Head coaches have a very deep role in a team’s performance. They do a lot more than stand on the side of the pitch gesticulating at referees and screaming at their players. While their ability to motivate is a big part of their skill set, there are bigger roles that head coaches have.
Those roles play an integral part in betting lines. A coach wants the best chance at winning the game, while a punter wants to be in a position to land the most winning odds in football.
Coaches are the ones who call the shots in what their team does on the pitch. Tactics are something that punters should put into the mix when checking on the latest football betting odds.
The Coaching Role
No two managers have the same tactical principles. The personal style of a head coach is huge. It could be a possession-based approach or a heavy defensive focus. It could be a counter-attacking style or just a bold front-foot high-press approach.
Sometimes it is a blend of some of those things because as the situation within an active match changes, head coaches have to react.
The Betting Influence
It’s worth understanding the nuances and tactics that head coaches roll with. If you have two defensive-minded coaches going head-to-head on a Saturday afternoon, then you naturally want to dial back the line on the Over/Under Goals or Winning Margin.
On the other hand, you may have two attacking teams going at each other where goals could likely flow. It could be a blend of distinct styles squaring off, which sometimes can cancel each other out.
What a head coach does not only with his tactics but with the game-day personnel that he sends out to execute their plans, is telling.
The Game Changers
Starting line-ups are a great way to try to predict and leverage positions from tactical changes. If a manager suddenly includes two holding midfielders in their starting eleven, then that is a clear hint that they are thinking more defensively on the day.
Coaches chop and change their tactics. They have to. Playing an open attacking game against a relegation candidate at home is a far different scenario from playing a title-deciding match out on the road against a high-quality opponent.
Tactics have to be adapted to the scenario and this is important for punters. What has worked in the previous game for a team, which saw them produce a high-quality performance, may not work in their next match.
If those game situations are very different, it can likely lead to a team being overvalued in the match outright.
The Game Status
The importance of a match is also a heavy influencing factor for betting choices. Don’t just take the game at face value from stats research. The stats can’t tell you everything. They won’t reflect what the fixture means.
Maybe the away team just needs to avoid a loss in their final match of the season to win the league title. Perhaps a team has to go out and bank three points to avoid relegation. Those are scenarios which can greatly affect what a head coach does on the day.
On-the-fly Tactics
A head coach may also need to change tactics during a game. Depending on their status in the latter stages of the second half, they will turn to their bench for support. It could be sacrificing an attacking player for a defender to try and hold on to a narrow lead, or vice versa to rescue a point.
The best-laid plans are not set in stone. Things on the day just don’t work, either because of what the opposition is doing or if players just aren’t doing their part of the plan. In-game changes can fly in the face of what the pre-match markets predicted.
Throwing on a super-sub to try and win a match can be a game-changer. Always be prepared to watch the live betting markets for significant changes in tactics and players. There could be windows of opportunity to exploit some market options.
In Summary
Football is a game full of human influences, emotions and decisions, both good and bad. Stats can’t account for everything. Try and get in the head of a team’s head coach and what they may be thinking about when setting up their team for the next fixture. What they say, and what they do, all influence the bets you take.
