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A really great article analysing Mancini's tactics. Match of the Day pundits take note...

http://www.manchestercity.vitalfootball ... p?a=184393

Good piece. You can see it happening with the midfield now & it's coming together quite well. On the downside it makes it difficult to accommodate out & out flair players in the central midfield without sacrificing a forward or 2. Ireland for instance would have to be a lot more disciplined even than under the recent 4-4-2 of the last manager if playing centrally. He could have more freedom playing at the front of the diamond if we change to that system but it would involve sacrificing an attacking player. We may use that sometimes with Vieira at the back of the diamond almost making a 7-3 system when we lose the ball. Seems to be used a fair bit in Italy.

Good read, I for one would have not been able to explain his tactics, although watching the game you can see the movements involved.

So far we seem to have employed the flat 442 formation, but once Ireland is back and fully fit I think we may switch to the 4-3-1-2, with Ireland behind the strikers, De Jong or Vieira in front of the defence, Barry and another as central midfielders, possibly SWP although that's not his preferred position but we could use his fast forward runs in that part of the field when counterattacking, and he always helps the full back anyway so he could do a job there I think. Or, we could still go 4-3-1-2 but with Ireland as central midfielder and Tevez as the link between midfield and the strikers, possibly interchanging positions with Robinho if both play.

Yeah, I'm not sure we have a natural attacking right back to play with the diamond midfield.

The team clearly puts more pressure on the ball when not in possession and is more frugal in position than previously and the defensive and midfield lines play more as unit with fewer gaps that can be expoited by the opposition.

The question is, if we play 442, who from De Jong and Barry gets dropped to accomodate Vieira?

Guy Debord wrote:Yeah, I'm not sure we have a natural attacking right back to play with the diamond midfield.

The team clearly puts more pressure on the ball when not in possession and is more frugal in position than previously and the defensive and midfield lines play more as unit with fewer gaps that can be expoited by the opposition.

The question is, if we play 442, who from De Jong and Barry gets dropped to accomodate Vieira?

depends on what vieira is asked to do.

Guy Debord wrote:Yeah, I'm not sure we have a natural attacking right back to play with the diamond midfield.

The team clearly puts more pressure on the ball when not in possession and is more frugal in position than previously and the defensive and midfield lines play more as unit with fewer gaps that can be expoited by the opposition.

The question is, if we play 442, who from De Jong and Barry gets dropped to accomodate Vieira?

None.
Vieira should be back up to them, until they are injured or summat.

Chris Waddle mentioned on ESPN that Vieira could actually have been brought in as a centre back. When I say it now it doesn't seem that likely, but he made quite a convincing case at the time!

The formation issue is quite interesting. I remember a short while back this LINK thread when a majority thought that 433 was the best formation we could employ. MH seemed to go with that idea but of course it's a lot more complicated than that.

I think, put simply, we've become less adventurous but more stable under Mancini. We've still scored quite a few I know, but I think that will change. Either way the balance seems right atm.

Bingo Lewis wrote:None.
Vieira should be back up to them, until they are injured or summat.

Somehow I don't think that the French Captain and Serie A winner is here to sit on the bench.

If we manage an FA Cup run that mirrors our Carling Cup performances alongside a strong second half of the season then there should be enough room for everyone to contribute.

wolfcity wrote:

Bingo Lewis wrote:None.
Vieira should be back up to them, until they are injured or summat.

Somehow I don't think that the French Captain and Serie A winner is here to sit on the bench.

If we manage an FA Cup run that mirrors our Carling Cup performances alongside a strong second half of the season then there should be enough room for everyone to contribute.

you cant be international captain when you are not picked. He has to EARN his place.

Wonderwall wrote:you cant be international captain when you are not picked. He has to EARN his place.

He was appointed Captain for the last major tournament they took part in but didn't play due to injury.

A clear candidate for the Job in South Africa, perhaps? If he earns his place.

wolfcity wrote:

Wonderwall wrote:you cant be international captain when you are not picked. He has to EARN his place.

He was appointed Captain for the last major tournament they took part in but didn't play due to injury.

A clear candidate for the Job in South Africa, perhaps? If he earns his place.

absolutely

Guy Debord wrote:A really great article analysing Mancini's tactics. Match of the Day pundits take note...

http://www.manchestercity.vitalfootball ... p?a=184393

Good article and thanks for the link.

My first thoughts.

1. According to this report we seem to play 'proper' zonal defence, i.e. basically as a unit to follow the ball, instead of following(marking) the opposition's players. It might sound very simple, but needs training and understanding. Furthermore the zonal system has given it's name to a little known player. Everybody has heard about the star player and his magics with the ball. Because of the huge demands on understanding the game and movement without possession, fans of the zonal system often talk about the 'best player without the ball'. But I guess in English he's already known as the 'unsung hero'. I think it was Tony Book who said that he smiled when somebody in football said they were trying something new. Because it has all been done before.

2. The attacking play with strikers putting pressure on the opponents. Statistically when winning the ball in the other's half, a lot of goals are scored. Malcolm Allison observed this and called it 'break down'. City won trophies. But the term has since then been long forgotten.

Norway's national team used both these tactics during their succesfull 90's. It was 'new' again then, to most people, and Norway remain the only nation Brazil has never beaten in football (I should add it's only been three games, so it's rather limited as a statistical material!). But based on talent it never should have been a contest. At their heights in the -98 world cup, Norway beat Brazil and got through to the knock-out stages. There they we're knocked out by somebody that had seen it all before. Italy. Money we've got. If Mancini can combine both talent and tactics....then we are in for a few good years!