Writing for
The Athletic, Liam Twomey and Sebastian Stafford-Bloor said Tuchel's Mainz side prioritized adaptability in their approach, changing formation or tactical set-up multiple times each game to negate the particular strengths of their opponent. Speaking on this, Tuchel remarked, "We broke all [established] tactical rules [and assumptions] not for the sake of it, but because we were inferior in all aspects [at Mainz] and were forced to."
[37] During his time at Dortmund, Tuchel often used the 4–1–4–1 and 4–2–3–1 formations; with the former, he made his team force overloads in space out wide, while with the latter, he looked to create overloads in pockets of space in between the lines of the opposition.
[19] He also made the club more ball-dominant, as average possession by the team increased almost 9% following his appointment
TITANIUM THOMAS KNOWS HOW TO WORK WITH SQUAD LIMITATIONS