New Formation

D D

Didsbury Dave

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Joined
1 Feb 2007
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I think Pep has us playing in a new formation. I think we saw it an Ipswich and again today. It’s hard to describe without a tactics board but I’ll try. He’s abandoned the whole inverted fullbacks thing and has us set up with 2 centre halves, two full backs who hog the touch line and push forward right up the pitch like wing backs. We have two holding midfielders like a classic 4231 but with Bernado dropping back to join the two to make it a 3 when we are playing out from the back. Our attacking wide players (today Mamoush and foden) tuck in closer to Haaland leaving the wings for the full backs. It worked a treat, stretching Chelsea and giving us options when we sprung their high line with a ball over the top. I’m going to try to draw it here.

Ederson
New guy Akanji
Kovacic. Gundo
Nunes Bernardo Guardiol
Foden. new guy
Haaland

I liked it a lot and it was the perfect way to play Chelsea’s system. A masterclass from the master himself.
 
Blue_Lightsaber said:
View attachment 144453
2 - 1 - 3 - 3 -1

Bernardo had the free license to roam so he more than made up for Gundo who was very slow and Kovacic who kept on giving the ball to Chelsea trying to dribble past them but dribbling straight into them.
Click to expand...
Yes that, more or less, but with the full backs arguably even higher up the pitch when we had the ball. Bernardo’s roaming deep allowed us to play through their press much better than we have been doing and because of their high line and one to one marking of Haaland we kept getting in behind as soon as we’d done that.
 
Formation looks good, current problem is the key players in it are the fullback and we at the moment have a Cb and a Cm playing what are speciialist positions, get a couple of proper wingback in and we will be flying. Also it doesn't lend itself to accommodating any out and out wingers so not sure where Savinho or Doku fit in?
 
Blue_Lightsaber said:
View attachment 144453
2 - 1 - 3 - 3 -1

Bernardo had the free license to roam so he more than made up for Gundo who was very slow and Kovacic who kept on giving the ball to Chelsea trying to dribble past them but dribbling straight into them.
Click to expand...
Bloody Hell.
Looks like City have got 14 players on the pitch !
If this continues to work, the Premier League will penalise Pep for using too many if his over-sized squad.
Carragher will be spitting mad and "Dobbin of Sherwood" will be fuming over making up our own rules...
 
uwerosler28 said:
Formation looks good, current problem is the key players in it are the fullback and we at the moment have a Cb and a Cm playing what are speciialist positions, get a couple of proper wingback in and we will be flying. Also it doesn't lend itself to accommodating any out and out wingers so not sure where Savinho or Doku fit in?
Click to expand...
I think at some point we might need to accept that Pep thinks Gvardiol is good for this role and that he is doing a good job at it!
 
Didsbury Dave said:
I think Pep has us playing in a new formation. I think we saw it an Ipswich and again today. It’s hard to describe without a tactics board but I’ll try. He’s abandoned the whole inverted fullbacks thing and has us set up with 2 centre halves, two full backs who hog the touch line and push forward right up the pitch like wing backs. We have two holding midfielders like a classic 4231 but with Bernado dropping back to join the two to make it a 3 when we are playing out from the back. Our attacking wide players (today Mamoush and foden) tuck in closer to Haaland leaving the wings for the full backs. It worked a treat, stretching Chelsea and giving us options when we sprung their high line with a ball over the top. I’m going to try to draw it here.

Ederson
New guy Akanji
Kovacic. Gundo
Nunes Bernardo Guardiol
Foden. new guy
Haaland

I liked it a lot and it was the perfect way to play Chelsea’s system. A masterclass from the master himself.
Click to expand...
I like it but it’s not new, we played something similar against Newcastle away last season

Ederson
Ake Dias
Rodri Kovacic
Walker Bernardo gvardiol
Foden Doku
Haaland

It suits our players , especially Marmoush and Foden
 
Platt Lane 59 said:
Bloody Hell.
Looks like City have got 14 players on the pitch !
If this continues to work, the Premier League will penalise Pep for using too many if his over-sized squad.
Carragher will be spitting mad and "Dobbin of Sherwood" will be fuming over making up our own rules...
Click to expand...
Much better system for players we have - a least we have players closer together centrally. Evident when trying to win the ball back yesterday - much better - of course we need an overhaul this summer - KDB's legs have gone in reality - and it will be Bernie's last season i suspect and gundo's although last two league games he has been much better. Gundo has surprised me
 
