Cut Paris, Marseille, Monaco! The five major leagues have conceded the fewest goals, relying on Todibo
Although Paris Saint-Germain have been in good form recently, they are still behind Nice in the Ligue 1 table and cannot take the first place.
Nice, who finished in the middle of the Ligue 1 rankings last season, scored only 10 goals in nine Ligue 1 rounds this season, but ranked first with five wins and four draws. The team's ace central defender Todibo has performed quite well.
01. Consecutive wins in Paris and Marseille: Nice's Ligue 1 first place is very valuable
a. Don't kill the unknown ghost under the knife: consecutive victories in Paris, Marseille, Morocco
If you see the Ligue 1 standings, the first place is Nice, many people will be a little surprised. But if you look closely, it's even more surprising that they can be the leader after scoring just 10 goals in nine games.
That's because they've conceded just four goals and are the best defensive team in the top five leagues so far. Otherwise, they have drawn four of their nine Ligue 1 games this season, with only one goal or zero in seven of them, and it is really difficult to achieve good results.
What's even more rare is that of the five games that Nice have won in Ligue 1 this season, they happen to face Paris in the current Ligue 1 ranking, Monaco in third place (all won away), and Marseille, who are third in Ligue 1 last season and seventh this season.
I have to sigh that Nice is really a nameless ghost, and the top 7 teams in the league have played 5, and they can actually rank first in Ligue 1.
b. Win 4.9 one-on-one times per game! Todibo was right not to go to Manchester United
Nice's defensive quality is so high, in addition to thanking the young coach Valeoli for his divine use, but also to praise the team's central defender Todibo and the defensive all-rounder Ndaishmiye.
France international centre-back Todibo, in particular, has won 4.9 one-on-one matches per game this season and has a success rate of 66%. What's even more interesting is that he has a 100% success rate and is a defender modeled after Lucio.
During the summer window, Todibo came close to joining Manchester United, even missing the Ligue 1 round before the transfer market closed (no injuries, no red and yellow card suspensions, just no squad, and the only time this season).
According to Romano, Todibo is still among the four targets for Manchester United's central defenders in the winter window. It is precisely because of Manchester United's interest that Nice quickly raised his asking price for Todibo, and his transfer to other teams has become less operable, and he is likely to play this season.
02. Todibo can free up right-back & his front is too strong
With Todibo: who remembers who the right back is
Todibo's technical characteristics are very suitable for teams with open scenes and playing styles. On the one hand, Todibo has a lot of strength in front and likes to go to the middle circle to grab or intercept.
On the other hand, Todibo moves very fast, has good explosive power, and can pull the side to protect the full-back's defensive zone at any time. Especially when the opponent counterattacks, under the large space in the backcourt, Todibo's one-on-one grappling efficiency is extremely high.
Nice's overall formation forward pressure is quite fierce, which is because Todibo is really not afraid of the opponent's sudden counterattack. Todibo is more afraid of the opponent hitting the wall and hitting him behind, if it is just a single soldier, Todibo is really too efficient to break the ball.
From facing Kylian Mbappe and Vashi to Ndiaye against Marseille this time, Todibo has a very high winning rate when he takes a one-on-one kick when he steps back. This is because he not only has good speed, but also has superior strength and frequency of foot movements.
Looking at Marseille's counterattack this time, Nice started right-back Lobon injured, and Rosario, who came on as a substitute, was a cameo at the back, so it was not very reasonable and rigorous on the wing.
This time after Ndiaye passed, Nice was open at the back. It was Todibo who came in and broke the ball with his precise foot, and as a result, Ndiaye rubbed it again, and he didn't even get the touchline ball.
b. The manager is also tactically masking Todibo's shortcomings
Nice manager Valeoly was born in 1989 and is a post-90s who is only 34 years old. You know, in the Nice team, the old central defender Dent is 40 years old. He can control the team well, really good quality.
His use of Todibo is also very admirable. In the top match against Brest, Todibo played extremely high standards and efficiency in the first 60 minutes, with 3 tackles, 3 tackles and 1 interception, and won 6 of 7 one-on-one matches.
