WHAT HAPPENED TO 4-4-2?!

Agreed that football is evolving and new tactics are developed everyday, I still don't think we should throw some traditional tactics away. Years ago,4-4-2 used to be the winning formation. Now coaches aren't even interested in adapting player's abilities to that formation. Let's briefly look at the 4-4-2 formation, the challenges coaches have using it and how beneficial it can be to a football team. Basically, the challenge with using the 4-4-2 formation these days is finding the right players to play in respective positions. The world lacks natural wingers. Also, coaches find it really difficult to adopt a tactical play of two men spear-heading attack: The difficulty is mostly in positional play and movement. 4-4-2 allows the team plenty of strength going forward and defending. When attacking, both wingers and at least a central midfielder can join the two strikers, bringing the number of attacking players to five. These wingers can also drop to defend when the opposition is in possession of the ball. Marking starts from the opponent's box when using 4-4-2 because both strikers can close down on the opposing defenders, thereby limiting their passing options. This puts pressure on them and forces them to release the ball quickly. It should be noted that the less pressure on opposing defenders, the more confidence the opposing team builds- the defenders can gently pass the ball around all the way to the centre line and beyond. When the opposition team is in possession of the ball and attacking up the field, at least a striker remains in the opposition half. The presence of this striker alerts at least 2 opposition players. They are discouraged from leaving the striker alone as he is a potential counter-attack threat. This consciousness of the defenders in turn reduces the number of opposition players attacking. In the 4-4-2 formation, the wingers can support with marking in the midfield or assisting the full backs, depending on the attacking style of the opposing team. Now let us look at how the 4-4-2 formation is also a strong attacking option: When in possession of the ball, the wingers can pull wide, giving width to the team and making deadly attacking runs with or without the ball. This movement allows the full backs to move all the way to the centre line and beyond. Full backs with attacking prowess can play the wingers into central attacking positions with their pace and direction of their movement. The strongest attacking advantage of this formation is that the 2 strikers can making dashing runs in opposite directions, thereby causing a lot of problems for defenders of the opposing team. With these movements, one of the central midfielders is allowed space to run at his opponents through the centre if his team is attacking from the wings. This centralised positioning of the midfielder is vital as he will be the first man to break opposition attacks in the case of a counter-attack. It is equally important that at least one of the strikers has fantastic aerial ability as a lot of crosses/aerial passes will be expected of the wingers. Having said all these, I must admit it is really difficult breaking down these tactics without diagrams and practical illustrations. I see Pellegrini attempt the 4-4-2 with Manchester City but I believe he does not get it right when he features Nasri and Silva as the wingers. Navas/Milner should be fielded on at least one flank to allow for width in the team. To play a 4-4-2 formation, the team needs at least a natural winger and 2 central midfielders with good work-rate. A lot of teams in Europe can boast of central midfielders who will fit well into this formation (Toure and Fernandinho as an example) My ideal 4-4-2 formation: Goalkeeper: Petr Cech Defenders: Zabaleta, Chiellini, Thiago Silva, Alaba Midfielders: Navas, Toure, Paulinho, Ronaldo Strikers: Rooney,Lewandowski Challenge my selection! let's have your selection as comments after this piece You can follow me on twitter: @coachsanmi Email: olaniyan.olusanmi@acesports.com.ng

THE 4-2-3-1 FORMATION

Been away for long and now I'm back. By popular demand, I want to examine the 4-2-3-1 formation. The formation lines up 4 defenders,2 central midfielders,3 attacking midfielders and a striker. The interesting thing about this formation is that it allows almost every player the opportunity to score goals. There is flexibility from midfield to attack. The peculiarity of this formation is fluidity. I won't bore you with the many stories of how everyone should line-up, instead I will highlight the dynamics of the formation. Concentration is in the midfield. The central midfielders: A team can line-up one defensive and one central midfielder or 2 central midfielders with at least one being very mobile. I believe playing a defensive midfielder and another mobile central midfielder allows the team explore all areas in midfield. This is because the anchor man shields the defense while the mobile man runs around the midfield in a circular direction as he defends and attacks when necessary. Playing 2 central midfielders isn't bad though but the danger in it is that we might have a rigid midfield; this does not allow for fluidity. The anchor man plays the traditional holding role while the mobile man picks balls from defenders and the anchor man to drive the team while bearing in mind the fact that he must run after the opposing players when they are in possession of the ball. The mobile man can be anywhere on the field at any time as he is expected to always be where the action is. He is also to cover for any over-lapping defender. This position requires a player with strength,pace,endurance and quickness. A good eye for goal is an added advantage. Essentially, the central midfielders do all the dirty jobs The attacking midfielders: They determine the pace of the game. The number of goals the team scores and the quality of play is largely determined by these men. Traditionally,we should have 2 wing forwards and a central attacking midfielder. These days, coaches get to play central players in wide roles and get good results. The beauty of this area on the field is in the swapping of roles and positions by these 3 players. This makes it very important for players in these positions to possess good ball passing skills,pace,quickness and tactical soundness. Many coaches have played left-footed players from the right flank and it pays off. The players can easily cut-in and run at goal. One must not ignore the fact that the wide players must drop to give support to the full-backs and the central player should drop to deep midfield roles so as to create space,if need be. In some cases,the central player plays as a second striker as he is required to play behind the striker. The striker: It is becoming increasingly boring for front men to remain in the box waiting for balls to reach them. Most strikers drop into midfield roles to help the team bring the ball into their opponents 18-yard box. A shortcoming of this approach is possible crowding of the midfield and absence of a goal scorer when the ball gets into the box. Strikers who have excelled in this position are those who easily swap positions with the wing forwards; this allows for co-ordination and team play when a team is attacking. Whichever way the striker chooses to play, he needs quick movement and anticipation. Follow me on twitter: @coachsanmi email: olaniyan.olusanmi@acesports.com.ng

