Trio need formation change

28 September 2010 19:18
Tottenham, Everton and Newcastle have been playing a 4-5-1 formation this season and TEAMtalk's Mark Holmes questions how well it is working.[LNB] There is no right or wrong formation in football and 4-5-1 is one that has become increasingly popular over the last few seasons.[LNB]Spain won the World Cup using a variant of it - they played with two holding midfielders and three attacking ones behind a lone frontman - while Chelsea are top of the Premier League playing a 4-5-1 that quickly becomes 4-3-3 when they attack.[LNB]However, 4-5-1 can be a one-dimensional formation when not used correctly and I have to wonder whether that is the case with Tottenham, Everton and Newcastle.[LNB]Tottenham[LNB]Tottenham won themselves a place in the Champions League playing 4-4-2 last season but a combination of injuries and the arrival of Rafael van der Vaart has seen Harry Redknapp favouring a 4-5-1 more often than not this term.[LNB]But Spurs have scored just six goals in six Premier League games so far, drawing blanks on three occasions and scoring more than one just once, against Wolves when they played with two strikers.[LNB]To be fair to Redknapp, he is without Jermain Defoe and has seen Aaron Lennon lose his form, but it appears to me he made a mistake not buying a striker in the summer as the system he used in Saturday's defeat at West Ham simply did not work.[LNB]Peter Crouch was completely starved of service in a one-man attack and, although Robert Green made some good saves, Spurs were generally toothless and got what they deserved - nothing.[LNB]They have now won just two of six league games and Redknapp should in my opinion consider a change back to 4-4-2 and give Robbie Keane or Roman Pavlyuchenko a prolonged run alongside Crouch. [LNB]Keane is out of form and Pavlyuchenko could be considered too similar to Crouch, but the former Liverpool man is having little effect as a lone striker in the Premier League.[LNB]Alternatively, if Redknapp wants to stick with 4-5-1 he needs Gareth Bale back on the left wing to give Spurs the pace and width they have lacked on that side recently. [LNB]Redknapp needs a better mix in the middle too - Jermaine Jenas and Tom Huddlestone started at Upton Park, but the physicality of Wilson Palacios is needed to give van der Vaart and Luka Modric the freedom to support Crouch in attack.[LNB]What Redknapp must not do is repeat the mistakes he made at the weekend, otherwise the Champions League campaign he is taking so seriously will be a one-off.[LNB]Everton[LNB]Everton have enjoyed much success playing 4-5-1 in recent seasons but they are bottom of the league with no wins and four goals from six games so far this campaign.[LNB]In David Moyes' defence, 4-5-1 does work for Everton - Marouane Fellaini and Mikel Arteta are a good midfield combination, Tim Cahill gives superb support to the frontman, Steven Pienaar is fantastic on the left and Seamus Coleman could be a revelation on the right - but the Blues need to get their season going and perhaps a change to 4-4-2 is needed for a few games.[LNB]They have been playing well enough and could have nicked a win at Fulham on Saturday but Louis Saha is still some way from fitness, Yakubu is only just working his way back and Jermain Beckford has showed he cannot play as a lone frontman.[LNB]Moyes has nothing to lose by trying Yakubu and Beckford together for a few games because I fear the Merseysiders will otherwise continue to struggle playing 4-5-1 until Saha returns to action.[LNB]Newcastle[LNB]Newcastle have impressed on their return to the Premier League but, brushing aside the 6-0 thrashing of Villa to suit my argument, they have struggled for goals with just three from their other five games.[LNB]Unlike Spurs and Everton, the Magpies do have a fit striker in Andy Carroll that can play as a lone frontman and their 4-5-1 formation has worked well in their three away games at Manchester United, Wolves and Everton.[LNB]However, Newcastle were beaten 2-0 at home by Blackpool earlier this month and lost 2-1 to Stoke at St James' Park on Sunday, with their goal coming from the penalty spot.[LNB]That will leave Chris Hughton wondering whether a more adventurous formation may be needed on Tyneside in future games.[LNB]Against Stoke he started with Wayne Routledge on the right and Hatem Ben Arfa on the left but the on-loan Marseille man spent most of his time in the middle and would be better suited to the central attacking role occupied by Kevin Nolan, who offered little apart from his penalty.[LNB]Cheick Tiote and Joey Barton look a decent partnership in the middle but Routledge is hit and miss and Hughton must find a regular place on the wing for Jonas Gutierrez, who was Newcastle's biggest threat after coming off the bench against Stoke.[LNB]Personally I feel Hughton could afford to do away with Nolan altogether and revert to 4-4-2 for home games as Newcastle simply cannot afford to lose games at St James' against the likes of Blackpool and Stoke.

Source: Team_Talk