The FCS has to fix these things during the break

FC Südtirol's season so far has not been catastrophic. Nevertheless, the mood among the White-Reds is not the best. Critical voices in the environment are increasing. Bisoli's style of play was too destructive, the quality of the team was not good enough and the summer transfer period went badly for the club. What is behind these topics and where are the South Tyroleans' deficits?

FC Südtirol wrote a football fairy tale last season. Contrary to all predictions and statistics, Bisoli and his team reached the playoff semi-finals, where they had to give up against Bari. Bisoli then took some time to reflect on his future in Bolzano - for good reason. The FCS coach is known as a tough dog who demands the utmost from his players. Many professionals are exhausted by Bisoli's style. This is no secret and is confirmed by former Bisoli protégés. In addition, Bisoli's game idea places additional demands on the players. In (almost) every game, the opponent has much more possession of the ball, numerous crosses rain down into the penalty area and the constant counter-attacking requires a lot of sprinting on offense. That's tiring.

Daouda Peeters has been able to impress in his few appearances so far. But the Belgian is not a playmaker in midfield.

But what has changed compared to the previous year? Why is Bisoli’s style suddenly being called “destructive” by fans and journalists? Basically little, except for the results. However, football is still a results sport and many spectators simply don't care how the FCS achieves its victories. The main thing is that the result is right. Many statistics from last year are (almost) identical to this year's. The South Tyroleans are still the Serie B team with the least possession of the ball. Compared to the previous season, this has even increased slightly. However, one of the White-Reds' biggest problems lies in another area. Only promoted team Feralpisalò has fewer top-class scoring chances than the FCS. If the penalties are taken into account (and there have already been 5 of them), FC Südtirol is by far the weakest offensive team in the league (the xG value from the game is 8,2*).

But: Bisoli's biggest problem child is probably the defense. There are several weak points there – structural and personnel-related. Last year the FCS was almost invincible in the aerial duels. No other team in the league was as good at defending the penalty area as South Tyrol. That's different this year. The FCS has become vulnerable when it comes to crosses, and the first goal against Pisa came after a high ball into the penalty area. Why is that and what is different this year than last year?

The role of summer transfers This is where the summer transfer market comes into play. Sports director Paolo Bravo has brought a completely new team to Bolzano, although many of the newcomers didn't make an impact. There are a few flops, especially in defense. Luca Ghiringhelli doesn't fit Bisoli's style (which one could have known beforehand, after all, the full-back is 31 years old and hasn't just been in Italy since yesterday), and Serie C upstart Cristian Shiba hasn't played a second yet. Left-back Andrea Cagnano is also not well received by Bisoli and Giuseppe Cuomo has been lagging behind his form since moving from Crotone to Bolzano.

Giuseppe Cuomo is having a hard time at FC Südtirol.

Andrea Giorgini and Cuomo are not equivalent replacements for Marco Curto (Como) and Giovanni Zaro (Modena). Giorgini in particular has recently been a risk factor in defense, which Bisoli was also asked about after the Pisa game. The coach stood in front of his player - but without ruling out consequences. Fabian Tait at right-back is an option that definitely plays a role in Bisoli's mind games. However, then an important man would be missing in the center, where the playmaker is missing. As a reminder: Francesco Di Tacchio, who was scheduled there, left after a few weeks and was not replaced.

Whether in possession of the ball, creating scoring chances or in defensive play – FC Südtirol has room for improvement in all areas. However, Bisoli has to focus on his core issues, because the white-reds have not deteriorated everywhere compared to the previous year. Even if the subjective opinion may be different, objectively speaking, not that much has changed. All the statistics showed that the FCS had some lucky victories last year. Only very few people were interested back then. This momentum has changed and is currently not on the side of the South Tyroleans. Coupled with the loss of quality in defense and the midfield center, it leads to problems. Nevertheless: The FCS is in 16th place with 12 points (and one catch-up game), which is not at all underground.

*Source: Opta/FBref / xG value: Expected goals describe the statistical value of scoring chances or the probability that a shot on goal will result in a goal. A penalty, for example, has an xG value of approximately 0,75 because around a quarter of all penalties are missed.

Serie B Italy	SP	TV	P
1.Monza	12	17:7	26
2. Modena	12	21:8	25
3. Cesena	12	19:13	23
4. Frosinone	12	22:11	22
5. Venice	12	20:12	19
6. Palermo	12	15:9	19
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The FCS has to fix these things during the break

After two defeats in a row, the international break has come at just the right time for FC Südtirol. Coach Pierpaolo Bisoli has a lot of work to do, as the White-Reds' weak points were revealed against Parma (0:2) and Pisa (1:2).

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