HOW IT HAPPENED AT BERNABEU (MADRID 1-1 MAN UTD)

So I managed to clean out my desk and leave the office early enough for the game. Its been a while and I must apologize for the long absence. I'm back! Since the draws were made in December,we all knew this would be the star game of UCL's round of 16. Madrid playing at home first. Madrid (4-2-3-1): Lopez,Arbeloa,Ramos,Varane,Alonso,Khedira,Ronaldo,Ozil,Di Maria and Benzema Man U (4-2-4) DeGea,Rafael,Evans,Ferdinand,Evra,Carrick,Jones,Kagawa,Welbeck,Rooney and Van Persie Madrid started the game pressing high up the field and taking charge around vital areas. This allowed them the opportunity to force DeGea into early saves. What Madrid did well during the half was pass the ball around quickly with swift player movement. This caused united a lot of troubles early in the game. Nevertheless, United threw some good balls forward trying to find Kagawa who spent a better part of the 1st half watching Madrid's defense line. He tried hard to beat the offside trap and succeeded on 2 occasions. Madrid kept attacking until Welbeck put United in front with a good header from a Wayne Rooney corner kick. Welbeck got the better of Ramos who in my opinion, thought Lopez was going for the ball. As crowded as United's midfield looked, Madrid easily found space and the forward players got into spaces between United's midfield and defense. Ozil who started from the left had drifted to the right at this time, swapping positions with Di Maria. The Argentine got into a good position on the left side and delivered one of the many good aerial passes we saw from Madrid tonight. Ronaldo rose to get the header into the net in a manner similar to that with which he scored against chelsea in the 2008 finals. He got the better of Evra. In the first half, Madrid started most of their attacks from the right side around the centre of the park,exchanging passes and paces diagonally towards the left flank. Ronaldo and Khedira were the link men. We saw what I like to call, aerial passes rather than crosses considering the way the balls are measured and delivered. For long periods in the half,Rooney was anonymous. Van Persie initiated most of United's attack as Evra,Kagawa and Welbeck helped force Madrid's midfield and backline into some runnings and defending. Degea was the star of the half as he made some crucial saves. Benzema was poor and heavy. It was Jones who was called upon to mark heavily in the second half and he did not disappoint. Di Maria kept creating spaces between United's midfield and backline. He got into good positions but was unlucky not to have scored. His replacement by Modric came as a surprise to me because he was by far the best Madrid player on the field. Khedira and Alonso were centrally positioned to keep united out. Earlier in the second half, United's attacking players were forced into deep roles to close-up the spaces in midfield and this even got better with the introduction of Giggs. Higuain's introduction re-affirmed the fact that Benzema had a poor outing as he had an immediate impact, moving across the defense with good pace and anticipation. United's defending everywhere on the field was excellent in the latter stages of the game. Madrid also did very well defending and winning balls. United were close to getting a second goal but Van Persie was unlucky as he was denied by the cross bar and then the goalkeeper. United return to England with an excellent result and we hope to see an even more exciting game in the second leg Conclusion: For most part of the game,Madrid lacked a direct player. This was clearly revealed when Modric came on to help his team penetrate through the centre. United did a good job by scoring an away goal and leaving Bernabeu with a draw. They kept their cool and worked hard. DeGea-Man of the match. Great saves, good composure and showed good reflexes Jones-Did a great job of watching over Ronaldo Kagawa-His job was clear but lacked the ability to execute Evra-Very solid and resourceful all through the game Ronaldo-Good goal and great movement but would have done better if he had a more direct player starting beside him;Kaka or Modric Di Maria-The most impactful Madrid player tonight Khedira-Once again showed his abilities as a box-to-box midfielder Ozil-He is the player expected to have the 'Iniesta' touch for Madrid but he does not play that role well enough. Man of the match-David DeGea Battle of the night-Jones vs Ronaldo Subs Madrid: 59' Higuain on for Benzema 74' Modric on for Di Maria 81' Pepe on for Alonso Man U: 63' Giggs on for Kagawa 72' Valencia on for Welbeck 83' Anderson on for Rooney Goals Madrid: 29' Ronaldo Man U: 20' Welbeck Feel free to leave comments and ask questions. You can also follow me on twitter @coachsanmi