You'll never win the league with 352

[Shaggy]

That was a 0-0. I'm not saying that it can't work and if you intend to get a draw which we did and was what was needed then that is fine. We had next to no chances that night - my reasoning for why that happens is above.

I remember us having a couple of very good chances - I think Baros fluffed two great opportunities - while they didn't threaten too much.

Or is memory even worse than I think it it?

[dww]

doesnt mean its a bad formation - just that you need good fullbacks. you ask more/too much of you central defenders in a 4-4-2 with a flat backline

I think normally two in the middle is about optimum. The fullbacks are available to help out when needed. The reason the back four is the most popular formation is in my opinion ultimately because it reduces the number of people needed to defend the area as it evenly spaces people across the box. You can't defend the wings with a three very effectively which means frequently your wing backs get pushed back.

against good teams you outnumber them in midfield and have more possession

This is the theory but in general you loose passing options. you have more ball but it is harder to create chances with it. Thus making it effectively a defensive strategy against good teams which is fine if you want a draw.

this is simply an example of playing the system; when theres 1 striker, theres always somebody playing a deeper attacking role a la kaka. In a well drilled 3-5-2, one of the defenders moves forward to pick up this man as soon as the ball is in the defensive 3rd

Why not use a defensive midfielder to do this job in front of a back 4? In general that gives you a choice of better passers. In my opinion the now regulation holding midfielder is the natural evolution of the old sweeper in a back 3. It has proved much more effective as the game has become more physical.

[dww]

I remember us having a couple of very good chances - I think Baros fluffed two great opportunities - while they didn't threaten too much.

Or is memory even worse than I think it it?

BBC says two chances one for Garcia one for Baros were wasted and that juve didn't have much of a sniff. I'm not saying that 3-5-2 isn't useful in certain situations just that if you play it every game you won't win enough.

[El Jefecito]

A/ You ask too much of your wingbacks. To be any good they have to be able to defend the wings attack and be capable of getting up and back all match. There are very few players capable of dong it let alone well.

B/ Against good teams you get pressed back and have a back 5. You have to select three centrebacks which means that you have (in general) got less ability on the ball and so it is harder to turn defence into attack and much easier for teams to press your midfield as you have less options.

C/ Three defenders over the season will often come up against one up front with wide players or a deep lying striker suplementing them. With a back four this means you can release one or both fullbacks when appropriate - with a back 3 (in particular a back three marking zonally as we do) you almost have to keep three back effectively watching one man.

D/ Playing in a back three against good teams is a specialist skill and requires a long time to learn. We have no defenders used to it and Rafa specifically uses it against poor teams where this matters less.

I thought about it a bit and on C/ I agree the three at the back doesn't make sense unless you have someone like hansen (or agger, hopefully) that is a ball playing CB.

D/ I have the utmost confidence in Rafa being able to drill those skills into us.

based on what i've read in the thread I'm sure that 352 has a place and with the right players could become our predominant formation against the non-top 4.

I definitely hope Rafa pursues it because to be able to get 3 of Xabi, El Jefe, Momo and SG in the middle and still have 2 advanced strikers would pretty much put an end to our attacking woes.