Probably for the best.
Leave it to the grown ups
Ok John.
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Ok John.
John from Bootle
Player Valuation: £10m
PaddyJames
Player Valuation: £25m
If there is one manager in World Football who can mastermind a win tomorrow against these it's Carlos. I just hope it translates into the players. Let Carlos do the tactical bit then let Ferguson do the last minute of the team-talk with an axe in his hand.
I mean, he plays it just fine for Brazil.
We played 4-3-3 fine at the start of the season and Richarlison was great in that inside left role. Was getting into the box alongside Dom, had two assists (actually played a direct hand in 4 goals v WBA IIRC), but just wasn't getting the rub of the green with some chances/finishes (albeit he had still scored 4 times in all comps before the first international break).
A proper 4-3-3 shouldn't have your forwards - and that's what the 3 are - tracking back.
It's why you need a solid midfield of athletic players (but they obviously need ability on the ball) to cover that ground.
Look at Liverpool. Won a CL and a league based on rapid breaks with their midfield being all about energy and pressing.
We don't have to replicate that, but saying 'Richarlison doesn't fit' in a 4-3-3 is mad when it's probably the system a player like him is most suited to. A 4-3-3 doesn't have to be played with wingers and I'd argue unless you do it like Man City with two of your central midfielders running beyond the striker, then it rarely actually is played with actual wingers now.
Richarlison's best position is as a centre forward but the best system for the team is still definitely James on the right and Richy left of DCL.
To me mate, Richarlison's best position is just in the front line. But that's not a winger.
He's a different type of forward to Dom, definitely, and there's pros and cons of him playing central and pros and cons of Dom playing central.
What I don't like about a diamond is that the strikers are wider and that to me negates Dom's impact.
In a 4-4-2 it's different - there's width from the flanks - but 4-3-1-2 just doesn't have that, even with flying full-backs you'd still need your strikers spreading wide.
As you say, 4-3-3 is the best solution. James naturally goes where he wants and Digne will push up which, as long as there's athleticism and power in midfield, is absolutely fine, and allows Richarlison to do what he did at the start of the season in terms of getting into the box (I can think of 3 efforts he had which were very nearly goals from playing just how you'd want him to play in that system).
- Shot just inches wide v Spurs
- Goal v West Ham which was just offside after he'd come inside and got onto that sensational reverse pass from James
- Hit the post v Liverpool after getting onto James' cross at the back stick
There's more, but those are three examples off the top of my head where he was doing exactly what we want him to do in that position - then there's obviously stuff like the assist for Dom v West Brom.
It's our best system from an attacking perspective, 100%. But we need some key cogs. As it stands, for that 'XI', we need a right-back and a central midfielder, a ball carrier with real athleticism and ability on the ball too.
We then need a winger. Ideally I'd say a left-footed one, but a player capable of playing across the front line and stretching teams so we can mix up the system/formation.
Those three players are needed right off the bat. Anything else then depends on sales. If we manage to shift Iwobi and Bernard, then we probably need to be looking seriously at Gordon and making a decision. It's wait and see on King. I have a feeling that if we get Europe, he stays as an option, and tbh if that option is just him being the back up forward for the roles then, combined with getting actual quality in on the wing, I don't mind it, as it allows us to sell Kean without worrying about missing anything, really.
We aren't far off in terms of those players, but the deals need to be right.
As a caveat to the above, though, my concern with how we've been playing is that there's not really any structure to our attacking play that we can fall back on, so I still think that could start to be worked on now, and then in the summer, hopefully it's a case of dropping better players into that blueprint. If not, we're just going to be relying on wanting better players all the time, and well, that's not doable unless you're at one of the elite clubs in European football.
APN_EFC
Player Valuation: £25m
I really hope that's how team talks go...at least in the film Carlo Fantastico
APN_EFC
Player Valuation: £25m
Shouldn't it be both of them CFs playing off each other and James or Siggy all around them and behind them like a traditional free role no.10
(when we have a solid midfield of course)
APN_EFC
Player Valuation: £25m
Yeah I know you've mentioned this a few times and it's how I see it too. I don't think these players are anywhere near as bad as people make out, but they aren't a bunch of gifted footballers who can just win games by imposing themselves on the opposition. They need structure, a clear plan of what they're supposed to be doing and when. In my opinion it's why we do well against better sides, when we play with a much more defined style and everybody knows exactly what their job is. Against lesser sides it often looks like the game plan is just 'knock it about, wait for the gaps to appear, take advantage' and they just aren't good enough to do that. When you're Chelsea or Bayern or Milan you can do that, but it seems to have taken Ancelotti a while to realise that we simply don't have the ability to do it. Sometimes you watch a side and you can see exactly what they're trying to do, they just can't execute it, but in most of our games I think you'd be hard pressed to say what it is we're actually aiming to do in an attacking sense.
For the avoidance of doubt because I can see the criticism police are out in force again, I am 100% behind Ancelotti, I was pleased when he was appointed, I think he's currently doing fine, and if he finishes top 6 this year I'll think he's done a great job. But if we keep playing negative football and losing at home to cannon fodder, I'll keep saying i'm disappointed.
The 433 gives much more balance. I don't think you can have a good balance with 2 centre forwards and a number 10. You are going to have a lack of width, or be overrun in midfield, or more likely both.
To be honest the traditional number 10 position is a thing of the past as far as I'm concerned. Very few top teams play with one. You need an interchangeable front 3 with ball carriers, pace, flexibility and the ability to score goals .
trueblue84
Player Valuation: £50m
It's a tough one. On the one hand, we may not get many opportunities and I'd back richarlison to take them more than I would Calvert lewin. On the other hand, their defence is still their weakness and Calvert lewin would be more of a handful.
I'd like us to try 451, with richarlison just off the striker. That would mean playing iwobi on the left, though. We all know that is not his preferred position.
Jimmy Grimble
Player Valuation: £20m
Nice dissertation. 2:2 awarded.
Won based on bypassing their midfield and getting the ball to their forwards as quickly as possible.
Forwards dive to get penalties and free kicks and failing that they may even try to score.
Think he's a player you play in whatever position he thinks is his best position.
Mentality/confidence seems more of a factor with him than most.
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