Didsbury Dave said:
I think Pep has us playing in a new formation. I think we saw it an Ipswich and again today. It’s hard to describe without a tactics board but I’ll try. He’s abandoned the whole inverted fullbacks thing and has us set up with 2 centre halves, two full backs who hog the touch line and push forward right up the pitch like wing backs. We have two holding midfielders like a classic 4231 but with Bernado dropping back to join the two to make it a 3 when we are playing out from the back. Our attacking wide players (today Mamoush and foden) tuck in closer to Haaland leaving the wings for the full backs. It worked a treat, stretching Chelsea and giving us options when we sprung their high line with a ball over the top. I’m going to try to draw it here.

Ederson
New guy Akanji
Kovacic. Gundo
Nunes Bernardo Guardiol
Foden. new guy
Haaland

I liked it a lot and it was the perfect way to play Chelsea’s system. A masterclass from the master himself.
Click to expand...
Yes totally agree. Unless you have really fit, fast young players to recover the obvious huge holes inverted fullbacks leave (when you unexpectedly lose the ball) your done. Glad Pep eventually saw this, Opponents all have amazingly quick forward players and we got exposed time and time again with a ball simply punted into the space where a full back would usually cover, or CB would drift in that hole..inverted fb's don't give that protection.
 
Didsbury Dave said:
I think Pep has us playing in a new formation. I think we saw it an Ipswich and again today. It’s hard to describe without a tactics board but I’ll try. He’s abandoned the whole inverted fullbacks thing and has us set up with 2 centre halves, two full backs who hog the touch line and push forward right up the pitch like wing backs. We have two holding midfielders like a classic 4231 but with Bernado dropping back to join the two to make it a 3 when we are playing out from the back. Our attacking wide players (today Mamoush and foden) tuck in closer to Haaland leaving the wings for the full backs. It worked a treat, stretching Chelsea and giving us options when we sprung their high line with a ball over the top. I’m going to try to draw it here.

Ederson
New guy Akanji
Kovacic. Gundo
Nunes Bernardo Guardiol
Foden. new guy
Haaland

I liked it a lot and it was the perfect way to play Chelsea’s system. A masterclass from the master himself.
Click to expand...
It was 4-4-1-1. Good comment though because I definitely noticed a big change in the City tactics vs Chelsea.

Instead of playing with width from 2 wide forwards, we got the width from the 2 full backs. This is why Gvardiol and Nunes were so prominent in the game.

These tactics worked against Chelsea. Gvardiol was able to burst through their high line. I am not sure it will work against most sides. Nunes is playing much better this season if we ignore some mistakes. However, if we played a 442 vs a Crystal Palace or a deep lying defensive side, I don't think it would work. We need specialist full-backs to make this system work. I think Nunes and Khusanov might be able to play right backs but not optimally. I think this is a temporary variation. I could be wrong but definitely one of the major talking points from the Chelsea game.
 
it is so the holding midfielders can stay put and the wing backs do the running, like Brazil 1998 with Cafu and Carlos allowed to go forward as much as they want, Dunga and Cesar Sampaio sitting. Suits us with the current lack of pace in the middle.
 
Blue_Lightsaber said:
View attachment 144453
2 - 1 - 3 - 3 -1

Bernardo had the free license to roam so he more than made up for Gundo who was very slow and Kovacic who kept on giving the ball to Chelsea trying to dribble past them but dribbling straight into them.
Click to expand...
2-1-3-3-1 !

Have you got that from a heat map or is that just your impression? I agree with where you have put the players.

This system might have some mileage in it if we can get Marmoush more involved. He showed glimpses of good play but only combined once with Haaland when Haaland set him up and he blazed it wide. I think this system is flawed without a specialist right back. Nunes did OK but he is not a young Kyle Walker.
 
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