As a result, in the next five minutes, Todibo gave the opponent a chance due to two mistakes in Todibo's top defense, so Valeoli decisively replaced Todibo in the 68th minute, although the latter looked shocked, but still obediently carried out the coach's arrangement.
It can also be seen from the position that Todibo is always ready to top the back and protect the right-back defense when the team switches in attack and defense.
At the same time, Ndayishmiye in the back position is a backfield all-rounder, can play right-back or central defender, his value at the back is to change positions and supplement at any time.
So when this wave fell into the penalty area, Ndayishmiye at the back was in the left central defender position, Dent leaned in the center, and Rosario, who played at the back and could also play as a central defender, switched positions with Todibo.
Todibo is actually a little afraid of letting him go up when there are offensive players behind him. After all, it is a big man with a height of 1.9 meters, and the first action of turning around in an instant cannot be as flexible as a small person.
This kind of pass hits him behind his back, and Todibo will be a little uncomfortable. The second time he stepped back, Todibo went straight to the right-back and let the slow Rossellio go to the middle. Then the opponent passed the ball to the open position, and it was difficult for Todibo to fall back, but Nice's good rotation left the opponent with not many chances.
Looking at the defence this time, Todibo once again made up for the right-back area, holding up Ndiaye and poked the ball out. The teammate then failed to control the ball and was won by Longier and hit the vacant spot after Todibo left.
Fortunately, Todibo's own movement was also very fast, and his teammates interfered with Longjier again, and the ball was successfully controlled to complete the clearance.
03. Nice's defensive logic: Todibo's athleticism + team rotation
a. Todibo is busy: always looking for confrontation
From the statistics of the data website, it can be seen that Todibo's advantages are passing and stealing, while the defensive habit is to like stealing.
Todibo's flaw is that he does not anticipate high balls very well, and sometimes there are some mistakes. So it's also a good idea to let him top out.
This time, Todibo turned back to defend in the 30-metre area up front, and broke the ball strongly, bringing Laborod a chance. The latter's shot slightly higher still poses a greater threat.
Young Marshal Valeoli has a deep trust in Todibo, and tactically gives Todibo a lot of room to play. At this time, when Nice is defending, Todibo will be very strong in front of the opponent's "fulcrum" or the central striker who carries the back.
Later, when Todibo retreated, he was able to find a second time to grab and fight.
This Poto Dibo has made two consecutive tackles and is an example of this. Todibo's strength is so good that he doesn't necessarily have to break the ball completely under his feet, but he can also kick the ball out through slots and power confrontations.
Looking at this wave of retreats, when Ndiaye cut through Rossellio's defense area, Todibo completed a crucial recovery.
He quickly landed and interfered well, Ndiaye adjusted his shot again, and Todibo made another blocking move, causing the opponent's shot to end up a little deflected.
B. Todibo was also an important part of the Nice attack
Todibo won seven of his nine one-on-one meetings against Marseille, contributing seven steals, three clearances and one block.
He also had 98 passes, with an 89% success rate, plus one crucial pass that brought shots on goal.
Todibo's passing is still good, especially if he can bring offensive opportunities after making tackles. In positional battles, Todibo's long passes and direct plugs are also of good quality and can be the starting point in the middle circle.
This kick was transferred to Laborde on the right, but unfortunately the latter's attack after cutting inside was a bit rushed, and the intention of directly blocking the ball was too obvious, and it was damaged.
Looking at the attack again, Todibo sent the ball straight to Laborod, who when he won the ball, a teammate at the close end covered the space and gave Laborod a chance to cross inside.
At the same time, the center is covered by center Murphy, and the back row is loose and forward, forming a good echelon attack.
The quality of Todibo's split wing is still good, which is conducive to the initiation of the attack. The loose forward insertion is also good, but it is a pity that Murphy's header position is not very good this time, but Nice's offensive movement is good as a whole, showing the level of young coach Valeoli.
Conclusion:
Missing out on Manchester United is certainly not a bad thing for Todibo. Play well with Nice this season and try to get a Champions League ticket.
After all, with Nice's offensive efficiency, the possibility of winning the championship in a long season is still too low. But as long as he qualifies for the Champions League, Todibo, who is only 23 years old at this time, will have more options whether he is transferring or staying in the team.