UEFA B and El Gouna FC youth coach Omar Lasheen provides a tactical analysis on another North African rising star in the Bundesliga, Algeria’s Ramy Bensebaini.
As football continues to resume across the globe, KingFut’s latest series features tactical breakdowns on players and clubs from the Middle East and North Africa.
Following last week’s analysis of Morocco and Borussia Dortmund’s marauding right-back Achraf Hakimi, Omar Lasheen puts the spotlight on another elite full-back on the opposite flank in the Bundesliga, Algeria and Borussia Mönchengladbach left-back Ramy Bensebaini.
Player Profile – Ramy Bensebaini
After making his entrance into European football through Belgium and France, Ramy Bensebaini was part of Borussia Mönchengladbach’s summer overhaul that saw the Algerian left-back make the switch to Germany.
The energetic 25-year-old defender has gradually earned his place in Marco Rose’s team, providing physicality defensively and an added impetus going forward on the left channel, contributing to five goals and two assists in the league this season. This player analysis will look at what Ramy Bensebaini has brought to Borussia Mönchengladbach as well as ways to improve if he is to maximize his undoubted potential.
Strength: Heading & Aerial Duals
Ramy Bensebaini’s heading ability is both a defensive and offensive weapon that Borussia Mönchengladbach utilize to full effect. Bensebaini’s height, 186cm, reflects the fact that he has started his career as a central defender, before now playing the majority of his games at left-back.
This has meant that in an area that is less attacked aerially, he has a height advantage over many of his direct opponents. Bensebaini is the left-back who has won the most aerial duels in the Bundesliga, with 40.
He has a very high jumping reach that allows him to get his head on the ball ahead of his opponents. His towering figure coupled with his aggression in the air makes him intimidating when he is defending, and difficult to mark when he is attacking the ball.
Offensively, in set-pieces, his ability to identify vacant spaces helps him exploit the situation and provide a threat on goal. He is able to read crosses and time his runs to arrive at the ball at the correct speed. He uses his agility and movement to get away from markers, which creates dangerous situations for Borussia Mönchengladbach.
This is exemplified below, showing a set-piece situation where Bensebaini has scanned the area around him and has seen a space where he can use his powerful running to move into. As others around him are stood still and making little movements, his aggressive nature is shown in his eagerness to get to the ball and attack the space where he thinks the ball will arrive. His jumping reach and the power he generates with his head allows to him to score the goal.
Defensively, Ramy Bensebaini is able to use his presence and power to come for balls in the air with dominance. Winning the ball at the highest point possible allows him to put more distance on his header and push his team up the pitch.
This is shown in the image below, where he challenges for the ball with aggression. His direct opponent does not jump for the ball with him because of his authoritative nature in attacking the ball. Bensebaini’s ability to reach the ball in a high position, on the pitch and in the air, allows him to put more distance on it and give his teammates the chance to challenge for the ball in a more advanced area.
Strength: 1v1 Defending
Ramy Bensebaini possesses great quality in defending 1v1 situations. In his position, left-back, he deals with a high number of take-ons from opposing wingers every game. He has the highest interceptions per 90 minutes for Borussia Mönchengladbach, with 2.6.
His interception technique is the key factor in helping him defend 1v1s. He has the ability to use his body to show the opposition into the areas he wants. This comes after Bensebaini assesses the space around him to understand where he wants to force the attacker to go.
He uses his speed to recover the ball in situations where the opposition attacks the space. However, in situations where the opposition goes inside, he uses his strength by getting his body between the ball and the man.
Ramy Bensebaini’s ability to react quickly to the situation as well as his timing to put his foot on the ball are all assets that make a him one of the most difficult players to go past in the Bundesliga.
The situation above shows his competence in defending 1v1 situations. After assessing the area around him, Bensebaini uses his body to show the opposition player the outside space, opting to use his pace to deal with the attack. His ability to keep his eye on the ball and time his tackle, allows him to intercept the ball cleanly; keeping it in possession for his team to start their attack.
However, with such an aggressive approach to intercepting the ball, there is always a chance for mistimed tackles which lead to fouls and the creation of dangerous situations for the opposition. Firstly, Bensebaini’s initial positioning prevents him, a lot of the time, to become proactive in defending 1v1s.
This means he has to be reactive as he is often caught out of position. Instead of blocking passes and being in a position to deal calmly with a developing attack, he frequently finds himself in situations where he needs to sprint back and slide tackle to recover the ball.
As a consequence, Bensebaini can occasionally be reckless in tackling and can go to ground too easily instead of simply putting his body behind the ball and intercepting it cleanly. His rash tackling technique allows the opportunity for opponents with quick feet to win fouls and take advantage of the Algerian defender being on the ground.
This is illustrated in the image above, with Ramy Bensebaini deciding to go to ground in an attempt to recover the ball instead of blocking the area behind him and using his body to force the play outside. He did not interpret the space around him and recognize the fact that his team is in a fairly comfortable position with the defenders outnumbering the opposition attackers. In this situation, the forward has pushed the ball away and used the space left by Bensebaini to take a direct route to goal and therefore creating a goal-scoring situation.
Room for Improvement: Defensive Awareness
Bensebaini’s defensive awareness is an area that has caused problems for Borussia Mönchengladbach. The lack of understanding of his positioning in relation to his teammates’ leaves him in isolated positions, oblivious to the dangerous spaces around him.
As a left-back, he occupies the side of the defensive line, so Bensebaini needs to make sure that he shifts across in the team’s defensive block, in accordance to the ball and the opponent. By not doing that, gaps arise, which create possible opportunities for opposition forwards.
This is shown in the situation above, where the opposition midfielder is in possession, with no pressure on the ball. That allows him to put his head up and assess his passing options. In the same instance, the forward is making a run between Borussia Mönchengladbach’s central defender and left-back, Ramy Bensebaini. Bensebaini’s failure to shift across to keep a suitable distance between him and his fellow defender, creates space for the opposition to play a dangerous ball.
As opponents’ attacks develop, Bensebaini’s body stance, flat footed, and lack of awareness of his surroundings makes it difficult to adjust his body quickly to deal with the attacker.
In the example above, the opposition midfielder is ready to play a pass in the space to the left of Bensebaini, with two runners running off him. His body position, facing forward, should be tilted to the side, ready to turn and face the attacker. Instead, the pass is played with Bensebaini flat footed, make him slow to react, which gave the attacker more time to finish off the goal-scoring opportunity.
Conclusion – Ramy Bensebaini
Continuing his upward trajectory since moving out of Algeria in 2014, Ramy Bensebaini possesses qualities that can make him one of the best African defenders to make their way into the European game.
With his dominance in the air and his ability in defending 1v1 situations, coupled with improving his defensive awareness and channeling his aggression, Borussia Mönchengladbach will have a top player on their hands to help them continue their development and ultimately the search for their first Bundesliga title since 1977.
