Steve Spagnuolo is the definition of a football lifer.
He's been in coaching since 1981, when he took on a job as a graduate assistant at the University of Massachusetts and, since being appointed as a defensive assistant on Andy Reid's original Philadelphia Eagles staff in 1999, he has developed a reputation as an aggressive coach who is not afraid to send the house in order to get results.
Now 24 years on, he is again on coach Reid's staff, having served as the defensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs since 2019. That description perhaps does not paint a completely accurate picture of a coach who is more versatile in his approach than he is given credit for.
Spagnuolo will indeed go on the attack. In the 2022 regular season, only four teams blitzed with six or more pass rushers more frequently than the Chiefs, who did so 6.6 per cent of the time.
But the fact his defense is set to go against the Eagles' offense in Super Bowl LVII is in part a tribute to Spagnuolo's malleability.
The Chiefs were in the top half of the NFL when it came to overall blitz rate in the regular season, but their rate of 26.9 per cent was only enough for 15th in the NFL.
Kansas City sent four pass rushers 70.8 per cent of the time when defending aerial attacks, but they still led the NFL in pressures with 299.
In other words, Spagnuolo's defense can win with the blitz, but it can also succeed frequently getting pressure with just four down linemen, which is critical for every defense in an era where two-high safety coverages that protect against explosive plays have never been more prevalent.
The Chiefs' defense finished the regular season as the eighth-best by yards per play allowed and ranked ninth by Stats Perform's Efficiency Versus Expected (EVE) metric.
It is in the postseason, though, where Spagnuolo's defenses continually come alive.
That was the case in 2007 when his New York Giants defense held the finest offense in New England Patriots history, one that propelled them to an beaten 16-0 regular-season record, to just 14 points in Super Bowl XLII.
His first season with the Chiefs ended in Super Bowl glory as they swarmed Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers late in the fourth quarter in an underrated aspect of Kansas City's 31-20 comeback win in Super Bowl LIV. In the 2020 postseason, only a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that ruined the Chiefs' hopes of a repeat at the final hurdle had more pressures than Kansas City's 55.
And this postseason the Chiefs have again risen to the challenge on defense.
The Chiefs have racked up seven sacks in the postseason, second only to the Eagles, and tallied 23 pressures of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow in the AFC Championship Game, the most crucial being a sack by Chris Jones that gave the ball back to Patrick Mahomes for a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter.
Spagnuolo, though, does not appear interested in taking credit for the continual joy his defenses find in the playoffs, pointing more to the impact of players like Jones than any schematic wizardry.
"I always say this, what you've done in the past or prior games doesn't mean anything going into these games, it's all about our guys stepping up and doing it again," said Spagnuolo on Thursday.
"Chris Jones, if he's having the game he had last week [in the AFC Championship Game] that certainly helps us, we need our best players to play their best football and I think it comes back to those guys, I think that's why in the big moments we've been able to do that.
"None of that matters now, it's a whole different game and different gameplan, hopefully we can find 60 more minutes of good football."
Speak to the Chiefs' defenders, however, and they won't hesitate to wax lyrical about their coach's prowess for putting them in positions to thrive.
Rookie cornerback Trent McDuffie has enjoyed an excellent rookie season, allowing a combined open percentage across man and zone coverage of 21.54 that is tied for the fourth-best among all corners, according to Stats Perform data.
McDuffie credits Spagnuolo's paternal influence and the varied way in which he uses his defensive backs as key reasons why he has thrived in year one.
McDuffie told Stats Perform: "He's very detailed, which could be tough at times because when you make one little mistake he catches it and it's like 'man yeah I was in the wrong', but he's such a loving dude, he's become such a father figure for me at least, I don't think I could have been here without just the guidance from him and the wisdom he's given me.
"I just love the mentality that our defense is aggressive, we are going to attack the offense, if you're a defensive player knowing you have an offensive gear like 'we're going to go attack the offense', it makes the game much more fun, because you can do so much more. I'm blitzing, I'm playing zone, I'm playing man. He's allowed me to do so much in the defense."
The numbers reflect McDuffie's words. The Chiefs have predominantly dealt in the kind of two-deep safety coverages that have proliferated across the NFL because of the threat posed by their own quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.
Cover 4, Cover 6 and Cover 2 are the coverages in which they have primarily lived, however, they have also played Cover 2 man, where every coverage defender except for the two deep safeties plays man coverage, on 8.92 per cent of pass defense snaps, well above the league average of 2.7 per cent.
Kansas City's defense does often get extremely aggressive when blitzing, playing Cover 1 man, where every coverage defender plays man except for a deep safety, on 25.24 per cent of blitzes, and Cover 0 – where there are no deep defenders – on 18.57 per cent of blitzes.
But there are still a significant amount of zone blitzes mixed in. The Chiefs run quarters (Cover 4) when blitzing 19.52 per cent of the time and Cover 2 on 9.52 per cent of blitzes.
Spagnuolo does look to 'attack the offense', but he takes a multi-faceted approach to doing so, one which consistently pays off in high-leverage situations.
