4-4-2 is Dead – Can Blues Join the Revolution?
Jul 16th, 2010 | By Aylesburyblue | Category: Aylesburyblue Articles, Blues News, Matches, Players, World CupWatching the World Cup it was interesting to see how the successful sides employed a variety of formations to get the best out of their players but very few relied on the traditional 4-4-2 formation. England’s reliance on this and their strategy of getting players to fit it made them look like dinosaurs compared with the Dutch, Spanish and Germans. Playing with two out and out strikers is now rare in both international football and in the Champions League. So should Blues consider experimenting with their formation and the roles taken by the players?
Before I go into the options I’d like to say that I don’t expect any of this to happen, we all remember the fans’ reaction at the Bolton game when we played with one up front. However I believe that it is maybe more to do with the isolation of the frontman which makes 4-5-1 seem so defensive. This happens due to our lack of pace in midfield but this could be rectified with an astute signing or two.
My proposed formation is the 4-2-3-1 formation that was so popular at the World Cup. The back four would remain the same although the fullbacks would be encouraged to get forward more to provide width. They do this a lot anyway so this isn’t a big change. In front of them we would employ two holding midfielders one of which would be required to start moves off and occasionally go forward to join in attacks. Barry Ferguson would fill one position but I’m not sure if either Bowyer or Michel are suited for the sitting back role. Bowyer likes to bomb forward so I’d be tempted to put Michel here. In front of them we need three attacking players who can also do a bit of work tracking back. As this role requires pace I would be tempted to play Cameron Jerome on the right side of the three with James McFadden taking the central role. I believe this is the role that would get the best out of McFadden who is neither a winger or an effective frontman. On the left we could play Craig Gardner or Keith Fahey but this is where a new signing would be most needed. If either the Charles N’Zogbia or Ryan Babel deals come to fruition then either player would fit in perfectly here. My preference would be for N’Zogbia. Aidan McGeady could also play here but the latest rumour is that he is going to Villa. Up front would be our new signing Nicola Zigic. He played this role for Serbia and is definitely far more suited to it than Chucho was at Bolton.
So what do people think? Could this work or are we better off sticking to what we know? The drawbacks to this formation are the reliance on the full backs to get forward and the lack of defensive cover in front of them. Also we could see the midfield three dropping too deep and us resorting to just lumping it up to the big man. I think it’s worth a try if we could get the right personnel. It’s particularly something I think could work away from home where counter attacking tactics are used more.
Food for thought anyway.
Aylesbury
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I like the sound of it, I’ve been banging on about 4-2-3-1 since rafa bought it to liverpool. I think Cam would be good out right with Carr bombing on outside him. As you say I think we need the left side looking at, LB and LM IMO.
Surely Zigic would get the central (Klose) role?
I believe, James, that Aylesbury was talking about putting McFadden in the centre of the ‘three’. I’m not convinced that it would be beneficial, however, and would much rather see Ferguson there with Bowyer and Gardner as the two more defensive midfielders.
Larsson would no doubt fill the role on the right as we currently have no better right winger at the moment – though we definitely need one – and I’d like to see a new player fill the left side of the ‘three’ with Zigic on his own up front as the large target man.
We are also reportedly in for another striker, so to perhaps rely on a formation in which only one striker is required may not be totally prudent. Especially as, if I remember correctly, Zigic has not played as an effective lone striker in recent years.
In that regard, I’d much rather see Zigic with a striker partner.
Jerome could well do a job in that ‘three’ on the flanks, however I’d be worried that he’d cut inside a little too much and put the pressure on our advancing full-backs.
With that point still fresh in the mind, I would also worry that the full-backs would push up a little too much in their quest to add the much needed width. As a result, this could leave gaps on the flanks that the pacier wingers of the Premiership might exploit with ease.
My preferred formation will always be a 4-4-2, however it’s not necessarily the formation that is bad. The problem with England using the 4-4-2 is that the players were not fully aware of their roles, and it showed. Rooney, for instance, became the sole target man with everyone passing to him even when more than adequately marked. Our wings were ineffective due to one player being out of position and our central midfielders looked a little lost as both were similar types of player.
A 4-4-2 can be tremendously effective provided all players are aware of their roles.
The problem with England was not only did we allow Germany to kill us out wide (as did Argentina for that matter) but we failed to defend properly. It was basic things that went wrong that had nothing to do with the formation. If you defend like Terry and Upson did then you are not winning football matches at any level. We conceded a goal from a goal kick for heaven’s sake!
As for Blues, I agree that 4-5-1 never worked for us because we lacked pace in crucial areas. A proper left back and left winger are still glaring deficiencies and until we get these imported into the club I don’t see us moving forward. I also agree that we need to get another quick right winger to challenge Larsson and add another dimension. I hope additions happen soon because the start of the season is not that far away.
KRO SOTV
I think that you should choose the formation to fit the players that you have and not the other way round. There is nothing inherently wrong with 4-4-2, only the England players (and Ronaldo,Messi & Kaka) just did not perform to their maximum. 4-4-2 is not dead and neither are other formations superior ; it just depends on what material you have to play a certain system. We had an excellent season using 4-4-2 usually at home and sometimes with one striker away from home. Let’s hope we can get a wide player & another striker-you can’t have too many of those.
To play 4-5-1 or 4-2-3-1 to any great effect, every player in the team needs to be comfortable on the ball. You need to dominate posession or play pacey counter-attacking football.
you cant boot the ball 40 yards up the pitch to release some pressure because with only one up top it will come straight back.
Also, you need quality wingers that can come in from the touchline and interchange their position with the other attacking forwards (making them hard to mark). i would love to see it but i dont think we have the qualities required.