After a fifth-place finish last season and prevailing in the playoffs, propelling them into the UEFA Europa Conference League playoff round, manager Ron Jans left FC Twente.

Luckily, De Tukkers did not have to try and find a replacement for too long.

They brought in 51-year-old Joseph Oosting at the beginning of July, with ample time to prepare for the campaign. 

Oosting was brought in from fellow Eredivisie side RKC Waalwijk.

The Dutchman had guided them to respective 10th and ninth-placed finishes in the previous two Eredivisie seasons.

His start at FC Twente has been perfect, at least domestically, with the The Reds winning all four of their opening Eredivisie matches. 

Though they crashed out of the UEFA Europa Conference League playoffs with a heavy defeat over two legs to Turkish side Fenerbahçe, the side is starting to gel with Joseph Oosting Tactics.

De Tukkers' new coach is starting to implement his style of play, and the signings made during the summer transfer window are proving to be a good fit.

This tactical analysis will examine the 51-year-old Joseph Oosting's tactics in depth and dissect FC Twente's excellent start to the Eredivisie.

Without the added schedule of European football, The Reds may be able to go one step further this season under Oosting and get into the top three. 

Joseph Oosting Style Of Play

Four rounds into the Eredivisie, some tactical tendencies are starting to appear at FC Twente when you look at ball possession.

Whether it is the full-backs inverting, the wide midfielders moving into wider positions, or the quick passing sequences and vertical style of play, Joseph Oosting has De Tukkers playing clinical, attacking football at this early point in the season. 

Regarding ball progression into the attacking third, Oosting’s side has heavily relied on through passes, with Twente’s 65 in four games this season (the highest total in the Eredivisie).

The Reds also have the highest through pass accuracy in the league this term (41.5%). 

FC Twente Progressive Passes Map

The data visualisation above shows FC Twente's progressive passes through the first four matches in the Eredivisie 2023/2024 campaign.

As the graphic illustrates, most of these passes have originated from the half-spaces.

This is due to the movements of the full-backs for The Reds.

Joseph Oosting looks to invert his full-backs when Twente is in possession and occupy these spaces, looking to overload the midfield and give them positional superiority over their opposition.  

Many of these progressive passes also originate from quick vertical passing sequences; this, along with the rotations and movements off the ball, has been key to Twente's start from an attacking aspect this season. 

The following two images show a glimpse of what Joseph Oosting expects De Tukkers to do when they are in possession.

In this phase of play above against Ajax, FC Twente took a free kick quickly, with Costa Rican striker Manfred Ugalde being the target to link up play between the lines.

The 21-year-old forward drops off the Ajax backline, looking to drag the central defender out, which he accomplishes. 

This allows Dutch attacker Sem Steijn, occupying the half-space, to make a run behind the defence, moving into the vacant space the centre-back is dragged out of.

At the bottom of the image, we can see the positioning of the Twente full-back, Alfons Sampsted, occupying the touchline, keeping the width and preventing the Ajax lines from narrowing — thus overloading the midfield. 

The image above shows the next phase of the attacking move for FC Twente off the free kick.

After Ugalde received possession and dragged the defender out, he was able to play a first-time pass to Michel Vlap, who was sitting in the opposite half-space.

The Dutch midfielder is able to play a through ball into the vast vacant space behind the Ajax defence, which is in the path of Ugalde for the one-two. 

Also, Sem Steijn had continued his run, with the 21-year-old Dutchman finding himself well beyond the Ajax backline.

The ensuing pass from Vlap finds Ugalde, enabling him to drive into the penalty box with the ball at his feet.

The Costa Rican forward was able to get a shot off, but the goalkeeper saved it. 

Though this FC Twente attacking phase of play does not result in a goal, it does give a glimpse into what Joseph Oosting has already implemented in such a short time in charge.

Steijn and Vlap occupying the half-spaces, along with Ugalde's movement to drag the defenders out and Vlap's clinical two-touch through ball, summarise Joseph Oosting’s style of play. 

Inverted Full-Backs

The image above shows an example of the role the inverted full-back played in De Tukkers' possession this season.

In this phase of play above against Volendam, 25-year-old Icelandic international full-back Alfons Sampsted is occupying an inverted position, playing almost as a right-sided midfielder. 

On the touchline is Daan Rots, Twente's usual starting right-sided midfielder.

What has often happened in matches this season for The Reds is that the full-backs push into advanced positions and become inverted, while the outside midfielders in Oosting’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation get pushed wide. 

This allows FC Twente to have an extra number forward in the attack to create a positional superiority, at the risk of potentially being exposed in defence.

In this specific phase, Max Bruns, one of the Twente centre-backs, is in possession and drives forward into midfield, with the Dutch side able to create an overload down this channel.

Also, due to Sampsted’s positioning, the closest defender to him gets dragged over, allowing Steijn to make a run into the space. 

While this attacking move does not progress into the penalty area for Twente, it highlights what the role of the advanced and inverted full-back accomplishes for Joseph Oosting’s side.