The Chiefs have 27 sacks in the postseason since 2019, 16 of which have come in the second half or overtime, with five in the final two minutes.
Perhaps it is therefore Spagnuolo's timing that is the foundation for the success of his playoff defenses.
Against the Eagles, picking his spots will be crucial.
Aggression will almost certainly need to be tempered given Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts' aptitude for capitalising on attack-mode defenses through his prowess running the zone-read, the read-option and the run-pass option.
It sets up a fascinating battle between arguably the NFL's most diverse and devastating offense, which consistently makes life easy on its quarterback, and a defense that is significantly more dynamic than many believe and excels at putting quarterbacks in difficult positions in the most important moments.
For Spagnuolo, the challenge is to craft a gameplan that maintains the attacking tendencies of his defense while protecting against the array of dangers Hurts presents.
"There's a lot of responsibility football when you play that kind of offense," Spagnuolo said.
"If we can be good on first and second down to get them in the long third downs, then maybe we can do that [attack], short of that you're always facing the possibility of a run or an RPO on any down and distance, and if you're doing something, you know it could be a big play for you, but it might be a really big play for them."
It's quite the dilemma for Spagnuolo to solve. Fortunately for the Chiefs, history is on the side of him succeeding.
Wolves v Arsenal: ‘What we still have to play for is beautiful’ – Arteta
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta set out to remind his team that they still have something “beautiful” to play for despite their Champions League exit.
The Gunners slipped out of UEFA’s flagship club competition in midweek when they went down 1-0 to Bayern Munich, losing 3-2 on aggregate.
That defeat followed on from a 2-0 loss to Aston Villa last Sunday – a reverse that significantly dented Arsenal’s title hopes, with the Gunners now two points behind Manchester City who, after this weekend, will have a game in hand.
Arsenal face Wolves on Saturday and, with City in FA Cup action, a win would see them move back to the top of the table, at least temporarily, so Arteta offered a reminder that all is not lost.
“I can guarantee you we are fully focused on Wolves and everybody's lifted,” he said following the loss in Munich.
“What we still have to play is beautiful and I said before, it's time to be next to our players and in this moment, not when you win 10 in a row and a draw, that's easy to prize our players and to be behind them and to say really nice things. The moment is now to be next to them.”
On Friday, in his pre-match press conference, Arteta added: “As an experience, [the Champions League was] the best one.
“I am now fully focused on the times ahead of us. We are now behind Manchester City and will give it a good go. The context is clear. If we win we are top of the league.”
Wolves sit 11th, though they could do with snapping a four-game winless streak in order to get their European hopes back on track.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Wolves – Matheus Cunha
Cunha has been involved in nine goals in his last nine Premier League games, scoring six and assisting three. His 11 goals overall this season is the fourth most by a Wolves player in a single Premier League campaign after Raul Jimenez (17 in 2019-20, 13 in 2018-19) and Steven Fletcher (12 in 2011-12).
Arsenal – Bukayo Saka
Saka has been involved in eight goals in his last seven Premier League away games, scoring seven and assisting one. His 13 away goal involvements overall this term (eight goals, five assists) is the most by an Arsenal player in a single Premier League campaign since Alexis Sanchez’s 20 in 2016-17.
MATCH PREDICTION: ARSENAL WIN
Arsenal lost a Premier League game for the first time in 2024 against Villa last time out. Since the start of last season, only twice have the Gunners suffered consecutive league defeats, doing so in May 2023 (v Brighton and Nottingham Forest) and December this season (v West Ham and Fulham).
Wolves are winless in their last four Premier League games (D2 L2), though they have won their last two at Molineux against sides starting the day in the top two of the table, beating Man City 2-1 in September and Spurs by the same score in November.
Arsenal have scored in their last 32 meetings with Wolves in all competitions.
Wolves have now lost each of their last five against the Gunners, failing to score in both home defeats in that run.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Wolves – 21.5%
Arsenal – 51.2%
Draw – 27.3%
Fulham v Liverpool: Klopp unconcerned by Salah's scoring form
Jurgen Klopp is not overly worried by Mohamed Salah’s slight dip in form, as the Liverpool manager turned full focus to the Reds’ Premier League title challenge.
A bad week for Liverpool was capped off on Thursday when, despite a 1-0 win over Atalanta, they slumped out of the Europa League 3-1 on aggregate following a heavy defeat at Anfield in the first leg.
That loss on April 11 came three days before a 1-0 home reverse to Crystal Palace, which saw Liverpool’s league title hopes take a dent – they are now two points behind Manchester City with six games remaining.
What has not helped their course is that talisman Salah – who netted an early penalty against Atalanta but squandered a big chance later in the match – has scored just three times in the league since returning from a hamstring injury he sustained while playing for Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations in January.
Klopp, though, is confident Salah will soon be back at his best.
“I am not particularly concerned,” he said ahead of facing Fulham.
“That’s what strikers do, that’s what happens to strikers, that’s how it is. We have to go through this, he has to go through that. He is one of the most experienced players we have in the squad.
“We will go through that but that’s pretty much all. It’s not that Mo didn’t miss chances before in his life, that’s a part of the game. I am not particularly concerned.”
