iscover the world of computerised match analysis software and learn all about the performances and styles of teams and players. The match analysis software can provide a concise, unbiased evaluation of team players and opponents during the game played. This game analysis provides a deeper understanding and a unique view beyond what can be seen either in person at the game or viewed on video afterwards. For example, it sometimes happens that the unobtrusive player proves to be the most productive performer on the team. Often mistaken for a plodder, this is the player who drags their side back from the brink of defeat in the nick of time. Now, this match analysis software gives this player the recognition he deserves.

The principle is very simple. The information that is gathered from the data has converted even the most sceptical football experts. Currently teams from Brazil, Mexico and the United States are using this approach to evaluate games after the fact.

The software is simple to use and does not require a computer guru to master. After a few finger exercises any novice can soon cope with the program. All it takes, basically, is a team of two people whose duties are split as follows: the "spy" observes the action on the field through binoculars and comments briefly on the run of play by quoting the number of the player touching the ball. The second person traces the path the ball takes using the mouse on the mat and the screen, which represents the pitch. Every time the ball is touched the player number is typed into the portable computer and the mouse is clicked.

The keyboard is set up before the game to reflect the configuration of players who have been fielded and the program records each entry as a separate move, which would signify nothing on its own. The action on the field can then be analysed thoroughly by posing specific questions using pull-down menus. The passes and tactics show up as lines on the screen's pitch that speak volumes to an expert eye about the strengths and weaknesses of the team in question.

The following is a small part of an in-depth evaluation of the Final of the IXth FIFA World Youth Championship for the Coca-Cola Cup. The match was between defending champions Argentina and Uruguay. The statistics provided below were produced by the match analysis software. Find out how Argentina overcame a strong Uruguayan opposition in the final match of the recently concluded U-20 Championship held in Malaysia in June and early July.

The largest crowd of the championship saw Argentina retain their title as World Youth Champions for the third time, having also won in 1979 and 1995. The South American duel began with Garcia's free-kick goal on the quarter-hour and Olivera hitting the bar shortly afterwards for Uruguay, but Cambiasso's header put the Argentina champions back on the level terms. Uruguay was the better team but Quintana's goal made it 2-1 at half-time. The game continued at a furious pace, with both teams producing brilliant technical football to keep the crowd fully entertained. Gradually, however, as Argentina defence contained the dangerous strikers, Olivera and Zalayeta, Uruguay seemed to run out of steam.

Jose Nestor Pekerman (Argentina coach): This was a very hard game, a classic, the best of the championship. Uruguay played a great game but luck was on our side. Both teams knew that if they could dominate the midfield they would have the edge. After Uruguay went ahead we did well to strike back quickly and survive until half-time. We controlled the second-half much better and cut-out their strikers. It's the greatest honour imaginable to have won the World Youth Championship twice in a row, but I can't say which of these two titles has given me the greatest satisfaction.

Victor Pua (Uruguay coach): Of course I'm desperately sad but I'm even more proud of my players. It's no secret that Argentina are a very good team but I wouldn't say that they were better than us. The difference is that they scored one goal more than we did and made us pay dearly for our mistakes. We had a lot of bad luck in the first-half and we should have scored at least two goals more. We threw everything forward in the last 15 minutes but finally tiredness took its toll.

After watching the game in person or on television, how would an expert or football enthusiast go about evaluating the match? While pondering the winning goal, would they raise the following question:

Can a player who contributed to his team with shots and impact passes be considered more valuable than another player who scored the winning goal?

The Winning Goal
Argentina	Figure 1 - The Winning Goal	Uruguay
Figure 1 shows the sequence of passes which led to the winning goal by Argentina. The Goal originated from a throw-in by Placente #14 of Argentina, to Quintana #7, who passed it back to Placente #14 who then passed it to Cubero #13, who passed it to Riquelme #8. Riquelme #8 dribbled the ball and then passed to Scaloni #18, who passed it back to Riquelme #8, who then passed it forward to Scaloni #18 again after Scaloni had moved into open space, who then dribbled a few yards and crossed the ball to Quintana #7 who scored the wining goal.

