I notice BBLG couldn't help a premature "I told you so" ejaculation, but I think he and other have missed the point. Briefly then...
The claim isn't that you can't win and win well playing 4-4-2, it's not even that 4-4-2 isn't the right option in some circumstances, the claim is that generally, playing 4-2-3-1/4-3-3, with our personnel will over the course of a season get you more points then playing the way we have in the last couple of games.
Firstly, I always very readily admit when I'm wrong so I'll be damned if I can't be smug when I'm right ;-)
Secondly, if you look at our ppg ratio with 442/4411 with just one DM this season and with 433/4231 this season I don't see how you can argue that the latter would reap more points in a season.
Whilst looking at PPG is part of it, you also have to take a wider view of how the games went. For example in one of the games that was 4231 we had Defoe upfront on his own so the fact that that didn't work doesn't mean the formation is wrong. Similarly if you look at some games where we played 4411 and won, we were very luck to do so (Fulham away being a case in point).
As has been pointed out in here and elsewhere numerous times, it does depend alot on what team the opposition play. If we go 442 vs another 442 then I fancy us to win on quality alone. If we go 442 against a 433/451 then I always fancy us to get bullied in midfield.
I suppose the point is that it's good that we can play either formation and we just need our manager to know when to pick either one. Unfortunately I don't think Harry has really bought into the 4231 and it doesn't look like the players have been coached on how to play it effectively. If that is the case then we may as well just plough in with 4411 in every game.
Why do you say that?
Apparently we've been great everytime we've played it so it must have been well coached, no?
Whilst looking at PPG is part of it, you also have to take a wider view of how the games went. For example in one of the games that was 4231 we had Defoe upfront on his own so the fact that that didn't work doesn't mean the formation is wrong. Similarly if you look at some games where we played 4411 and won, we were very luck to do so (Fulham away being a case in point).
As has been pointed out in here and elsewhere numerous times, it does depend alot on what team the opposition play. If we go 442 vs another 442 then I fancy us to win on quality alone. If we go 442 against a 433/451 then I always fancy us to get bullied in midfield.
I suppose the point is that it's good that we can play either formation and we just need our manager to know when to pick either one. Unfortunately I don't think Harry has really bought into the 4231 and it doesn't look like the players have been coached on how to play it effectively. If that is the case then we may as well just plough in with 4411 in every game.
Firstly, I always very readily admit when I'm wrong so I'll be damned if I can't be smug when I'm right ;-)
Secondly, if you look at our ppg ratio with 442/4411 with just one DM this season and with 433/4231 this season I don't see how you can argue that the latter would reap more points in a season.