MINI-THREAD ON PSG'S 4-2-2-2: Thomas Tuchel likes to have width in his attack, as he likes players to be able to cut in diagonally from these wide areas. This formation creates interesting opportunities on fast-breaks from these diagonal runs.

PSG dominate possession in most games and in general, looking to cut inside behind defenders in wide areas is a useful way to get the ball in behind deep-blocks. Importantly, having the wide player cutting inside takes their momentum towards goal.

Having a centre-forward drop into a deeper area as Neymar does in the image below, creates space in central areas for the wide player to cut into, whilst potentially draws defenders out of these areas too.

But it's on counter-attacks where we see it at its best. Tuchel has his forwards vacate the central areas altogether and operate on the shoulders of the full-backs. The 2 attacking-midfielders engage the centre-backs before playing in behind the defence as the forwards cut inside

This positioning creates good quality space for the attacking-midfielders in between the lines, and overall this is an ideal tactic to take full advantage of forwards with truly game-changing pace such as Mbappe, providing space for them to run in behind opposition defences.