The small town of Eibar is home to a small stadium Ipurua, home-ground to one of the smallest teams in the country. Eibar have one of the smallest budgets in the league – their record transfer Sergio Alvarez cost them £3.6 million.
Giants of the game Barcelona recently spent nearly £41m on Brazilian winger Malcom, who takes the field about once a month. Eibar have spent just about half this amount on player-transfers throughout their history.
The small team from the Basque region was promoted to the first division for the first time in the 2014/15 season. But failure to meet certain financial conditions forced them to resort to crowdfunding to garner enough budget to play in the first division.
Fifth season in the top flight and Eibar are already handing out pressing lessons to the big boys in Real Madrid and Barcelona. Jose Mendelibar has ensured that his team is the most high-pressing team in Spain.
Fraction of action in the opposition third: Eibar leading the race
Statistically, a whooping 37 per cent of their action occurs in the opposition third. The likes of Barcelona and Madrid have managed to have just 31 per cent of their game played in the opposition half, a significantly inferior stat when compared to Eibar.
Naturally it’s the teams playing possession-based football who spend huge chunks of the game in the opposition third, waiting to make the decisive pass at the right moment. Eibar – on the other hand – are vertical with their play and waste no time in converting defence into attack once they win the ball, differentiating them from the traditional pressers who first focus on maintaining the shape after winning possession.
Eibar’s best game of the season – their 3-0 win over Madrid – was a good example of how they indulged in wing-oriented pressing and put the visitors to the sword. By wing-oriented pressing, Eibar would crowd one wing, such that the centre-back and full-back at the other end is inaccessible. Attempts to play the ball out falls in vain as Eibar either force the ball out of touch or win possession to strike immediately.
Their second goal in that game was a great example for their proficiency in wing-oriented pressing. Chaos and intense pressing on Madrid’s left flank forced them to play the ball to an isolated Odriozola on the right. The slightest pressure on the youngster forced him to give the ball away to Marc Cucurella, who assisted Sergi Enrich to double Eibar’s lead.
The pressing is there, but how effective is it, really? Unfortunately for Eibar, if a team is able to beat the press, not much stands between them and the goal. The Basque team are ranked 18th in the league for average interceptions per game, with just 10 interceptions every game. While they are not far behind Madrid (10.2), you’d expect more interceptions from a team that presses so much.
One possible explanation to this could be the fact that Eibar adopt a more conservative approach once the ball enters their own half. They focus on maintaining shape and preventing entries in dangerous areas, rather than pressing recklessly.
No team concedes fewer shots on target every game than Eibar, who concede just about 8.5 shots every game. The heavyweights Real Madrid (10.4) and Barcelona (10.6) are the next best, but still way off.
Shots conceded per game: Eibar leading the way
Eibar’s defensive structure is solid and rarely allows the opposition to penetrate. But when they do, they crumble. Goalkeeper Asier Riesgo has not had the best of days this season and the Eibar defence becomes vulnerable once a team finds a way to break the press and unlock the defence.
The fact that only five teams have conceded more goals than Eibar (35) in La Liga this season – despite their brilliant record of preventing shots on goal – testifies this.
The Basque team are not defensively impressive, nor are they a massive threat up-front. But they are the best pressers in the league and provide us with some intense games.
For a side that started playing in the top flight recently, Eibar have done exceeded expectations in stabilising themselves as a mid-table team.