Along with occupying the half-spaces and creating numerical advantages, these movements off the ball open passing lanes for the Twente players to execute clinical through balls, allowing opposition defensive lines to be broken and the ball to progress vertically quickly.

The image above shows Twente's attacking phase, which results in a goal against Ajax.

This attacking move is successful due to the movement of the full-backs becoming inverted.

This positioning from both Regeer and Sampsted pinned the Ajax defensive line back and forced the Ajax full-backs to decide who to mark. 

In this phase of play, the ball Twente´s centre-back is in possession, with Sem Steijn sitting just in front of him.

On the far side, Regeer makes an inverted movement from the deeper and wide position, forcing the Ajax defender to tuck inside.

This opens up the space for Michel Vlap, who has stayed wide, to receive the long switch of play ball. 

After receiving possession, the Dutch midfielder can drive at the Ajax defence.

Vlap's ensuing ball across the box causes trouble for the Ajax defenders, and Sem Steijn's eventual late run allows him to put the ball in the back of the net.

Joseph Oosting’s style of play allowed FC Twente great success so far this season.

The inverted full-backs create overloads against opposition backlines, allowing De Tukkers to overwhelm opposition defences. 

FC Twente Defensive Principles

From a defensive perspective, Twente had a solid start this season under Joseph Oosting.

The Reds have the third-best defence at the beginning of the Eredivisie season, with only three goals conceded through their first four matches. 

Most of this defensive success has come due to Oosting’s side's deeper line of confrontation as they do not look to press opposition sides often inside and around the penalty box.

Their good use of shifting in defence has also allowed FC Twente to plug gaps centrally, making it difficult for opposition sides to build through them. 

FC Twente High Regains Map

The data viz graphic above highlights the high regains of Twente this season.

The graphic supports the point that Joseph Oosting’s team does not look to press opposition sides that high.

Most of their counter-pressing recoveries and dangerous recoveries occur in the wide areas and deeper central areas, and more specifically, about 15 yards or so outside the penalty box.

They also can shift well when forced back into a defensive shape, plugging gaps centrally and frustrating opposition sides during build-up phases. 

FC Twente Compact Defense

The image above shows an example of Twente's compact and narrow defensive shape that has allowed them to eliminate opposition attacks this season.

In the phase of play above, PEC Zwolle is in possession and looking to play the ball in the central area. 

The first thing to notice is how narrow Twente is, with the weak side full-back tucked inside.

This allows space for Zwolle on the switch but prevents the ball from being played centrally and creates overloads in these areas. 

Due to the narrow shape of Oosting´s side, the ball played centrally by the Zwolle player on the near side is intercepted, allowing Twente to gather possession and start a counterattacking sequence of play.

While this tight and compact defensive shape opens up gaps in the wide areas for the ball to be played out to, it eliminates the opportunity for opposition sides to play centrally.

De Tukkers can shift well when playing the ball into these wide channels. 

The image above shows another example of the compact and narrow shape that Twente look to defend using.

In this phase of play above, again against Ajax, we can see how Twente uses box shapes with their midfield and defensive line to eliminate opposition sides' playing into the central areas. 

As we can see, the three Ajax players in central areas are entirely blocked off by Twente’s narrow shape, with the only true progressive option a potential switch to the winger in some space on the far side. 

However, the player in possession instead tries to play the ball vertically and centrally into Ajax captain and former Tottenham Hotspur player Steven Bergwijn.

The pass to the Dutch winger is intercepted by the Twente midfield, allowing them to relieve some pressure and continue to get organised into a defensive shape. 

FC Twente Pressing Style

The image above shows the pressing style Joseph Oosting implemented during the first few matches of his tenure at Twente.

In this phase of play, the ball originated with a goal kick from Volendam, finding its way to its current position in the possession of the full-back.

As we can see, the furthest advanced Twente players all look to shift over and lock the ball to one side, preventing Volendam from looking for a switch of play to escape the pressure. 

Michel Vlap is pressing the full-back from behind, forcing him to play the ball back to the centre-back.

This is the only realistic passing option for the defender.

Sem Steijn is doing a good job blocking the passing lane to the centrally positioned player, while Mathias Kjølø is shifting over also to put pressure on this player.

Manfred Ugalde is also doing a good job eliminating the channel for the ball to be played to on the other side. 

As the central defender receives possession, the instant pressure from the Costa Rican forward forces him to play a long ball forward, which the Twente defence is able to collect.

As this section has shown, Joseph Oosting's defensive tactics have worked well so far, making it another reason for FC Twente's unbeaten start to the Eredivisie season. 

Conclusion 

As this tactical analysis has shown, Twente may be a surprise team to watch this season in the Eredivisie.

While they have recently been there and thereabouts regarding challenging the top three teams in the Netherlands, now may finally be the season they achieve that goal, with Joseph Oosting’s appointment in the summer proving to be an excellent choice by the hierarchy at the Dutch club.