#NUMBERED POSITIONS IN SOCCER HOW TO#

Now with three strikers up top, you have a lot of options on how to attack teams.

For the 4-3-3 formation, you could play an attacking shape in midfield with a defensive midfielder and a box-to-box midfielder tucked in behind an attacking midfielder who can get forward to support the forwards. Once your wingbacks get tired, it leaves you exposed with three defenders at the back, but when your wingbacks are firing, this system can be one of the most lethal in modern soccer.īut because you’re only playing three in midfield, it leaves a lot of exposure to your defense and requires teams to be a little more restrictive in their positional roles. One downside of this system is it relies heavily on fitness. Conte coached Marcos Alonso to pull the ball back to Eden Hazard on the edge of the box, who could then target Diego Costa in the middle, or go on one of his trademark winding runs. This is similar to how Antonio Conte used to structure his front three in Chelsea’s 3-4-3 formation. They then have the option of playing in the focal striker in the middle of having a shot themselves. One of my favorite strategies is to coach forwards to hold their runs so that wing-backs can pull the ball back to their strikers just on the edge of the penalty area. With your wingbacks out wide, your front three can get into dangerous positions around the penalty area. Flooding the midfield enables teams to win the ball higher up the pitch to pressure opposition defenders. The 3-4-3 formation allows teams to overload the midfield as the wingbacks move higher up the pitch mimicking Wrexham’s 2-3-5 structure. If you’ve watched Liverpool play in the past two years, you’ll note how Jurgen Klopp’s high-pressure gameplay revolves around the work rate of his two wingbacks, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robinson. They form a crucial part of the attack mostly but must transition back into defend, similar to a box-to-box midfielder. The critical cogs in a working 3-4-3 formation system are its wingbacks. The 3-4-3 formation is one of the most commonly used structures in the Premier League as it allows teams to spread wide across the pitch.

It’s a great formation to experiment with and is great for teams looking to hold a solid defensive line while employing a prolific strike force. Some might argue that the 4-4-2 formation is too linear, but that’s when teams can switch the two-line structure up and play in a diamond configuration, with a defensive midfielder and a classic number 10, or perhaps a line of three midfielders and an attacking midfielder ahead of them. You can then deploy a ball-winning target man who can bully defenders, hold the ball up, and offload to his line-breaking strike partner, who can sneak in-behind defensive lines to put goals away. As a coach, I always prefer playing two forwards instead of one. One downside is that it doesn’t provide teams with generous width, although it does allow teams to play with two strikers. Yet, the 4-4-2 formation creates greater fluidity in midfield, allowing your central ball-winners can read the game to attack and defend when necessary. Although it does require your team to have two pretty hard-working central midfielders that can transition from box-to-box.

Numbered positions in soccer