Last edited:
Rob Dawson ESPN: Solskjaer tells players he wants to implement a more attacking 4-3-3 this season.
- Thread starter Adnan
- Start date
I predicted he would do something similar, but he needed a CB who had the ability to defend solo in 1v1 situations. Maybe Varane is that CB..
Bigger role for Van De Beek?
Varane is a must in that case, Shaw, Maguire, Varane and AWB is rock solid.
Please be true.
Will affect Fernandes' numbers but the team should be better off.
Will affect Fernandes' numbers but the team should be better off.
Very likely
It is but still need an actual DM as well otherwise we'll see some cricket scores
Times like these I feel like strangling Mourinho for choosing Matic and Fred over Fabinho. An out out DM is ESSENTIAL for this formation to work. We wouldn't be having any problem transitioning to a 4-3-3 if we had Fabinho now but we either have to spend heavily on a new DM or gamble with Fred/Scott as anchors which will inevitably fail
As is an out-and-out DM then, surely. I don't think Camavinga fits that role (yet). And I don't think we've really been linked to anyone that fits that description (apart from that Dieng guy in the Egyptian league?).
Maybe Ole thinks one of our existing players can fill that void, but I don't think Fred can. Maybe Scott could, but then you lose a lot from his box-to-box game.
I doubt it personally, just need to ensure that whoever plays there is disciplined.
Dont we need a DM for this. (Its probably going to be Mctominay)
James and Martial on the flanks 
Rice and Varane should do the trick then.
I wouldn't trust one of McFred and Lindelöf.
I wouldn't trust one of McFred and Lindelöf.
Could a 4-3-3 work against teams who just sit back and try to prevent us from scoring? 4-3-2-1 works well against teams who come to play football but we struggle against the low block
Also worth nothing that we’ll likely play a 3 (Varane, Lindelöf, Maguire) or a double pivot in the big big games regardless.
It's more than just discipline, it's having the intelligence to know where to be on the pitch.
Exactly this.
In theory it should. A focused DM would allow two more attack minded CMs (2 of Fernandes, Pogba, VDB) to have more freedom/creativity.
We don't just need Varane. We need to bin Fred and Matic and bring in a ridiculously good DM.
Not sure about this. I think 4-2-3-1 fits the squad better, and I expect it to be the formation we start with next season.
Fabinho would be perfect
Ndidi and Rice not bad alternatives but I they'll both be £60m+
Id always felt that the lack of a DM that can play 50 games a season was the only reason we didnt do this in the first place and I don't really see what's changed. So either the older rumours about Rice are true and there's negotiations on the go, or we have something else up our sleeve. I don't really think that after 2 seasons of persisting with McT and Fred, Ole suddenly feels one of them is now good enough to play DM by themselves every week.
We don't need to stick to one formation though. Utilising 4231 against the bigger teams to hit on the counter, but 433 against low block, ultra defensive teams.
I'm fine with the change, but we'll need a DM as Fred and McT aren't suitable to being a lone DM.
I like where he's going with this. Curious how Bruno will adapt to the system as the 10 benefitted him a lot.
That said he has the skillet to flourish even in a 433.
That said he has the skillet to flourish even in a 433.
I think you(?) had made a nice post about Ole's preference being 4-3-3.. if I remember correctly could you repost it please
I’ve got no problem with it being McTominay or Fred as the DM, I’d prefer an upgrade of course but having Maguire and Varane playing a high line, with Varane covering Maguire centrally and the absolutely rapid Shaw and AWB covering the flanks we shouldn’t have too much trouble against counter attacks and will spend almost of our time in the opposition half.
I doubt it myself. Probably just reading this place and putting a story out. We clearly don't have a specialist DM for a start.
I'm inclined to lean towards no role at all.
Varane must be a done dealio then, I reckon
And hopefully a DM is on the cards
And hopefully a DM is on the cards
We’ll be looking to buy someone, Ole knows. Whether we can get a deal done is another matter entirely. I think the days of “anyone is better than nothing” are over, so we’ll probably stick with what we’ve got for now, if we can’t find the right player for the right price.
Great news.
Interesting if this is true. The only way I can see him realistically facilitating this is by dropping Fernandes a little deeper though, and I would've thought Solskjaer would be reluctant to do that.
Called it. Bringing back the holy Trinity as well
What does this mean for Pogba? I think Bruno and Pogba are both too attack-minded to provide enough balance with our current crop of players. Either we need a specialist destroyer/holding mid or play someone like VDB who isn't prone to giving the ball away so much.
Neither Fred or McTominay have great positional discipline. However, they have largely been told to press aggressively.
So with instructions and a full pre-season working on it could they be moulded into that role. I think so. They won’t become Kante overnight (although he tends to play in a two anyway) but they could certainly perform the role well enough that the benefits of having Pogba/Van De Beek alongside Bruno should outweigh the negatives.
I'll have to start digging..
But for Ole to play a 4-3-3 effectively, he'll require a player who is strong positionally or is showing potential to be that player. I don't believe we have that player currently, and signing someone like a Aurelien Tchouameni would go a long way to making us a more flexible team tactically.
Need a proper defensive midfielder then
Not convinced it's a good idea unless there are a few major signings to come. The formation he uses is for a good reason in my opinion, it suits our collection of midfielders except for Pogba. It probably means Bruno has to operate deeper which I don't think suits him, everything productive he does is higher up the pitch from his pressing to his goal contributions.
I don't think it makes any difference to the forwards really, they'll still have to defend, you cannot seriously expect 2 wide forwards to have the freedom of the pitch in the PL, wide players of a 3 in midfield can't cover everything.
Just can't really see what the big benefit to this is at all.
I don't think it makes any difference to the forwards really, they'll still have to defend, you cannot seriously expect 2 wide forwards to have the freedom of the pitch in the PL, wide players of a 3 in midfield can't cover everything.
Just can't really see what the big benefit to this is at all.
Same here and as I say, likely we’ll play a double pivot or a back 5 in the big games anyhow.
I’d try Axel there before spunking a ridiculous sum on a bang average footballer.