What to do When: Up Against a 3 Man Defence

In the modern game, a team cannot simply go out on to the pitch with no previous analysis of their opposition, have a game plan of a 'kick and rush' style and just sit deep whilst playing long balls to their forwards, football is much more complicated than that now, which has been shown by how successful Martinez' approach at Swansea has developed from them being a League One outfit to a side who can beat Arsenal at their own fluid passing game.

General tactical systems are much more complex as well, there are a great number of ways which a formation can play, and more convoluted systems have become more effective than their simpler opposition. A team playing in a 4-2-3-1 formation have an immediate upper hand over a side lined up in a 4-4-2 for numerous reasons; they can control the midfield better due to a numerical advantage, more banks of defence for the opposition to break past, a greater number of angle to attack from (4-2-3-1 has two wingers and one attacking midfielder, which allows there to be a threat from wide and centre, 4-4-2 poses less threat in the central area), and designated midfield roles (in a 4-4-2, the central midfielders have attacking and defensive duties, whereas in a 4-2-3-1, the holding midfielders can focus on defending, whilst the attacking midfielder can concentrate more on the attacking side to the game, making the trio more effective at their responsibilities) to name a few.

One of the more complex of formations which is now becoming rather common after it's success with Juventus last season, is the 3-5-2. This system has been the second most popular throughout the season so far in the Serie A, Italy's top league, behind the 4-3-3, a formation more common throughout the other leagues.

The Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has been using this formation as a 'plan B' for his Premier League winning side to inconsistent results so far. Initially, they played rather poorly with the 3-5-2 and were outplayed against weaker sides, however they seem to be currently becoming better, which will most likely be due to them getting accustomed to the system, as the 3-5-2 is very different from the 4-4-2 which they used often last season.

For a further reading on why the 3-5-2 is failing to work as well in England than in Italy, click here.

Despite it working exceptionally well for Juventus' defence last season, as they conceded just 20 goals throughout the whole league campaign, it has a few weaknesses, especially as it is without wide men, and you need to take advantage of these weaknesses in order to beat the opposition should you come up against them yourselves.

Formation

Against a 3-5-2, you need to exploit their weakness on the flanks and also be able to compete in the middle against their 3 central players, to do this I suggest either a 4-3-3 formation, as you can match their 3 man midfield whilst having two men on either flank against their one, or a wide 4-2-3-1 for the same reasons. The main things you need to exploit their defensive system is their lack of width, whilst you need to be cautious over their 3 man midfield, most formations that will allow you to have a packed midfield whilst still maintaining a threat on the flanks will work, however the two aforementioned formations would probably work the best.

In the 4-2-3-1 on the right, the two wingers are positioned high up and hugging the touchline, but then they have the option of cutting inside with direct running towards the two outer centre-backs. This will make them worry about their opposition wingers whilst the central man has to deal with the striker. With the outside defenders occupied with the wingers, the central attacking-midfielder can push up and try to create a 2 versus 1 situation alongside the striker in an attempt to overload the defence.

Play with Great Width

The most common formation with 3 defenders by far is the 3-5-2, and since there is only one wide man on each flank, you need to create a numerical advantage on the touchline and play with a lot of width. This makes it incredibly difficult for the wide midfielders to defend since they will be outnumbered and the won't be able to deal with two men at once, especially if they have opposite movement (e.g. the winger cuts inside whilst the full-back moves on the outside).

By playing the ball down the flanks often you will also force their 3 to move wide, which will increase the space between centre-backs, these channels will then be open up for the striker and CAM (in a 4-2-3-1) to run into behind the defence.

Open up Space with Movement in Attack

Since there are only three defenders, and two of them are man-marking in most systems, it is relatively easy to create space in the channels with some intelligent movement. Since the more movement the better (to an extent), it would be very simple to open up a defence if you matched their three centre-backs with three forwards, this would work in a formation such as a 4-3-3 but with more narrow forwards. If the two outer forwards make movement deep, similar to how a false 9 does, and forces the outer centre-backs to follow, then it will create a one-against-one situation between a striker and centre-back, and if the forward is fast and intelligent, he will be able to out-smart the isolated defender.

 

DON'T Play with Two Strikers

The 4-4-2 may seem a good option as it is a very threatening formation on the flanks, but it plays right into the 3-5-2's hands. In a 3 man defence, two centre-backs (usually the outer two) man mark the opposition forwards whilst the middle defender marks the zone, and sweeps up any loose balls from behind his teammates. You would also have to sacrifice threat on the wings to make up for the 2-3 in the centre of the park.

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