In the age of computers and information technology, those who study the game and fans alike, now have the means to gather and process large amounts of information about the game that was simply impossible to do before. The computerised match analysis software developed by SoftSport^tm Inc tracks and records of the field location and player for every touch of the ball. The match data can be entered while the game is being played or while viewing the video tape afterwards.

Figure 2 - Shots on goal by Argentina and Uruguay

Once the match data is entered, the computer analyses the raw field position of the player/ball data and presents a match analysis in two forms; field plots and bar charts. The field plots present a football field template overlaid with events of interest, at the locations on the field where they occurred. The relationship between the number of field events, the location on the field where they occur, and the players involved are all brought together on one screen. This makes it easy and intuitive to visualise the key match events, trends, and player/team relationships that occur in the game. The bar charts summarise team or player statistics in a variety of new team/player performance categories that are comprehensive and totally objective, i.e. without the need to apply personal judgement in the data collection process.

Argentina - Completed Passes First Half vs. Second Half
Total Completed Passes = 128	Total Completed Passes = 116
Argentina Shots On Goal
Uruguay - Completed Passes First Half vs. Second Half
Total Completed Passes = 84	Total Completed Passes = 179
Uruguay Shots On Goal

Figure #2 above shows shots on goal taken by Argentina and Uruguay players throughout the entire game. Analysis of the information shows the following:

• An average of 65-70% of Argentina and Uruguay shots were initiated from the right hand side of the field.
• An average of 60% of Argentina and Uruguay shots were initiated from the outside the penalty area.
• An average of 70-75% of the shots were intercepted by field players or saved by the goal keeper.

When comparing Argentina and Uruguay styles of play and successes (completed passes) the analysis shows the following:

• Both teams play most of the game from the defending penalty area to the attacking penalty area (see density of completed passes).
• Both teams penetrations resulted in approximately 5% of the completed passes into the opponents penalty area.
• Uruguary improved dramatically their completed passes in the second half of the game from 84 to 179 passes. They also out-performed Argentina by approximately 50% more passes (179 passes vs 116 passes).
• Additional information showed that Uruguay took more shots on goal, (9 to 6) approximately 50% more, however, with all the advantage in the above categories, Uruguay was not able to score the tying goal.

The question is: should we select a player that scored the wining goal, a player who had the most shots, the best defender, or a player who had the most completed passes?" Second Look^tm gives the coach, media and fans the opportunity to decide in a more objective way- who is the best player in the game. Everyone can select his own criteria. For the analysis of this game, we selected two different categories where s player showed outstanding performances. One was "Most Shots on goal by a single player- Olivera #10 from Uruguay , and the most active player inside the penalty area - Romeo #9 from Argentina.

Player Performance Summary Olivera #10 (Uruguay) Shots initiated by Olivera Passes intercepted/saved by Argentina players Player Performance Summary Romeo #9 (Argentina) Passes received/intercepted by Romeo from his team mates Passes initiated by Argentina players and Received by Romeo Passes initiated by Uruguay players and intercepted by Romeo

Breakdown of Shots on Goal-Player by Player

Olivera: Most Shots on Goal by a Single Player

• Olivera #10 had the most shots on goal by a player, by either team.
• Olivera's six shots on goal were more than 30% of Uruguay total shots on goal.
• Olivera initiated his shots from the following location on the field:
• 2 from the right hand side
• 2 from the center
• 2 from left hand side
• 3 shots were taken inside the penalty area
• 3 shots were taken outside the penalty area

Olivera's performance is a well balanced combination for a player

Romeo: Most Active Player Inside The Penalty Area

• Romeo No #9 of Argentina was the player who most "had possession of the ball" inside the penalty area from either team.
• From Romeo's 22 passes that he received and intercepted during the game, he handled the ball 7 times inside the Uruguay penalty area 3 of which resulted in shots on goal.
• Romeo handled the ball 18 out of 22 times in the Argentina attacking half.

1     WYC Final match not officiated by a referee from either UEFA or CONMBEBOL. The Kuwaiti Manei directed Argentina-Uruguay and became the first AFC referee appointed for such an important match. In the past, FIFA Youth competition Finals, have been officiated by UEFA (6) and CONMEBOL (4) referees. Three Federations provided two referees each: France (Vautrot in 1977 and Biguet in 1983), Argentina (Loustau in 1987, Lamolina in 1991) and Brazil (Wright in 1979 and Coelho in 1981).

