4-4-2 Narrow
A stranger, more
archaic version of the 4-4-2 is to bring the wingers inside and use a platform
of four horizontal central midfielders.
I don't know of any
clubs or international sides that use this formation to date (if you know any,
please comment), but the shape is synonymous with the England side of 1992.
David Platt, Paul
Ince, David Batty and Paul Gascoigne all needed to be in the same team, so
then-manager Graham Taylor used this formation to incorporate all of the
talent.
1-3-3-3
We haven't seen a
libero in a long, long time, but I'm not ruling out its return.
Pep Guardiola has been
applauded for tactical innovation, yet most of his brilliance came from working
backward through the footballing timeline and bringing things back into
fashion.
Franz Beckenbauer was
a notable libero, of course, but my focus is on the 1973 Ajax team.
It was Barry Hulshoff
who played the sweeping playmaker role for this team, though many don't know
that, as they can't see past Johan Cruyff, Johan Neeskens and Ruud Krol.
This 1-3-3-3 was
free-flowing, attack-minded and beautiful to watch. The way football is headed
right now, it's not inexcusable to believe the libero could return.
4-4-2 Diamond (Wide)
The other variant of
the 4-4-2 diamond shape is to play with wide players rather than an abundance
of central midfielders.
The wide midfielders
are not true wingers due to their deeper starting position and, thus, carry a
certain level of defensive responsibility.
The full-backs are
conservative, but the formation still retains the offensive threat of two
strikers.
Pro Vercelli of the
Italian Serie B sometimes use this system, but it's rarely seen across
top-level football.
4-3-1-2
The 4-3-1-2, also
known as the Christmas tree formation, is a system that Max Allegri used last
season at AC Milan and that Carlo Ancelotti used during his time with Chelsea.
It involves three true
central midfielders, although one takes up a role approaching a defensive
destroyer, supplementing an advanced playmaker.
Two strikers are
retained and the full-backs claim license to push forward. Antonio Nocerino was
close to fulfilling a holding role for the Rossoneri last season, but you'd
also see him arriving late in the opponent's penalty area.
There really isn't a
lot stopping this formation from morphing into a 4-4-2 diamond.
4-2-2-2
Vanderlei Luxemburgo
is famous for failing to install his 4-2-2-2, or "magical
quadrilateral," template at Real Madrid, but it suited Brazil in the 1982
World Cup just fine.
As you can imagine,
this formation is built on a strong central core, so the familiar questions
regarding width often crop up.
Brazil used full-backs
Junior and Leandro to roam an entire flank each while Falcao and Cerezo held
the fort from a midfield holding role.
Full-backs are
becoming more and more explosive—is a return to this formation in one or two
coaches' thinking?
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