I don't see how the back 5 can work

Opening day and loads of new players aside, it's a formation that needs your wingbacks to have great engines and good quality defensively and in attack. We might sort out the balance with the centre backs being better at covering, and the midfield pivots dropping in but I don't think Stacey and Schlupp are suddenly going to turn in to players that can for 90 minutes, week in, week out, be our attacking width and defensive cover. Stacey is a hard working player, but he is not renowned for his crossing and attacking interplay. Schlupp should be cover at most. If the WBs are the key players in that formation, would you look at the options we have in that position and say that's our strength and what we'll build the team around?

On the CBs, yesterday showed that neither Medic or Cordoba look comfortable being the wide cover when our full backs are caught out. I would drop one and play them alongside Darling in a back 4 which I'm confident both would be more comfortable with.

Perhaps I've made my mind up too early, to me it's a formation that we will have to work really hard to make work, and even then there are so many obvious drawbacks in terms of how narrow it makes us going forwards and how isolated Sargent was in that system.

4-2-3-1 fits the squad we have and is more natural. Manning can try and make 3-2-2-2-1 work, my prediction is that we'll get 6 games in and he'll start to need results after a bad start and will drop it.

Posted By: 51eve on August 10th 2025 at 10:50:36

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