by DaMo » Sat Dec 19, 2009 10:09 pm
It is arguably a defensive formation by default, but as can be said of any variation of 4-5-1 you care to mention, it depends on how you play it. With a progressive passing game and full backs bombing forward, it can give plenty of attacking intent. Rafa obviously likes the balance it can bring and it his preferred formation, while it looked anything but boring or defensive last season. Nevertheless, you could easily make an argument that it's not currently clicking for whatever reason, and that a new system is therefore needed. This view can obviously be based on any number of factors, from the negativity that comes with having Lucas and Masch in the middle, to Gerrard yet to find form and thus not offering much in the hole, the full backs not providing enough width (or providing it at the expense of defensive stability, a la' Johnson, if you believe that), Kuyt being exposed for not being a legitimate winger, or maybe you can insist that Alonso was essential for the formation's stability.
So, in light of one or more of these reasons (among others), do we change the system, or do we wait and see if it will all fall into place when players find form and have fully recovered from injury (most notably Aquilani)? At the end of the day, that answer depends on your opinion as to the origins of why it's going to hell on the field in the first place.
Personally, I think that if it becomes apparent that Aquilani doesn't significantly boost our build-up and attack, and Stevie doesn't look like getting into gear and doing his part to re-produce the partnership with Torres, you'd be hard pressed to justify sticking with the formation.
Would 4-4-2 really be the solution? Quite frankly, I for one don't like the idea of Kuyt as a support striker any more than I do as a right winger right now. With him seemingly being undroppable, that's the only gripe I'd have, besides waiting however long it takes for players to adapt to a different system, of course. Granted 4-4-2 is simple enough and would represent going "back to basics", so it surely wouldn't take too long.
Stick or twist, folks? Either way, let's hope Rafa (or his successor, if replaced), can find the answer sooner rather than later.
Last edited by
DaMo on Sat Dec 19, 2009 10:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
him off, but now he has gone and we need to move on
by