Reflecting on the task at hand now for his side, Klopp added: “Disappointed that we did not go through [in Europe] but not frustrated or angry.
“Now we can focus on the league and that’s what we will do. We have a few days to recover, we will do that, and then will travel the day after tomorrow to London and will play Fulham, which will be tricky but we will give our absolute all.
“That’s our competition now. I saw a good reaction from my side, we had not a great week last week obviously. This, if we want, was the start for the rest of the season with a good result and a good performance and that’s how we see it.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Fulham – Andreas Pereira
Pereira has been involved in four goals in his last four Premier League appearances (two goals, two assists), with his brace against West Ham more than he had netted in his previous 34 games combined (one).
Indeed, Pereira has more goal involvements than any other Fulham player since the start of last season (seven goals, 13 assists).
Liverpool – Mohamed Salah
Salah may not be firing on all cylinders from a goalscoring perspective, but he is proving to be Liverpool’s creative hub.
Only Martin Odegaard (68) and Bruno Fernandes (59) have created more chances from open play in the Premier League this season than Salah (58). He has created at least four open-play chances in five different games this season, with Roberto Firmino the last Liverpool player to do so more times in one season (10 in 2016-17).
MATCH PREDICTION: LIVERPOOL WIN
The Reds might have had a bad week, but Opta’s model still fancies their chances of returning to winning ways.
Liverpool have scored in each of their last 19 away Premier League matches, the longest current run of any side. That being said, since losing 3-0 to Brentford in their first home Premier League game this season, Fulham have conceded just 13 goals in their last 15 games at Craven Cottage (0.9 per game). With six clean sheets at home so far, the Cottagers last had more in a Premier League campaign in 2010-11 (nine).
Marco Silva’s team have scored 49 Premier League goals this season, having netted 55 last season. The last time the Cottagers scored 50+ goals in consecutive Premier League seasons was in 2003-04 (52) and 2004-05 (52).
However, Fulham have won just one of their last 11 Premier League meetings with Liverpool (D2 L8), winning 1-0 at Anfield in March 2021.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Fulham – 20.85%
Liverpool – 53.1%
Draw – 26.1%
Inter Miami v Nashville SC: Smith not looking forward to Messi reunion
Nashville SC coach Gary Smith is not looking forward to his team facing Lionel Messi for the third time this year, with the Inter Miami star fit and firing ahead of Saturday's MLS clash in Fort Lauderdale.
A hamstring issue caused Messi to spend almost a month on the sidelines before he returned with a goal in Miami's 2-2 draw with the Colorado Rapids earlier this month.
The Argentina great was then on the scoresheet again last weekend, as Miami ended a five-game winless run with an entertaining 3-2 success against Sporting Kansas City.
With Messi also scoring in both legs of a CONCACAF Champions Cup triumph over Nashville in March, Smith is sick of the sight of the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner.
"I'm a little bit disappointed that Lionel Messi has gotten himself back into tip-top sharp form as we come back into town again!" Smith said.
"I think that what we can safely say is when he's in the group, there's a very, very different feel and look and inspiration about that team."
Nashville are winless in three games since beating Charlotte FC 2-1 last month, with Daniel Gazdag's last-gasp strike condemning them to a 2-1 defeat against the Philadelphia Union last time out.
Smith believes his team are at least giving themselves a chance of picking up results, adding: "When we've got our best group on the field — and we need to have our best group on the field — we're very competitive."
Miami's win over Kansas City ensured they will enter the weekend top of the Eastern Conference standings, and boss Gerardo Martino is pleased to see them setting the pace.
"Being first in the standings is comforting, especially with a long week ahead," Martino said. "It was very important for us to get out of that rut of getting ties, losses, and making mistakes."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Inter Miami – Lionel Messi
Messi has been involved in at least one goal in each of his first five league games of the season, the second time he's done so in his career, having achieved the feat in six straight matches with Barcelona to begin 2013-14 in LaLiga.
The Argentine has also managed at least one goal involvement in each of his eight appearances for Miami across all competitions in 2024, including two goals and one assist in two matches against Nashville.
Nashville SC – Jacob Shaffelburg
Shaffelburg has assisted each of Nashville's last two MLS goals, one in each of their last two matches.
Previously, he had only recorded one assist in his first 40 regular-season matches with Nashville. Will his purple patch continue in Florida?
MATCH PREDICTION – INTER MIAMI WIN
Nashville have only managed one win in their last 15 away games against MLS opponents across all competitions (six draws, eight defeats).
That run, which stretches back to June 2023, includes a draw and a loss against Miami, who are also unbeaten in five straight head-to-head meetings between the teams (two wins, three draws).
Last week's 3-2 win over Sporting KC was the 11th time Miami have scored three or more goals in their 22 games with Messi making an appearance, across all competitions. They have only scored three or more goals on 15 occasions in their 134 all-time games without the Argentine. He should be involved on Saturday, and that makes them favourites.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Inter Miami – 36.6%
Nashville SC – 33.8%
Draw – 29.6%
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