After relegation at the end of the 2018/19 Eredivisie season Excelsior returned to the Dutch top division for the 2022/23 season. The club survived last season, finishing 4 points above the relegation playoff position at the end of the campaign. So far this season, they have been enjoying a very good start, with the club sitting 5th after the first seven matchdays of the season, 5 points behind city rivals and current Eredivisie champions Feyenoord.
Now into his second spell in charge of the club after re-taking charge in 2020, Marinus Dijkhuizen is getting everything to click early in this campaign, with only one loss in the first seven matches of the season. This tactical analysis and scout report will take a look at both the attacking and defensive tactics that have been behind this early success for the Rotterdam side.
Making the most of the width of 4-3-3 in attack
Looking at the Excelsior shape going forward, Dijkhuizen’s side look to attack out of a 4-3-3 formation, with the fullbacks on both sides looking to drive forward and become part of the attack. The width will either come from them or the wingers, with the other than becoming more narrow and inverted to open the space in the wide channel.
The Dutch side have also been dangerous in attacking transition, with their ability to break quickly with numbers going forward a key tendency in attack for them. In the Eredivisie this season, Excelsior have played 408 long passes, the most in the division. This illustrates their tendency to play more direct when in possession, making their attacking transition even more critical to create chances.
The data viz graphic above shows the progressive passes that Excelsior have played this season thus far. As we see from the graphic, those passes are more concentrated in the wide areas, with minimal ball progression from passes occurring in the attacking middle third of the pitch. More importantly, the pink shows progressive passes into the penalty area, with a vast majority of Excelsior’s also coming from the wide channels.
With 14 goals already this season through the first 7 matches, Dijkhuizen has been able to transform his side into a more consistent attacking threat, with their goal tally this season already almost half of last seasons (32). The star man this season has without a doubt been Nikolas Agrafiotis, with the forward already netting 5 times this season. He has been able to form a very good attacking trio with Couhaib Driouech and Derensili Fernandes either side of him in attack, with these two also causing havoc for opposition defences.
The image above shows an example of Excelsior able to use the full width to their advantage against Sparta Rotterdam in an attacking move. The move originates with a long ball from Excelsior goalkeeper Sitjn van Gassel. After a bit of bouncing around in the attacking third, the ball is able to find its way to right back Siebe Horemans, who has moved into a more advanced position and keeps the width, allowing Fernandes to tuck inside and be narrow.
Central midfielder Julian Baas has also found his way into this wide space, as has Agrafiotis, who finds a pocket and creates an overload against the Sparta defence. Horemans plays the ball into the feet of the striker, whose positioning allows him to hold the play up with his back to goal. This pass sucked in both the centre-back and fullback from Sparta, allowing Horemans to make a run beyond the defenders and into the pocket of space in the wide channel.
Agrafiotis attempts to play a one-two with Horemans, but unfortunately the Sparta defender is able to get a foot on the ball, knocking it out for a corner. What this example is able to show is the emphasis Marinus Dijkhuizen puts on his side to look to exploit the wide channels. From the overload being created to the attempted ball into the overlapping run of the fullback and the winger tucking inside, it shows how the wide channels have been a successful route of attack for Excelsior in the early days of this season, with more examples illustrating this tendency.
The image above shows Excelsior’s first goal from their recent match against Heerenveen, with the goal coming from the relationship between the winger and fullback, as well as full utilisation of the width by Excelsior. The attacking move originates from another long ball from van Gassel, with possession eventually settling with Excelsior and being sent out to Driouech on the left wing. This is where the relationship between the winger and fullback comes into effect for Dijkhuizen’s side.
Driouech receives possession and begins to drive inside at the opposition defender. At the same time, left back Arthur Zagré makes an overlapping run from deep, causing the Heerenveen defender to be isolated 2v1 and preventing him from committing to closing down Driouech. With the overlapping run of the former Paris Saint-Germain and AS Monaco youth product freezing the defender, it allows the 21-year old winger to continue driving towards the penalty box.
As a result, the time and space Driouech is able to have allows him the ability to get a shot off from the edge of the box, with his effort curling beyond the Heerenveen goalkeeper and into the back of the net. Without the overlapping run of Zagré to keep the width for Excelsior, the defender likely would have committed to engaging Driouch sooner, potentially eliminating the shot and, as a result, the goal.
The image above shows another example of the full utilisation of the wide channels from Excelsior this season. In this phase of play above, Julian Baas is in possession, with the midfielder driving forward towards the opposition’s defence. Fernandes is hugging the touchline, with Horemans, the right back, starting to make an underlapping run beyond Baas and into the pocket of space right outside the Heerenveen penalty area.
This results in another overload being created by Excelsior, with this movement from Horemans into an inverted position causing the Heerenveen fullback to get stuck between tracking Fernandes or moving more centrally to close the gap and get re-connected with the backline. This slight pause allows Baas to play a ball into the path of Fernandes out wide, with the Dutch winger able drive to the endline before being dispossessed.
