Kenny Dalglish used a number of systems last season. It was a breath of fresh air after constantly having to put up with the rigid 4-4-2 formation which we saw under Roy Hodgson. Although he did play 4-4-2 against some teams, the Reds best victories against Chelsea and Fulham came using different formations.
Against Chelsea, Dalglish surprised many by using a 3-5-2 system to counteract Chelsea’s 4-3-3 formation. It worked a treat as the Reds nullified the Blues’ attacking threat and managed to get a well deserved 1-0 victory away at Stamford Bridge.
For the Fulham game, Dalglish played a variation of the 4-2-3-1 formation. Using the 2 holding midfielders as a shield for the back four, it allowed the front four to play with freedom; a freedom afforded by Dalglish to express themselves creatively, dynamically moving from position to position, and popping up in dangerous areas.
It was a freedom that the likes of Luis Suarez, Raul Meireles, Maxi Rodriguez and Dirk Kuyt really enjoyed having, leading to a 5-2 win.
What has been noticeable this season is that, bar the match against Arsenal where we played 1 up front, Kenny has kept with the same formation, with a 4-4-2 system more in evidence. I must say that 4 matches is not enough to say anything conclusive but what can be ascertained so far is Dalglish does prefer the system to 4-2-3-1. He seems he may play 4-2-3-1 in big matches, but against smaller opposition he has generally gone with two strikers (Suarez & Kuyt or Carroll), Henderson tucked in on the right, Downing on the left with Adam and Lucas in the middle.
Win TWO VIP Tickets for the match between Liverpool and Wolves with 188BET. Enter the competition by clicking the banner below:
–
–
–
–
Of course, this may change as the season progresses, and it will be interesting to see if he adapts systems to certain opponents, like he did last season. One thought I have on this though is that Kenny had to use a variation of 4-2-3-1 last season more often because he only had certain types of players who were more comfortable in this system. Now he has brought in his own players, he may be less inclined to use it if he feels the players are more comfortable in a different formation.
Another reason I think this is because of the departure of BOTH Raul Meireles and Alberto Aquilani. If a 4-2-3-1 formation was going to be used more regularly, King Kenny would have been more reluctant to let at least one of these players go because they would have been needed for first team duties more often. Henderson and Adam could play in the system but if one is injured, there would be a real need for another body, and yet it seems that according to Damien Comolli, there wasn’t going to be enough game time for them, especially for Aquilani:
“He’s obviously a big player, he’s got a very good resume and he’s a very good player. But Kenny and the coaching staff felt he would play in a certain position. As I told Alberto during the summer, unfortunately in that position is someone called Steven Gerrard and it would have been difficult for Alberto to play. There were different reasons. There were tactical reasons, the fact he was playing in this position and also we felt it would have been very difficult to keep him here not playing regularly.”
As I have said before, I do expect the 4-2-3-1 to be used against Spurs on Saturday, but for the majority of matches this season, the 4-4-2 looks like the preferred way to play. Do you think I am wrong? Have I jumped the gun making assumptions too early this season on our tactics?
Follow us on twitter @live4Liverpool or like us on Facebook
Live4Liverpool is recruiting columnists. For further info contact the site editor at live4liverpool@snack-media.com
[ad_pod id=”unruly-video” align=”center”]
This week it is former LFC WAG Amii Grove!!
————–
CLICK ON THE IMAGE OR HERE TO GET TO THE GALLERY
“Do you think I am wrong? Have I jumped the gun making assumptions too early this season on our tactics?”
Yes.
The whole point of building a deep squad was so we don’t need a ‘preferred’ formation. Forget formations, they’re just pigeonholes that approximate the way a team plays at any one time. Systems will change 2, 3 times a game, let alone be ‘settled’ across an entire season. That’s the power of a good squad and a good manager.
@redtodeath youre bang on with your comment we need to be fluid in attack with clever interchanging and players covering eachother when we are caught on the counter. i think kenny has bought well and it wont be long before we see this team sparkle
Funny I thought I’d seen us playing 4-3-3 with hendo in the middle and downing in the front 3….oh wait no I’ve been watching 4-5-1 with Carroll up top and Suarez in free roaming attacking midfield/supporting striker role….oh no i remember its been 4-2-3-1 with Adam and Lucas holding and Carroll up top…..oops 4-1-4-1 with Lucas holding and adam playing attacking midfield….nope 4-2-4 with hendo, downing, kuyt and suarez as a free flowing interchangable attack…..hmmm I’m confused its almost like kenny doesn’t play a formation and plays free flowing pass and move football…..but that cant be how would tv pundits and computer games be able to pigeon hole our tactics?!?!?