Garry Monk explains where to find the space, what to look for on match day and how to help your players recognise a tactical advantage.
By Garry Monk | Soccer Profile Coaching Insights
You’ve set your team up in a 4-3-3 against a 4-4-2. On paper, you have three central midfielders against two. Ten minutes in, their strikers are screening your deepest midfielder, their wide players are pressing your full-backs, and your extra player in midfield has barely touched the ball.
Ask your centre-back what they can see when they look forward. Then ask your deepest midfielder where they could move to become available. Their answers can help you work out whether the problem is the player’s position, the passing angle or the pressure on the ball.
When I look at a tactical match-up, I ask three questions. Where might we have an advantage? How can the players recognise it? What do we need in place if we lose the ball?
Changing formation alone doesn’t guarantee a win. The match-ups below show where a different shape might give your players an advantage. Whether they can use it depends on how clearly they understand their roles, how well they carry them out and how the opposition responds.
Facing a 4-4-2? Use a 4-3-3 to find the extra midfielder
Your three central midfielders can give you an extra player against their two. If the opposition strikers block the pass into your deepest midfielder, ask a centre-back to carry the ball forward. When an opposition midfielder steps out to press, one of your midfielders can move into the space they’ve left.
Ask your players
“When their midfielder comes to press the ball, who can receive behind them?"
If the opposition’s wide midfielders tuck in to close that space, look for the pass to your full-back. Watch whether the wide midfielder comes out again and reopens the inside pass. Help players recognise both options so they can choose based on what the opposition does.
Facing a 4-3-3? Use a 4-2-3-1 to find space for the number 10
The two deeper midfielders in a 4-2-3-1 can give your team different angles to play through pressure. If one of the opposition’s midfielders steps forward to press, your number 10 can look to receive behind them. Your striker can help by staying high and occupying the centre-backs.
Ask your players
“If their deepest midfielder stays with our number 10, who has room to carry the ball forward?"
That question helps your players see how the 10 can influence play without receiving. If the opposition midfielder stays with them, a deeper player may have room to advance. If that midfielder steps out, the pass into the 10 may open up.
Facing a 3-5-2? Use a 4-3-3 to test the wing-backs
A 3-5-2 gives the opposition two strikers who can occupy your centre-backs. In possession, your winger and full-back can give their wing-back two players to think about. If the wing-back presses
your full-back, your winger can look to receive beyond them. If the wing-back stays deep, your full-back may have time to carry forward.
Ask your players
“If our full-back goes forward and we lose the ball, who covers that side?”
Work through that question with your nearest midfielder and centre-back. The players supporting the attack need to know who can go forward and who should be ready for the opposition’s first pass into their strikers.
Facing a 3-4-3? Use a 4-5-1 to protect the inside spaces
A 3-4-3 can stretch your team with its wing-backs while its inside forwards look for space between your full-backs and centre-backs. In a compact 4-5-1, your wide midfielder can press the wing-back
while the nearest central midfielder closes the pass inside. That helps your full-back stay connected to the centre-back.
Ask your players
“What needs to be in place before our wide midfielder goes to press?"
The pass travelling towards the wing-back can be the cue to go, provided the players inside are in position to cover. If that cover is late, the wide midfielder may need to delay. It’s a chance to teach
how one player’s timing depends on the positions of the players around them.
Facing a 4-4-2 diamond? Use a 4-3-3 to stretch it
The diamond can crowd central midfield and put two strikers up against your centre-backs. Keeping your wingers wide gives you the option to switch play when the opposition shifts towards the ball.
If their outside midfielder travels a long way to press your full-back, a quick switch may give your far-side winger time to receive and attack their defender.
Ask your players
“What can our far-side winger do while the ball is still on the other side?”
Encourage the winger to scan early, stay wide enough to stretch the opposition and get into a position to play forward on their first touch. Behind the ball, consider keeping one full-back in
position to help the centre-backs if the opposition win it and play early into their two strikers.
Turn the match-up into a learning objective
Before your next match, pick one situation you expect your players to face. If you’re playing against a narrow midfield, for example, focus on recognising when the far side opens up.
• In training, give players repeated chances to recognise the moment to switch play. Let the
defending team decide when to press so the players have to read the situation.
• On match day, watch what happens when the opposition moves across. Does your far-side
player stay available? Does the player on the ball see the switch early enough?
• After the game, ask the players to describe one moment when they spotted the opportunity
and one when they missed it. Use their answers to shape the next practice.
A 4-3-3 may defend in a 4-5-1, and a 3-5-2 can become a back five when the wing-backs drop. Look at the shape the opposition actually takes in the moment you’re coaching. If your players keep running into the same problem, use what they’ve seen and what you’ve observed to decide whether a change in positioning, timing or formation will help them.
