THREAD:

In this thread I will look at different lineups for #MUWomen for the coming season. After each lineup, I will explain my thought process and reasoning for why I’ve picked the players I have.

PS: I have included rotational options below the name of the player starting.

The first lineup I will present is the 4-3-3. This is my favoured formation and the formation I think will get the best out of the team. The players selected are the ones I think Casey will start in the first game, but can be changed throughout the season depending on opposition.

I have mentioned this countless times, but the 4-3-3 is much more suited to this United team than for example the 4-2-3-1. 4-3-3 gives United a great attacking outlet with pacey wingers high up the pitch and possibilities for players to interchange positions.

The 4-3-3 will get the best out of the midfield. Ladd and Zelem can both deploy the no 6 role in different ways due to their different qualities. Ladd is an all out defensive midfielder and Zelem is a deep lying playmaker/regista. They can rotate depending on opposition/game.

In the games against the stronger teams I want to see Ladd playing as the 6 as United need more defensive solidity. However, against weaker teams which sets up in a low block and play on the counter, I want to see Zelem instead because of her progressive passing from deep.

As for the no 8’s, I think Toone and Staniforth will rotate for one of the spots depending on what you want. Staniforth is a playmaker whilst Toone is more of a goal scoring midfielder who likes to roam into space, combine and then get into scoring positions. Great options!

For the no 8 position on the right, I think Groenen HAS to play. Not because she’s my favourite, but because Groenen is unique in that she’s a playmaking box to box midfielder. She can attack/create and defend, and it’s crucial to have a player like that in a midfield 3.

I also think 4-3-3 will benefit players like Galton. Galton is brilliant in 1v1’s. In 4-3-3 her position will be higher up which isolates her more in 1v1’s vs the opposition fullback. A situation she excels in.

Based on this, 4-3-3 should definitely be United’s go to formation going forward. It just fits the players better and provides more of an attacking threat. It will also get the best out of United’s strongest area: the midfield.

The 4-2-3-1 will also be an option. This is the formation Casey opted to go with in the previous season, but to me it didn’t work out too well. I’m not a fan of it considering the players we have as it doesn’t get the best out of them. I included it as an option nonetheless.

My problem with the 4-2-3-1 last season was first of all the double pivot. Maybe Casey wanted defensive solidity as it was our first season in the WSL, but it didn’t work attacking wise and it didn’t fit our midfield options.

Ladd and Zelem were used in that double pivot and whilst Ladd looked fantastic, Zelem and Groenen (in the no 10 role), didn’t. Ladd and Zelem didn’t cooperate very well as they both wanted to get on the ball in the build up play. This doesn’t work well in 4-2-3-1 and it showed.

In a double pivot formation like the 4-2-3-1, one of the deep lying midfielders has to move forward into space and provide another passing option in the build up, whilst the other is responsible to dictate play and find teammates in more advanced positions.

In United’s case last season, that didn’t happen. Ladd and Zelem both wanted to dictate play and neither of them moved forward when the other was on the ball. This led to the double pivot being too flat which in turn left Groenen in the no 10 role isolated with her back to goal.

An isolated Groenen with her back to goal is not a effective Groenen which showed in her performances and led to her having a season below her standards. Groenen is not physical enough to constantly shield the ball and hold off defenders.

Groenen needs to receive the ball with her face towards the opponent’s goal so she can use her brilliant vision and passing to pick out forward runs. With her back to goal, she wasn’t set up enough in those situations and we didn’t see her creative outlet enough.

Looking at how I set up the 4-2-3-1, it will once again benefit Ladd, but for me Groenen in the double pivot will become too deep and as argued above, she will get too isolated in the no 10 role. The only other option in the double pivot is Zelem, but that failed last season.

That’s why I think a formation change is needed next season, but I did include a lineup in 4-2-3-1 because Casey used it as her go to formation last season and might opt for it again.

My next lineup is set up in the very interesting 4-1-4-1 formation. It’s kind of similar to the 4-3-3, but the wingers are more like wide midfielders and defensively it’s very flat as it’s designed to deny the opposition space. More like a 4-5-1 in defence.

I went with a 4-1-4-1 because I see it as an option for Casey to add to her repertoire of formations. It’s very interesting and can work out, especially against the best teams where you might want a solid and strong defence. I see it as a better defensive formation than 4-2-3-1.

Looking at my lineup, you can see that I went for Toone over Staniforth and Fuso at ST over LJ. You might ask why I did that. Well, let me explain.

In a 4-1-4-1, there’s a bigger gap between the midfield and the striker. Playing as a striker in this formation requires movement, pace, combination play and hold up play, all qualities I feel Fuso has.

LJ is very good at hold up play and combination play, but isn’t very fast and her go to movement is to drop deeper to get the ball and drive forward with it. The problem with this is that there won’t be any real threat for the opposition CB’s since they know what LJ wants to do.

Fuso brings more unpredictability and causes the opposition defence more problems with her pace. Fuso is also strong so she should be perfectly capable of holding off defenders with the ball at her feet and then bring the midfield into play.

Another reason for playing Fuso at ST is that I also have Toone in the XI. I want Toone to occupy her favourite space which is between the opposition midfield and defence to receive the ball from Groenen.

With Toone occupying that space, the CB’s can’t push up as that will leave space in behind for Fuso to run into. Because of that, a midfielder has to drop deeper to mark Toone which leaves Groenen more free and with more time on the ball to pick passes.

Toone is also good at becoming available for a pass between the lines. So she will be very difficult for the DM’s to pick up. Because of Groenen’s excellent passing ability she will be able to find Toone in that space facing the goal.

As for the wingers, a lot of running is required since they have to push up in attack and then get back into the defensive shape. This is the reason why I went with Hanson. She will do the defensive work, but Sigsworth is as good of an option. Galton is basically undroppable.

As mentioned earlier, 4-1-4-1 is supposed to be a very compact formation defensively designed to deny the opposition space and will look like a 4-5-1 in defence. It might be an option for Casey to deploy in the tough games so I included it.

My final lineup is in a 4-4-2 diamond. I won’t elaborate further on this as I’ve already explored it as an option and explained the tactics behind it (link below). https://twitter.com/kristianjmoe/status/1284586037612879878?s=21

END OF THREAD:

Other than that, I hope you enjoyed the thread! This is just my opinion on potential lineups in different formations. RT’s and likes are always much appreciated!