2     matches lost by Argentina and Uruguay in the 1997 WYC. Both teams lost once in the preliminaries and once in Finals. Uruguay also conceded to its opponents 3 draws more than Argentina (6 to 3) in their 16 matches played.

3     World Championships won by Argentina, who have equalised Brazil at the top of the roll of honours. Also, they imitated their traditional rivals, winning the second title in a row after Qatar 1995. Brazil won its first and second WYCs in 1983 and 1985 and the third 8 years later, in 1993.

3     head-to-heads between Argentina and Uruguay in the 1997 WYC. The score is perfectly equal: each team won once with one draw. Even the goal tally is balanced, with 3 goals each. Of course, the match won by the Argentineans, the final of the Championship, counted much more!

4     the editions which have seen two teams from the same Confederation struggling for the title. In Mexico 1983 and Qatar 1995 it was Argentina and Brazil, who won once respectively. In Chile 1987 UEFA dominated with Yugoslavia, the winner, and Germany FR, runners-up. In Malaysia, Uruguay and Argentina returned to CONMEBOL an absolute prevalence.

4     matches refereed by the Kuwaiti Manei, referee of the final match. Four of the 5 matches involved a South American team: twice Paraguay, once Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. The only match Manei officiated during the competition that did not include a South American team was the 1st round match between Ghana and USA. Manei was also the only one who refereed 5 matches in the championship.

17     matches won by Uruguay in its 7 participation's to the WYC final phase. Uruguay is now 3rd in the all-time ranking, behind Brazil with 40 wins and Argentina with 24, ex-aequo with Russia (former Soviet Union). Uruguays record also includes 9 draws and suffered 7 losses for a total of 33 matches played.

50     points gained by Argentina in its 7 participation's to the Coca-Cola Cup final phase. The three-time World Champions are now in 2nd position in the all-time ranking behind Brazil, who is leading with 88 points. Russia remain 3rd (45) while Uruguay moved up, ahead of Portugal, to 4th with 43 points.

69     goals scored by Argentina in 35 matches played in World Youth Championships. Brazil, who leads the pack, has an astounding 127 goals scored in only 54 matches played (2.35 per match).

Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.

Figure 1 shows the sequence of passes which led to the winning goal by Argentina. The Goal originated from a throw-in by Placente #14 of Argentina, to Quintana #7, who passed it back to Placente #14 who then passed it to Cubero #13, who passed it to Riquelme #8. Riquelme #8 dribbled the ball and then passed to Scaloni #18, who passed it back to Riquelme #8, who then passed it forward to Scaloni #18 again after Scaloni had moved into open space, who then dribbled a few yards and crossed the ball to Quintana #7 who scored the wining goal.

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Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.

Figure #2 shows shots on goal taken by Argentina and Uruguay players throughout the entire game. Analysis of the information shows the following:

• An average of 65-70% of Argentina and Uruguay shots were initiated from the right hand side of the field.
• An average of 60% of Argentina and Uruguay shots were initiated from the outside the penalty area.
• An average of 70-75% of the shots were intercepted by field players or saved by the goal keeper.

Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.
Total Completed Passes = 128	Total Completed Passes = 116

Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.
Total Completed Passes = 84	Total Completed Passes = 179

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Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.

• Olivera #10 had the most shots on goal by a player, by either team.
• Olivera's six shots on goal were more than 30% of Uruguay total shots on goal.
• Olivera initiated his shots from the following location on the field:
  • 2 from the right hand side
  • 2 from the center
  • 2 from left hand side
  • 3 shots were taken inside the penalty area
  • 3 shots were taken outside the penalty area

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Copyright © SecondLook Match Analysis, Courtesy of SoftSport Inc.

• Romeo No #9 of Argentina was the " most ball handler " inside the penalty area by either team.
• From Romeo's 22 passes that he received and intercepted during the game, he handled the ball 7 times inside the Uruguay penalty area 3 of which resulted in shots on goal.
• Romeo handled the ball 18 out of 22 times in the Argentina attacking half.

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