We cannot play 5 at the back because our coaching staff seem unaware of the basics of playing this system.
One of the benefits of playing it properly is that without the ball the full backs/wing backs can engage and mark the opposition wide men and limit/stop crosses coming in.
When we play it our full backs tuck in very narrow and leave the opposition wide men freedom of the park. We compound it by having the midfield drop deep and allow the opposition to ping the balls out wide pretty much unchallenged – see the space Forest Green’s No 6 and No 21 had last Saturday to continually pass the ball out wide unchallenged. Their No 21 just walked into 10 yards of space whenever they had the ball and then played it out wide to a free man about 20 times in the game. I spent the first half looking at our bench expecting them to get a midfield player to close him down but it never happened. Just after half time I was delighted to see Hackney take the ball of him rather easily – I though halleluja someone has said something at half time. That was the only time our midfield challenged him until he was substituted late in the game so the Hackney challenge was just a coincidence.
I don’t believe O’Malley, Thompson, Millen, Rowe and Pugh all make the same decision to stand 20 or 30 yards off the opposition wide players so it must be a team tactic.
The consequence is that when the ball inevitably gets played wide our full backs are busting a gut to then close the gap and more often than not an unchallenged cross comes in. Given crossed balls are the main source of goal chances in League 2 it is no wonder we concede so often.
The insurance policy of 3 centre backs against one or two central strikers should allow the wing backs to get tight and stay tight and force the opposition down the middle. Simple but not the way we play it. Coaching basics chapter 1.
