I don't think the system is the problem, the players just look off the pace and we are struggling for numbers, hopefully when everyone is fit again we will get back to how we know we can play then maybe add a couple of players in Jan. Keep the faith Utc.

Drinkwater could well turn out to be a very important player for us I know not the most exciting of signings when it happened but knows how to play that 2 man midfield very well. Hopefully he is back very soon any idea when he is scheduled back? 

I don't think drinkwater is good enough personally. I think a lack of quality in the squad, is more of a problem than the formation. 

I guess it depends on where you as a fan think the club should be aiming. I think we need better wing backs, midfield playmaker to replace fabregas, and another quality forward to supplement hazard and morata.

I just want to see us improve season after season, but it seems like we have regressed yet again after winning tbe title. 

It isn't that I think 3-4-3 has been exposed, but opposition are drilled to counter our tactics and we don't seem to have a solid plan B. Personally would like to see something along the lines of 4-3-3.

                                         Courtois
Rudiger (Zappacosta) - Christensen (Rudiger) - Luiz (Cahill) - Azpi (Alonso)
                   Kante - Bakayoko - Drinkwater (Fabregas)
                      Pedro (Willian) - Morata - Hazard

I’m starting to think 4 at the back is the way forward, and it seems Conte switched to that late in the game. 

We’ve been getting dominated in the middle and the opposition are creating an insane amount of chances — Watford were let down by poor finishing but they could have easily been up 4-1, Roma also let down by poor finishing.

 

did we switch to 4 at the back today? I thought we kept the same back 3 throughout tbh, Azpiliucueta moved to left wing back and pedro dropped to right wing back, then zappacosta was a straight swap with pedro. it's was always 343 imo. 

I wouldn't be against going 4 at the back, especially with kante back, although I honestly feel the 4 across the middle have been a bigger problem than the 3 at the back in recent weeks. 

Yes, I've wanted 442 for a few weeks now. We should try this out against Bournemouth next week.

I was just about to make a thread on this but saw someone beat me to it.

Anyway, to me it was obvious that the 4 at the back worked so much better today. The 3 at the back is easy to press, its a recurring theme, courtois passes to a defender, the opposition outnumber us and press high, meaning we cant pass out from the back, azpi and cahill drift really wide to make space, which isolates Luiz, so our only option is to pass back to tibo and lump it forward, which doesnt work because all our forward players are not big or strong enough to win a long ball. 

If the wing backs drop deep we have a bit more control, but no numbers in midfield so the centre 2 will be well marked and give us no option but to play a long ball to the front 3, which again doesn't work.

The switch to the 4-4-2 last night made a massive difference, we could knock it between the defence much easier, had plenty of options in midfield to pass out to and with propper wingers were able to be far more effective in attacking with width higher up the pitch.

The 3-4-3 was a revelation last season, but its now been figured out and pretty much any team in the league can execute an effective game plan against it. Time for a change, fortunately Conte seems to be a manager not afraid to make changes when things are not working.

Four at the back appears more effective when the opposition have been set up to play against three at the back, and vice versa. It's not like we haven't experimented with this revolutionary new four at the back idea for many years. Maybe we have to switch formations for every match to really keep the opposition on their toes.

11 hours ago, Jackbuchanan said:

I was just about to make a thread on this but saw someone beat me to it.

Anyway, to me it was obvious that the 4 at the back worked so much better today. The 3 at the back is easy to press, its a recurring theme, courtois passes to a defender, the opposition outnumber us and press high, meaning we cant pass out from the back, azpi and cahill drift really wide to make space, which isolates Luiz, so our only option is to pass back to tibo and lump it forward, which doesnt work because all our forward players are not big or strong enough to win a long ball. 

If the wing backs drop deep we have a bit more control, but no numbers in midfield so the centre 2 will be well marked and give us no option but to play a long ball to the front 3, which again doesn't work.

The switch to the 4-4-2 last night made a massive difference, we could knock it between the defence much easier, had plenty of options in midfield to pass out to and with propper wingers were able to be far more effective in attacking with width higher up the pitch.

The 3-4-3 was a revelation last season, but its now been figured out and pretty much any team in the league can execute an effective game plan against it. Time for a change, fortunately Conte seems to be a manager not afraid to make changes when things are not working.

We didn't switch to 4 at the back. Conte even said in his post match presser, he kept the same formation. 

1 hour ago, big blue said:

We didn't switch to 4 at the back. Conte even said in his post match presser, he kept the same formation. 

This 1000 times. I keep reading on a few forums that we went to a back 4. At no time during the match did we revert to 4 at the back. It was always a back 3/5.

Juve have dominated for years with a back three, it's not the formation that's been figured out it's the personnel.

 

We don't have the players for a 4-4-2. Who would play LM? I assume people either have Hazard as one of the two strikers so more of a 4-4-1-1 which means it would need to be either Pedro or Willian who IMO are wingers, not made for the role of an old fashioned LM. 

 

Alternatively, if you were to play Bats-Morata then it would be Hazard at LM with I assume Alonso at LB. We would be ripped apart down that side of the pitch.

Sorry to bring up this thread again but it’s time to return to 4-3-3. Cesc in a midfield pivot is an absolute disaster.

 

3 minutes ago, Theafonis said:

Sorry to bring up this thread again but it’s time to return to 4-3-3. Cesc in a midfield pivot is an absolute disaster.

 

Don't think it's about the system. Change cesc with kante and we have a completely different game. It's the team selection or rather the selection of cesc and Cahill.

I really don't think so, 3 at the back really utilises our strengths in the attack which I like. 

People forget that we have the best ball-playing defender in the world in David Luiz, he's exceptional, this system works but it's a fragile system, one wrong thing and that's it, there is no reverting because you have 3 at the back. Cesc Fabregas isn't fit for the pivot, we need more rotation for the wide players, we need better distribution from Bakayoko. 

Be careful what you wish for is what I'm saying, the back 4 is very stagnant in the modern game now and we have exceptional wing backs that would be restricted in that formation. 

The formation is part of the issue around the buildup of play but that was always going to happen. We had first mover advantage but everyone has worked that out through video analysis and caught up.

The real issue I think is in our disjointed press. That has nothing to do with the formation because the same thing happened two years ago under Mou. We neither press high or sit deep as one. We seem to have some players who press high but the team doesn't follow. So all of a sudden 1 or 2 passes and teams are through our press and running at us. 

Personnel needs improving. System needs tweaking only when needed based on situations in the game.

Our midfield is poor atm. Really need a midfielder that can transition defence into attack and dribble out of trouble ala Modric.

We've missed Kante. That's it.