Champions League Performance Insights: How tactical tweaks impacted Manchester City's win over Borussia Dortmund
Monday, November 24, 2025
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From a defender’s laser-precise passes to decisive tactical details, there was plenty for UEFA Technical Observers Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjær to admire when reviewing Manchester City vs Borussia Dortmund.
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For students of football, the UEFA Champions League is the finest stage on which to see not just individual brilliance but the tactical nuances that are often decisive at this elite level.
In the lead-up to Matchday 5, the UEFA game insights unit shone a light on the Manchester City vs Borussia Dortmund contest from last time out and found compelling evidence of the above: from Dortmund centre-back Nico Schlotterbeck’s superb passing to City’s clever midfield structure to Pep Guardiola’s victory-assuring adjustments.
Here, with the support of UEFA Technical Observers Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjær, we build on the initial analysis of City's 4-1 win by exploring those three themes below.
Schlotterbeck's passing from the back
City coach Guardiola said that his team "didn’t know where we were" as Dortmund made a strong start. To illustrate this, just compare the action maps above and below for City and Dortmund respectively, containing passes, throw-ins and crosses from each in the opening nine minutes of play when the home team attempted just two passes in the opposition half.
There was much to admire about Niko Kovač’s side in this early phase: they pressed well, showed energy and bravery, and made clever runs – as seen from Karim Adeyemi, in particular, in the video below.
Another interesting feature of their early supremacy was the passing from the back of Schlotterbeck – clever, penetrating passes delivered in a way that highlight the vision and technical quality of players at Champions League level.
This is the focus of the three clips in this first video: each features a disguised pass by Schlotterbeck, starting with his pass to Daniel Svensson in the opening seconds – after he has intimated a pass out wide with his body shape.
The second example is even more striking. He makes space for himself by backpedalling before receiving the ball. Then, he shapes to his left – prompting City’s players to look that way – before punching a penetrating pass through to Svensson.
Elaborating on Schlotterbeck’s impact, Carrick said: "Schlotterbeck showed an excellent awareness of the options across the entire pitch, not only those close to or in front of him. When you possess this awareness – and you use it – it reduces the amount of pressure the opposition will likely place on you through the fear that you can, and will, play any pass.
"[In clip three] His awareness of Adeyemi on the opposite wing, along with his disguise and execution, was especially impressive."
City's midfield diamond and overload
After that initial difficulty, City gained control and for UEFA’s game insights unit, a key factor was their midfield diamond. While City had a 4-3-3 starting shape, their clever movement created a quartet in the middle (3-1-3-3) – meaning four home players against the two midfielders in Dortmund’s 5-2-3.
The second video below presents several examples of Nico O’Reilly and Jeremy Doku drifting inside from the left-back and left wing positions to form a midfield quartet, creating numerical superiority and enabling progression into the attacking third.
"The City players worked together to increase the spaces."
For Solskjær, it was "notable how the City players worked together to increase the spaces and maximise the individual qualities they each possess" – and the second clip, concluding with Phil Foden’s opening goal, is an excellent example.
Citing the initial attack, Solskjær observes how "Tijjani Reijnders drops deep towards Nico González but he isn’t doing this to receive the pass. You see him scanning towards Foden as his movement is attracting the pressure and thanks to that, it allows Foden to receive the pass on the half-turn and immediately attack the Dortmund defenders."
City regain solidity with switch to a five
The third and final aspect to explore is the tactical change made by Guardiola to ensure his side saw the game out after a period when Dortmund, emboldened by Waldemar Anton’s goal for 3-1, had the hosts wobbling briefly.
"They put six players up front against four and they put a lot of quick players there," explained Guardiola and the first clip above provides an illustration as we see Dortmund’s overload. That was in the 76th minute. Three minutes later, Guardiola made a triple substitution which included the introduction of a third centre-back, Rúben Dias, in place of Savinho.
"After Rúben came in, we controlled that moment," Guardiola affirmed, and the final video shows how, with a 5-4-1 structure, City were able to keep four defenders in their back line whenever one of their wing-backs challenged a Dortmund winger.
"Guardiola’s in-game change to bring on another centre-back and go to a back five was highly effective in nullifying the Dortmund pressure," said Carrick. "From this point, they didn’t face another attempt so this was a really good example of a coach understanding, and implementing, what was necessary in order to regain control in the match."
Coaching reflection - Michael Carrick on managing the latter stages
Already in this season's Champions League, the UEFA game insights unit has noted a scoring pattern whereby goals come in pairs - one followed quickly by another, be it for or against the team who scored the first.
City losing control - 2024/25
Feyenoord at home from 3-0 to 3-3: Conceded on 75, 82, 89
Paris Saint-Germain away from 2-0 to 2-4: Conceded on 56, 60, 78, 90+3
Real Madrid at home from 2-1 to 2-3: Conceded on 86, 90+2
From a City perspective, they have a recent, and costly, history of such goal flurries and three examples from last season are cited in the box above. Unlike against Dortmund, in those none of those three matches did Guardiola send on a third centre-back.
If a team with City’s experience and squad depth can experience these losses of control, then how does a young coach negotiate such moments? UEFA Technical Observer Michael Carrick offers the following advice:
"When choosing a matchday squad, I'd suggest selecting substitutes who can impact the game in different ways and help you handle various scenarios. The bench should cover as many options as possible. Keep in mind, though, that a coach’s ability to adjust depends on the players available. You may not always have someone to fill a specific tactical role, like the extra centre-back Guardiola used here.
"Young coaches will inevitably face challenges – be it unexpected injuries, unexpected changes in the opposition, or an unexpected scoreline.
"You should always think about what suits your players but the extent to which you change things is often determined by where you sit on the spectrum between pragmatism and ideology. Some coaches will prefer to stick to their way; others will happily make a lot of changes. If it’s a must-win game, then that can impact on your decision-making too."
To sub or not to sub: Three scenarios
• Carry on - no change when the game is going to plan
• Chasing the game - change when behind
• Defending the game - change to protect lead
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