Thread by @Hennes_4

One of the hottest topics in football right now is Pep Guardiola’s new four centre back system which seems as if it’s become his latest tactical revelation.

So why has Pep done this, and how does he implement it without losing his on and off the ball dominance?

Thread 🧵

Pep has slowly integrated this evolution to his City side since his disposal of João Cancelo in January. Many questioned this decision, however City’s recent 10 game win streak seems to have silenced many of the doubters.

Using a Centre back at full back is no foreign concept, many elite clubs in fact do this and create an asymmetrical dynamic between their wide defenders which can have many benefits.

Asymmetrical fullbacks is a relationship in which one fullback remains back and the other pushes up high. Barcelona use this most notably, often deploying Kounde or Araújo as their right back for superiority in build up or to defend tricky wingers.

However using two centre backs at fullback is unheard of, yet it seems like it has become peps latest genius tactical adaptation that could shape the future of football.

So why? Why would pep rather use a back 4 comprised of centres backs. I mean, we all remember the fluid and cohesive movements of his Barca, Bayern and early City sides, surely CBs at FB are too robust to play his desired way. Well I can answer with one word. CONTROL

Arteta said Pep would describe himself as the “most defensive coach in the world” due to his obsession with control and this obsession is not unwarranted. City under his tutelage have often stumbled in key moments especially in Europe and a lot of it stems from a lack of control

In league fixtures, it’s far easier to install control. Knockout games however (especially in the Champions league) have their own climate, they can be lost or won in moments and city have too often found themselves on the wrong side of these moments.

City almost always dominate their fixtures overall but their tendancy to allow for chaos to insue for short yet critical periods has been their kryptonite. We’ve seen it time and time again, Peps tried a variety of tactical nuances to solve this but none have worked.

However, it seems Pep may finally have his answer to this tactical conundrum through his new 4 centre back system. But how does he implement it without losing his sides notorious on the ball domination? you may wonder, and how does it allow them to further control games?

In order to commit to such a drastic change and maintain dominance on the ball you have to get creative and that’s exactly what Pep has done, his usage of John Stones as an inverted right back is vital to this new innovative system.

City play in a 3-2-2-3 with a 3-2 or 4-2 build up structure at the base. In deep build up, the 4-2 is used with the goalkeeper stepping up whilst further up the pitch the 3-2 is seen. In both instances Stones inverts into midfield and plays his role beautifully.

Whilst you would be simply wrong to claim Stones is as an astute ball player as Cancelo, the drop off is not enormous. Here’s a few clips of his beautiful execution of the role, watch his understanding of the position, this video could be an hour long due to how well he plays it.

I want to note that Ake is also important to this structure however his role in possession is far more basic than that of Stones. He simply tucks in and becomes part of the back 3.

So, now we know how he implements the 4 centre backs, your probably thinking how does this give them extra control? Well the answer is really quite simple, they’re far more solid defensively without having to compromise their core in possession principles.

This was illustrated no more than in the game vs Bayern Munich, out of possession Akanji and Ake were tasked with marshalling two unbelievably dynamic, excellent dribblers in Sane and Coman and dealt with them admirably.

The 1v1 defending of both was magnificent and allowed City to control the game, especially Ake who forced one of the most inform wingers in coman to switch sides in order to try and find some joy.

It is no coincidence that city are having one of their best defensive spells under pep, they have conceded only three in their last ten and have a 31+ goal difference in that period.

The 4 centre backs also offer city solidity when defending transitions. The 3-2-2-3 structure already provides a sturdy rest defence as all the key central areas are covered. Mix this with 4 athletic and intelligent CBs and you have security from transitions in abundance.

This new, adaptive evolution of City’s tactics is just another statement of how supreme a manager Pep Guardiola is, these elaborate schemes to solve on field issues are just a constant reminder of why his career has been so illustrious.

It’s lazy to reduce City’s upturn in form to just “City doing what they always do at the end of season.” Whilst that is a recurring pattern with Guardiolas city sides, their sizeable boost in performance is primarily as a result of the genius of one man.

Pep 🧠

[END OF THREAD]

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