Backup Strikers

[Niall_Quinn]

How many teams play a successful 4-4-2 formation now?

Plenty of teams have played with our formation or a variation of our formation and won. There is nothing wrong with it.

Irrelevant. It all depends who you put on the pitch and what works best for them. There's absolutely nothing wrong with 4-4-2 if you have the midfield players that can make it happen.

[Marc Overmars]

Irrelevant. It all depends who you put on the pitch and what works best for them. There's absolutely nothing wrong with 4-4-2 if you have the midfield players that can make it happen.

I think formations evolve along with the type of players out there.

How many super quality "traditional" wingers are out there at the moment? I can't think of many, all the best midfielders in the world are the holders and the ones who like to cut inside and create.

[Niall_Quinn]

I think formations evolve along with the type of players out there.

How many super quality "traditional" wingers are out there at the moment? I can't think of many, all the best midfielders in the world are the holders and the ones who like to cut inside and create.

Of course you are forgetting Ashley Young.

[Power n Glory]

Irrelevant. It all depends who you put on the pitch and what works best for them. There's absolutely nothing wrong with 4-4-2 if you have the midfield players that can make it happen.

True, but you guys keep forgetting that we struggled to hold the ball against teams that had an extra man in the midfield.

If you think we have good enough players to overcome that then fine. But I have serious doubts and I remember we'd get kicked off the park by lower league teams on a regular basis. If we were too open last season in the middle of the park, how more so will we be without that extra man?

Again, come up with a 4-4-2 you think is good enough and we can discuss further. But I'm not convinced.

[Niall_Quinn]

True, but you guys keep forgetting that we struggled to hold the ball against teams that had an extra man in the midfield.

If you think we have good enough players to overcome that then fine. But I have serious doubts and I remember we'd get kicked off the park by lower league teams on a regular basis. If we were too open last season in the middle of the park, how more so will we be without that extra man?

Again, come up with a 4-4-2 you think is good enough and we can discuss further. But I'm not convinced.

I was responding to the idea that 4-4-2 doesn't work because the "game has moved on", rather than suggesting we have the players to use it.

[Cripps_orig]

But we don’t have the players. The midfield is too small and we don’t have the wingers. We’re struggling for fluidity already and there is no way we’d get away with it. What’s the team we’d play or what’s your idea for a 4-4-2? I flat midfield is certainly out of the question in my eyes. And Rooney played behind the striker.

If we don’t have the wingers for a 4-3-3 then why play a 4-4-2 where we have wide players sitting even further back from the final third and have to depend on their dribbling skills to move things forward? The only reason why Theo and Pod work and get the numbers they do now is because they’re always playing in the final third and getting the space they need.

What team would you play in a 4-4-2?

Closest we have come to the title in 8 horrendous years is 07/08 season.

Our midfield then was Rosicky, Flamini, cunt and Hleb. Neither Hleb or Rosicky were natural wingers. Likewise before them, Pires and Freddie, they weren't wingers. Both preferred playing more centrally but did a superb job out wide.

Basically in a 4-4-2 you don't need to be a natural winger. In a 4-5-1/4-3-3 you do.

Rooney playing behind RVC makes no difference. Still classed as a 4-4-2 just as when Bergkamp played behind Henry.

Midfield 4 would be

Cazorla Flamini Wilshere Ozil

Theo Giroud

Lot of variation there, theo can drop back on the right enabling Cazorla to push in centrally when we don't have the ball. Starting point should always be 2 up front though. Just need to mix it up a bit

[Power n Glory]

We lacked width during those years and teams were able to sit deep, stay compact and we'd struggle to break them down.

[Cripps_orig]

We lacked width during those years and teams were able to sit deep, stay compact and we'd struggle to break them down.

Which is where full backs come in.

Cole and Lauren were great at it.

Eboue and Clichy not so much.

Sagna can't cross for shit. Gibbs is our saviour

[Power n Glory]

I think that would leave us badly exposed and I think Giroud and Theo would struggle from a lack of service. We'd need a man to play in the hole and between the lines. I don't think we'd get the best of Nasri, Hleb and Rosicky out wide and the started to play a 4-5-1 for a reason. When teams started to field the extra man and sit deep, we struggled to cope. We need to evolve. Looking at old blueprints won't help because teams were very different when we played a 4-4-2.

Do you think our fullbacks will be able to get forward when they're up against Chelsea's 4-3-3 with wingers like Hazard? They'll get pinned back. They'd also be able to stick a DM on Wilshere to stop him from playing all game, we'd really need Wilshere playing up close with Giroud and Theo because both like to run on to passes. Flamini on his own leaves us with a 2vs 1 situation but throwing JW further back means we lose some creativity in the final third. Ozil and Cazorla would have to play a lot more in the middle for it to work. I just can't see Wenger allowing that. Would have to be more like Brazil's old formation.

[Nayan]

when he gets it right sagna crosses very well. He's not consistent though its true