Good call Santa.....Id favour the 3-5-2 with the current crop of players when playing on home soil. 4-5-1 away is ok so long as Big Chris is fit, I couldnt see it working with Varney or Mcleod as they dont have the physical presence.
4-5-1 is working well with Mills and Basey as both possessional outlets and the ability to go on the overlap, forcing their oppo wide midfielders to play largely a defensive game.
[cite]Posted By: SantaClaus[/cite]Sticking to 451 at home can be stupid though. If the opposition come to defend and leave only 1 striker up front why not 352?
I agree up to a point, but that's why the two wingers are so important, because the formation becomes 4-3-3 going forward with either Sam, Thomas or ZZ joining in the attack.
The point is that if we are overun at home by a more physicall side then in a 4-4-2, the front two are not going to get enough decent possesion to do anything with, especially as we seem to have to create twenty chances to score one at the moment.
The reason I suppose that I think 4-5-1 works, is I remember the best football we have played in recent memory was when we had Smertin, Murphy and Kish in midfield with Thomas and Holland out wide.
That formation with those players was so flexible, we almost had 5 going forward and six at the back to defend when it was needed, home and away.
I see our current line up as similarly set up for that style.
[cite]Posted By: WelshAddick[/cite]i still beleive semedo is overrated. hes too slow and losing position easilly. we looked better without him on saturday.
Yet looked a whole lot worse without him against QPR.
Defending in a 352 is totatly different to a 451. In terms of not changing systems too much 451 to 433 is the obvious one, the only difference is you ask your wider player to hold a slightly higher line
We were definetly playing 3-5-2 in the first half against QPR....and yet when we changed it at half time we went to pot...probably not the best game to comment on from a formation point of view as taking Semdo off was a big mistake, but the idea of flooding the midfield is working well for us at the moment, and at this particular moment in time, we dont seem to have the right balance at 4-4-2.....and 4-5-1 at home will be seen as too defensive by the moan and groan brigade...anyway time will tell...so long as we keep trying Im happy
what is lost in 451 is striking power, so its not too bad away if you want to nick a goal, but at home as said above when teams come to defend, unless you've got lots of goals coming from the midfied (which we aint) I personally think it would be a mistake.
I know what you mean Razil, but in my opinon the reasons we aren't scoring from midfield is because in a 4-4-2 we are being overun. We don't have a dominant midfield enforcer in the squad and so the quality that we have is not being allowed the space to perform. I think a five man midfield would allow that to happen.
The stalemate might come if the opposition matches up, but I believe we have enough quality in that system to combat it.
My concern is the lack of scoring to chances created. ZZ, Reid and Thomas should all have scored against Bristol and that is what might effect us more than whatever formation we decide to go with.
In my opinion a 5 man midfield, and or a flat midfield with only one winger a 4312, can both equal lots of possession, but not many goals. You get little decent service coming into the front men, and the oppo defence is not being stretched etc.
If you play 352 you really need pacey wingbacks who can cross, if you don't it tends to become a 532, and I'm not sure we do.
Perhaps if you can stretch a defence with pace up front and on the wings, this might allow other players in the final 2 thirds more time and get decent shots in instead of rushed snap shots, etc.
However as you say you do need a decent dominant ball winning midfielder, and much as I like Samedo he hasn't quite got the full package if you ask me. But hey what do I know.
Comments
This would be lost with 352
I agree up to a point, but that's why the two wingers are so important, because the formation becomes 4-3-3 going forward with either Sam, Thomas or ZZ joining in the attack.
The point is that if we are overun at home by a more physicall side then in a 4-4-2, the front two are not going to get enough decent possesion to do anything with, especially as we seem to have to create twenty chances to score one at the moment.
The reason I suppose that I think 4-5-1 works, is I remember the best football we have played in recent memory was when we had Smertin, Murphy and Kish in midfield with Thomas and Holland out wide.
That formation with those players was so flexible, we almost had 5 going forward and six at the back to defend when it was needed, home and away.
I see our current line up as similarly set up for that style.
Yet looked a whole lot worse without him against QPR.
Basey, Fortune, Sodje and Mills looked like a classic four at the back to me and Basey didn't get forward as much as he has done since.
If we were playing five in the middle, I don't think anyone told Varney or Reid!
The stalemate might come if the opposition matches up, but I believe we have enough quality in that system to combat it.
My concern is the lack of scoring to chances created. ZZ, Reid and Thomas should all have scored against Bristol and that is what might effect us more than whatever formation we decide to go with.
If you play 352 you really need pacey wingbacks who can cross, if you don't it tends to become a 532, and I'm not sure we do.
Perhaps if you can stretch a defence with pace up front and on the wings, this might allow other players in the final 2 thirds more time and get decent shots in instead of rushed snap shots, etc.
However as you say you do need a decent dominant ball winning midfielder, and much as I like Samedo he hasn't quite got the full package if you ask me. But hey what do I know.
:)