The Sea
Last year
One of the most unnoticed surprises of last year’s Arda Cup was the fact that an Ulmo-led squad was terrible on defence. Conceding two goals to eventual champions Real Valinor and a Túrin-led Hithlum was somewhat understandable, but allowing the Havens to do the same was eyebrow-raising. And conceding to Valimar, a team that scored but once against an anaemic Hithlum back line, was nothing short of shocking.
Were Hithlum and the Sea’s defence on the same level, then? more than one expert asked.
Was that notion even possible?
Changes
This year, the Vala of the waters returned to his roots. He has made just a single signing (Gondor shotstopper Hyarmendacil), but he had his squad playing in a way different from last year.
Attack
The changes were felt most strongly up front. Last year’s free-flowing, interchanging Númenórean offence was reined in, with the leading band of midfielders, Tar-Aldarion, Vëantur, and Tar-Meneldur, sitting deeper. This often left lone forward Tar-Minastir cutting a lonely figure higher up the pitch. The front four are still capable of slicing through defences (their quick one-touch passing confused Valimar’s defenders enough to allow Tar-Minastir a clear shot at Manwë’s goal during a friendly match), but the attackers now bear more responsibilities when out of possession.
Midfield and Defence
Former goalkeeper Voronwë has replaced Eriol in the Sea’s defensive midfield band, alongside Tar-Ciryatan. With Ulmo’s renewed commitment to defence (and playing on the break), their sole contribution to the offence is to hoof the ball forward to instigate counterattacking moves.
Behind them are the Sea’s talented defenders—Ulmo and Ossë in the centre, Salmar and Uinen out wide in the left and right, respectively. While the full-backs offer something going forward, and Ulmo is a threat during set-pieces, their main priority is to stifle opposition attackers and deny chances to test their goalkeeper.
Quick Guide
CAPTAIN: Ulmo
FORMATION: 4-5-1/4-2-3-1
PLAYING STYLE: defensive, counterattacking
STRENGTH: Defence
WEAKNESS: Lack of creativity.
KEY PLAYER: Hyarmendacil
QUESTION: How much rope will Ulmo give his offence?
__________
Tirion
Last year
Last year’s Tirion were condemned to elimination by the Arda Cup’s group selection committee. In any other group (save E, or possibly G), they would have been favourites to advance. But compared to the teams in last year’s ‘group of death’, they didn’t have the cohesion of Armenelos nor the star power of the two Valinor squads. Being eliminated with zero points was indicative of their level in the group, but not of their talent compared to the rest of the teams at large.
Changes
This year’s changes perhaps didn’t bring them appreciably closer to the level of the Real and FC Valinor, but they’re now placed in a less difficult group (though some pundits still have them missing out on the knockout stages), and they improved significantly, especially on defence. They acquired former right-back Rúmil from Real Valinor, adding defensive solidity to their midfield without sacrificing attacking potential. More importantly, their shambolic back three has been almost completely overhauled.
Defence
Tirion acquired centre-backs Amrod and Amras from Valimar, a team that conceded but once every game in a Group E featuring forwards Túrin, Húrin, Tar-Minastir, Eärendil, and Tuor. Joining the two is their brother Caranthir, fresh from a phenomenal finals performance against Eriador. A central defender in Real Valinor’s cup-winning squad, he now plays on the left as an attacking full-back—his assist for Aredhel’s opener in the friendly against Angband came after an explosive burst down the touchline. On the right is the more defensive full-back Irimë, the only holdover from last year’s defenders.
There are concerns over their goalkeeper Finarfin. He has not brought his club form over to Tirion; he remains middling to poor when playing for Finwë’s squad (65.2% save rate during last year’s Arda Cup compared to 66.7% during this year’s friendlies).
Midfield
In the centre of the midfield are Anairë and Eldalótë, who have demonstrated excellent partnership in two friendly games. They generally stay in position instead of venturing forward. Mahtan, on their left, drifts infield when Tirion is in possession to allow Caranthir to overlap. Rúmil on the right is a more traditional winger, running down the flanks to deliver crosses. Both are defensively solid, allowing Tirion to form a secure barrier ahead of their defence in case they need to play defensively.
Attack
Ahead of them is a solid partnership of Finwë and Aredhel—both are comfortable with being the focal point of the offence or dropping deeper to play off the other. During their first friendly, Rúmil and Caranthir sent crosses into the box for Finwë, whose knockdowns were converted by Aredhel and Mahtan. And then during their second match, Finwë dropped to the midfield to avoid the attention of the Angband defence, while Aredhel sat on the shoulder of the defenders and timed runs on to through passes, one of which he converted for the opener.
Quick Guide
CAPTAIN: Finwë
FORMATION: 4-4-2
PLAYING STYLE: attacking, pressing
STRENGTH: Attackers.
WEAKNESS: Goalkeeper.
KEY PLAYER: Finwë
QUESTION: Can they beat either the Sea or Nargothrond?
__________
Group F’s expected finish:
- The Sea
- Tirion
- Nargothrond
- Minas Tirith