There was one subtle, but important difference about last night's team comported to one that lost to West Brom on the first day of the season. Our team didn't line up in a 4-3-3 like the first team. Instead, they played 4-2-3-1, the same formation that was the basis of Rafa's team. Here is last night's front 6:
---------------Yesil
Assaidi--Pacheco--Downing
-----------Hendo-Sahin
Here is our typical first team front 6:
Sterling--Suarez--Borini
-----Shelvey---Gerrard
-------------Allen----------
I wonder if that's part of the reason (together with a better physical fitness) why Nuri Sahin was so much more effective last night. After all, both of his previous clubs play 4-2-3-1 as their basic system - in fact in the case of Dortmund I've never seen them play any other system as long as Klopp was the coach. So Sahin knows everything about the movement and spacing of the middle 2 and playing with a more defensively oriented CM like Henderson freed him up to join attacks the way he likes to do. Look at his movement before the 2nd goal. He knew Henderson would cover for him in the middle, so he wasn't afraid to run into the centre-forward position and finish off the move.
I like that Rodgers has shown tactical flexibility here and that he can adjust the formation without sacrificing his football philosophy. I think working with Mourinho he has learned a lot about adjusting the tactics to the players. He is not a complete purist. So my question to all of you is, would our players work better in a 4-2-3-1 than 4-3-3 at this point?
I can think a quite a few arguments in favor of 4-2-3-1. Here are some:
Like I said, it's a natural system for Sahin.
If Gerrard plays at the tip of the midfield triangle, it's arguably his best position. More space, less defensive responsibility.
It requires less patience in the build-up and allows for more risks and faster play. Good when you have a bunch of young players. And older players like Gerrard, who just don't have the temperament for Barca's cat-and-mouse play.
It has more use for accurate long-balls from CMs and speedy wingers - we have both.
It's an easier system to implement during the season, especially for players who never played together and come from different football cultures.
There are also some arguments against:
Allen might be better suited to 4-3-3.
The midfield 2 of Allen-Sahin might be too "soft", more likely we would go with Lucas or Henderson as a defensive partner for Sahin or Allen.
Borini would be even less effective as a winger in 4-2-3-1. In my judgement his only effective position in this system would be up front.
What do you guys think? Feel free to add more pro/con points.
---------------Yesil
Assaidi--Pacheco--Downing
-----------Hendo-Sahin
Here is our typical first team front 6:
Sterling--Suarez--Borini
-----Shelvey---Gerrard
-------------Allen----------
I wonder if that's part of the reason (together with a better physical fitness) why Nuri Sahin was so much more effective last night. After all, both of his previous clubs play 4-2-3-1 as their basic system - in fact in the case of Dortmund I've never seen them play any other system as long as Klopp was the coach. So Sahin knows everything about the movement and spacing of the middle 2 and playing with a more defensively oriented CM like Henderson freed him up to join attacks the way he likes to do. Look at his movement before the 2nd goal. He knew Henderson would cover for him in the middle, so he wasn't afraid to run into the centre-forward position and finish off the move.
I like that Rodgers has shown tactical flexibility here and that he can adjust the formation without sacrificing his football philosophy. I think working with Mourinho he has learned a lot about adjusting the tactics to the players. He is not a complete purist. So my question to all of you is, would our players work better in a 4-2-3-1 than 4-3-3 at this point?
I can think a quite a few arguments in favor of 4-2-3-1. Here are some:
Like I said, it's a natural system for Sahin.
If Gerrard plays at the tip of the midfield triangle, it's arguably his best position. More space, less defensive responsibility.
It requires less patience in the build-up and allows for more risks and faster play. Good when you have a bunch of young players. And older players like Gerrard, who just don't have the temperament for Barca's cat-and-mouse play.
It has more use for accurate long-balls from CMs and speedy wingers - we have both.
It's an easier system to implement during the season, especially for players who never played together and come from different football cultures.
There are also some arguments against:
Allen might be better suited to 4-3-3.
The midfield 2 of Allen-Sahin might be too "soft", more likely we would go with Lucas or Henderson as a defensive partner for Sahin or Allen.
Borini would be even less effective as a winger in 4-2-3-1. In my judgement his only effective position in this system would be up front.
What do you guys think? Feel free to add more pro/con points.