As this section has shown, Marinus Dijkhuizen’s side have had great success going forward this season in his preferred 4-3-3 attacking shape. The wingers and fullbacks have been heavily utilised, and Excelsior’s ability to use the full width of the pitch has allowed them to create overloads and be dangerous when they hit teams in attacking transition.
Defensively compact in multiple shapes and the interchanging role of a defensive midfielder
When looking back at the season Excelsior had last campaign from a defensive perspective, the Eredivisie club were one of the worst clubs in the division from a defensive standpoint. In the Eredivisie last season, Excelsior faced 560 shots, the second highest total in the Dutch top flight, while their 15.38 shots against per 90 minutes ranked worst. In total, the Rotterdam side conceded 71 goals throughout the whole of last season, tied for second worst with Volendam.
The start to the 2023/24 season however, has been much better for Marinus Dijkhuizen’s side. So far this season, Excelsior have faced 80 shots on their goal, with a per 90 minutes rate of 10.42, substantially better. They have also only conceded 11 goals through the first 7 matches of the season, another stat showing their defensive improvement this season.
The data viz graphic above shows the defensive territory of Excelsior so far this season, highlighting the average height of their defensive line as well as the average area of their defensive engagements. While Excelsior at times look to put pressure on opposition sides when they are building out from the back with their forwards, this is not common, with Dijkhuizen’s side looking to be more passive and keep a compact defensive shape.
When it comes to a defensive shape for the Dutch side, it shifts away from the 4-3-3 that is typically used during attacking phases of play. The shape may look like a 4-1-4-1, or even a 5-3-2 or 5-4-1, with defensive midfielder Redouan El Yaakoubi dropping into the defence to form a back five shape. They also look to get narrow and compact, suffocating opposition sides if they look to play centrally, and shifting well when the ball is played from touchline-to-touchline. While they still have conceded goals this season, it is a marked improvement for the Dutch side at this point last campaign, where through the first seven matches last season they conceded 18 goals.
The image above shows Excelsior’s defensive shape from a recent match against Almere City. As we can see, the Rotterdam side are sitting in a compact 4-1-4-1 shape, with Nikolas Agrafiotis the only Excelsior player on the attacking half of the pitch.
With this tight defensive shape, it is hard for opposition sides to find pockets between the Excelsior lines, with El Yaakoubi having a more free role to roam side-to-side in the centre of the park. This allows the 27-year old to pick up and mark opposition attackers who are looking to drop and find pockets between the lines to receive possession in more advanced areas.
The Excelsior defensive shape is also able to shift well, with the weak side winger/outside midfielder and fullback staying connected with the rest of their line, making it hard for the opposition to quickly switch the play and find space on the opposite side.
This compact shape looks to pigeon hole opposition attacks, with Excelsior looking to make them play long into their defensive numbers, putting the Excelsior defenders in what is usually a numbers up situation on the opposition attackers. It also forces attackers to play perfectly weighted balls over the top if they are to find their strikers in superior positions which forces the Excelsior defenders to turn and face their own goal.
To summarise, being able to sit in a compact defensive shape gives Excelsior the advantage, and has helped to improve their early defensive record this season.
The image above shows an example of the defensive setup when Excelsior have at times switched to a back five shape to help counter how opposition sides were looking to attack them. In this defensive phase of play against Sparta Rotterdam, Excelsior have opted for a 5-4-1 shape, with them looking to have more numbers in the backline to be able to counter Sparta attacking with five in the forward line at times.
This is what makes Redouan El Yaakoubi a vital part of what Marinus Dijkhuizen has looked to do from a defensive standpoint this season. The 27-year old has the ability to drop into the defensive line and become a third centre-back, almost seamlessly, with the wingers able to drop and become more defensive minded midfielders if needed. The rest is still similar for the Dutch side.
As the ball rotates over to this near touchline, the Excelsior defensive block shifts to cover this near side, with them staying connected as rotating. This allows the player to be pressured by Driouech, with the ball being turned over and Excelsior is able to clear their lines.
The data viz graphic above shows just the impact Redouan El Yaakoubi has had for Marinus Dijkhuizen’s side in the early goings of this new season. As his defensive area covered shows, the 27-year old can be found everywhere in the defensive third of the pitch, which allows the Eredivisie side to drop him in the backline at times due to his flexibility. The 27-year old is a key player in Marinus Dijkhuizen’s side, and he is vital to the success Excelsior have had from a defensive standpoint this season.
As this section has shown, while Redouan El Yaakoubi is a vital part of how and why this defensive system is successful, the tactical flexibility Dijkhuizen has shown to counter how opposition sides look to exploit Excelsior defensively has also played a key part in their defensive successes. The ability to switch to a back four or back five system defensively without having a significant drop in defensive quality has shown that this side will likely be much more defensively stable as the season progresses.
Conclusion
As this tactical analysis and scout report has shown, Excelsior have had a very good start to the 2023/24 Eredivisie season. While it is unlikely they will be able to challenge clubs like Feyenoord, Ajax, PSV, or AZ Alkmaar this season, the improvements made under Marinus Dijkhuizen this season both from an attacking and defensive perspective likely means the Rotterdam side should not have to worry about the threat of relegation.
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