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FC Porto and Nottingham Forest faced off on Thursday night at Estadio Do Dragão in Portugal, with both sides looking to take a result back to England next week.

Francesco Farioli’s Porto side dominated the chances but couldn’t take a lead into their away leg, with the game ending 1-1.

The game saw Vitor Pereira return to Dragoes after managing there from 2011 to 2013, winning two league titles.

He received a hero's welcome, with Porto President André Villas-Boas gifting the Portuguese manager a shirt before the game.

His Forest side hadn’t played a competitive fixture since before the international break, but had been on a good run of form.

They drew with both Manchester City and Fulham, knocked out Midtjylland in the UEFA Europa League and then got a huge 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur.

Porto were also in good form, winning four of their last five fixtures.

The only blemish on their record was a 2-2 draw with FC Famalicão on the previous weekend.

The tie played out chance wise how you’d expect a league challenging side (Porto are first in the Liga Portugal) against a relegation threatened (Forest currently sit three points above the drop in the Premier League) one to go, with Farioli’s side winning the shot count 16 to six and the expected goals 2.16 to 0.45 (per FotMob’s Opta Data).

Yet, Forest had the ball in the back of the net more than Porto did and will rue some good opportunities spurned.

This tactical analysis focuses on how Porto created their chances through their intensity and nice interplay, how Forest settled well after a frantic start and what all this means for the second leg.

The arrival of Martin Demichelis at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix has signalled a profound shift in the tactical identity of RCD Mallorca.

Historically a side synonymous with rugged pragmatism and deep-sitting low blocks, the Balearic club has undergone a radical transformation in the opening four fixtures of this mid-season appointment.

Demichelis, bringing with him the structural influences of his time at River Plate and the theoretical rigour of the Bayern Munich school, has introduced a brand of proactive, possession-oriented football that has startled the established hierarchies of La Liga.

This is no longer a team content to survive on the periphery of the game; this is a side intent on dictating its geometric terms from the centre of the pitch.

In these initial four matches, we have witnessed the deconstruction of the rigid five-at-the-back systems of the previous era, replaced by a sophisticated 4-4-2 diamond that prioritises central density and vertical progression.

The early results have been as aesthetically pleasing as they have been tactically intriguing, especially considering that Demichelis took over the reins only a few weeks ago without the luxury of a full pre-season to drill his concepts.

He has managed to harmonise a high-intensity pressing regime with a methodical build-up phase that utilises the full width of the pitch only to penetrate the central corridors.

The atmosphere around the club has shifted from one of anxious containment to one of calculated aggression.

This tactical analysis will dissect the three pillars of the Demichelis revolution: the implementation of the midfield diamond to exert central control, the sophisticated pressing triggers embedded in their defensive transitions, and the tactical evolution of Vedat Muriqi from a lonely target man into the focal point of a multi-dimensional attacking unit.

We are observing a masterclass in how to modernise a traditional squad in real time.