our new 3421 formation

A system that saw a couple outings last season, it is good to see that we have been developing different strategies.

I was not surprised to see us use it vs Watford, as we did last season, to counter the aerial threat they have up front.

I was surprised we then used it vs Chelsea, when in the game at The Bridge, we had dominated them for 45 minutes with a 433 (or similar) line up. But it worked a treat.

I wonder whether we will employ it vs WBA.

For me it's a formation i have always liked, going back to the managerial days of Hoddle for Spurs and England.

We play it in a way that typically has one up top but as we saw vs Chelsea, Alli was almost a second striker that day, and Eriksen drifted behind the front 2, making it very hard for the defnding team to track them both. Having Alli so advanced allowed him to pull on to the back of their 3rd CB, which also engaged their wing back, Moses. to me Azpi (not going to try and spell it) is not a CB and Moses is not a wing back, and Alli exposed that. Another inspired tactical move from Poch. The good thing about the system is that it did free up Alli from any defensive responsibility, with plenty of cover behind him.

In defensive positions, with 3 at the back and advanced full backs, our wider CBs are very capable of going into the FB position (both Dier & Verts having played a lot at FB). Wanyama drops deep and we retain a good defensive shape even when the FBs are caught up field. This was even more solid with Dembele also playing a deeper than usual role, but vs less threatening teams, his position could be slightly more advanced - a CM rather then a DM.

Vs strong teams like Chelsea, this tactic was perfect to suppress their counter attacking style and Costa and Hazard had little joy. Other than Hazards early opportunity, it was a defensively perfect display, never really caught short at the back but without any sense of bus parking. It was a wonderfully balanced set up by Poch, executed perfectly by the players and really shows that we are developing as a team.

I am not sure its appropriate for all occasions and I would rather we revert to a 433 type line up vs WBA. I cannot see them really going at us, until they get desperate. They will look for set pieces, and any chance to play off big Rondon, with some direct play, but I dont think we need 3 CBs to really counter this...that is unless we had a CM who posed more of a threat than Dembele, which unless you put Sisokko in there (not for me), we don't.

Do people think this will almost become our default setup, or are we just developing a range of different options, horses for courses?

One other point.....many used to accuse Poch of having No Plan B. In the early days i think it perhaps appeared to be the case BUT, what Poch has benefited from is time. He has been allowed to develop the team over time and the incremental development is as clear as day - Season 1, the fitness and pressing of a possession based game. Season 2, initially the defensive strength of the team, and then developing a more potent attacking threat. Season 3 - we have retained all the development we have made and are now adding variety to it with strategies and line ups, and the players appear to have grown in belief and mental strength after last seasons experiences.

Levy has made some managerial blunders in his time, but giving Poch a 5 year deal, giving him time and putting faith in him was an absolute masterstroke. Sure he would have fired him if he failed badly but Poch has had the freedom and lack of pressure of immediate success and has benefited from this.