularly evident from his save map. Throughout the campaign, he has conceded only one goal despite facing an expected goals (xG) of 3.15. This includes a crucial penalty save against Mexico, which was instrumental in securing a 1-0 victory for his team. Romo’s ability to consistently outperform the expectations set by xG metrics, along with his crucial interventions, firmly positions him as a leading candidate for the best goalkeeper of the tournament. Notably, he is one of the few goalkeepers to have conceded just one goal while advancing to the knockout stages, further highlighting his critical role in Venezuela’s defensive strength.
How to set up against Canada
In their upcoming quarterfinal clash against Canada, Venezuela should leverage the tactical insights that propelled them to the top of Group B. Adopting a flexible 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 formation, Venezuela should emphasise their dynamic in-possession strategies, transitioning to a 3-5-2 setup during build-up play. José Martínez, as the deep-lying playmaker, will be crucial, dropping between centre-backs to facilitate ball progression and pushing full-backs higher up the pitch. This will create width and exploit gaps in wide areas, allowing for swift central attacks.
Out of possession, Venezuela’s hybrid midblock defence, oscillating between 4-4-2 and 4-5-1 formations, will be pivotal. This approach, focusing on central compactness and wide-area numerical superiority, will enable them to regain possession quickly through high-intensity pressing. Key players like Yangel Herrera and Rafael Romo must continue their stellar performances, with Herrera orchestrating the midfield and leading the high press.
At the same time, Romo ensures defensive solidity with crucial saves. By adhering to these tactics, Venezuela can effectively counter Canada’s strengths and secure a semi-final. There’s no reason for Venezuela to change what has been working for them so far, which is counterpressing and numerical superiority in wide zones of the field.
Canada has shown vulnerability in defending wide areas of the field, a weakness that has been notably exploited by other teams. This vulnerability was clearly demonstrated in their recent match against Argentina, where quick transitions in wide zones led to rapid and effective goal-scoring opportunities.
As seen in the provided images, Argentina was able to move the ball from the left side of the pitch to score a goal within just seven seconds. The start of the Argentina goal is what we are looking at in image 1. Similarly, from the right wide zone, they converted an attack into a goal in just six seconds, as seen from the start of the goal in image 2.
These instances highlight Canada’s difficulties in defending transitions and wide areas, which are weaknesses that Venezuela can potentially exploit in their upcoming match.
What can Canada do to overcome Venezuela?
Canada will need to enhance their defense in wide areas and improve their transitions. The Canadian national team has shown a lack of focus and intensity in stopping counterattacks and defending quick transitions from wide zones, as demonstrated by the two goals scored by Argentina. Despite their propensity to hold possession even against stronger opponents—as seen in matches against France before Copa America with 52% possession and Argentina with 36%—this approach sometimes leaves them vulnerable. Although 36% possession is not dominant, it indicates that Canada can maintain possession at times and will likely aim to do so against Venezuela.
If Canada enter the match assuming superiority and aiming to dominate possession, they may find themselves quickly overwhelmed. Given Venezuela’s high-intensity press, Canada’s best chance to progsemi-finals semi-finals might be to adopt a mid-block strategy and focus on counter-attacking rather than playing possession-based football. Expectations should also include Canada playing long from the goalkeeper or centre-backs more frequently during the match as they attempt to bypass Venezuela’s pressing and exploit spaces behind the midfield.
Conclusion
Venezuela’s performance in the group stages has been impressive, showcasing a balanced strategy that combines strong defence with sharp offensive skills. The team’s success is highlighted by the exceptional play of key figures like Yangel Herrera, Eduard Bello, Salomón Rondón, Rafael Romo, and Eric Ramírez. With their current form, Venezuela is shaping up to be a powerful competitor in the knockout rounds.
