Earlier this week, Gareth Southgate provided England fans with the greatest evidence yet that he’s prepared to take the Three Lions down a bolder, more forward-thinking and inventive tactical path than his many underwhelming predecessors.
90% of the national team’s philosophical history has been dominated by variations of 4-4-2 or 4-3-3, with a flat back four seen as an unconditional principle of the way England play. But that defensive approach has hardly taken England far over the last half century and Southgate showed his willingness to question the status quo last night, lining up his side in the 3-4-2-1 formation that has taken the Premier League by storm this season.
Of course, Southgate is no tactical visionary breaking new ground; Antonio Conte and his pace-setting Chelsea side have been the inspiration for the drastic shift in formation this season, which has since been adopted by Tottenham Hotspur and even Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United. But Southgate deserves credit for acting quickly on a developing trend and it’s probably not just the Blues’ title charge that convinced the Three Lions gaffer to test a system often deemed alien to the English style.
Southgate will be well aware of the tactical traps England have continually fallen into over the last few decades; namely sticking central players in wide positions to complete a system they don’t actually fit into and the midfield’s knack of being continually pushed back until the whole team is penned into its own half. Furthermore, one of the few times England have dared to venture into the realms of three-man defensive systems was under Terry Venables at Euro 1996. 3-5-2 was used in the win over Scotland and the gruelling draw with Germany that resulted in England’s elimination – Southgate started both matches.
Fast forward 21 years and Southgate’s attempts to give the three-man defence a new lease of life in England quarters started positively, with a committed and convincing display against Germany in Dortmund. Southgate may have suffered his first defeat as England manager via a stunning send-off strike from Germany’s retiring Lukas Podolski, but the performance left him with plenty to be pleased about. England were the better side in the first half as Dele Alli and Adam Lallana continually created problems for Germany’s defence, the latter hitting the bar, although the velocity of their performance petered out throughout the second 45.
Nonetheless, it was the ease in which so many players adapted to the new system that makes it so promising and considering Southgate’s limited time with them on the training field, that’s all down to how many players natural suit the setup – particularly the wing-backs.
If England boast one undoubted strength at the moment, it’s their defensive options out wide. Kyle Walker and Danny Rose are the best wing-back partnership around right now, whilst understudies Nathaniel Clyne and Ryan Bertrand are of a similar style and – like Walker and Rose – lined up on opposing flanks together at Southampton during the 2014/15 campaign when Ronald Koeman’s side finished up with the second-best goals conceded record in the Premier League.
Scratch a little deeper and there are further options – Spurs’ clinical crosser Kieran Trippier, Manchester United’s Luke Shaw, Everton’s Leighton Baines and even Bournemouth’s attacking right-back Adam Smith. All eight share that mixture of dynamism and attacking flair and all are at a similar level of ability, albeit some more involved and performing better than others this season.
Of course, if the three-at-the-back trend continues, it could well be employed by most sides in world football by the time the 2018 World Cup in Russia comes around. But rather than cancelling out England’s prevailing gift, that should work in the Three Lions’ favour. The wing-backs are obviously vital to such systems, but even more so when both sides are matching up.
Take Tottenham’s victory over Chelsea earlier this season. The Blues first utilised the system a month before Spurs tested it in the Premier League against Arsenal in November and by the time they met in January, Mauricio Pochettino had used it on just a handful of occasions, whereas it had lead Chelsea to ten consecutive league wins. But Spurs came out on top at White Hart Lane and the real difference was in the wide positions; Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses struggled as Rose and Walker excelled.
Looking around world football, few countries rival England at wing-back in terms of quality and depth. Brazil’s attacking full-backs are naturally suited (but unlikely to be deployed in such a setup), whilst France have some exciting young options there – Benjamin Mendy, Djibril Sidibe, Layvin Kurzawa and Lucas Signe. But overall, England decisively lead the way.
Of course, there are eight other outfit slots that can also decide any given match – Spurs 2-1 Chelsea was just a single instance. But once again, many of England’s other players seem naturally suited to the roles; Lallana and Alli proved a perfect partnership in the double No.10 berth behind the striker, whilst three centre-backs over two compensates for England’s absence of a truly world-class centre-half – there’s always safety in numbers. At the same time, the only player the system doesn’t naturally suit is winger Raheem Sterling; but he’s not done enough to justify an England team being moulded around him and if necessary, the Manchester City forward can play more centrally.
It’s important not to get too excited about a performance against a weakened Germany side in a friendly, especially one that England ultimately lost. But it felt like Southgate laid out the tactical blueprint for England’s World Cup campaign last night and vital to its success will be the quality and depth of our wing-backs. Rose, Walker, Bertrand and Clyne, alongside their potential understudies, could well be what sets Southgate apart from the last fifty years of disappointment.
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