Seems like forever since we’ve had an ‘A’ and ‘B’ type of formation to look at….
But, today we are going to be discussing the 4-5-1A formation. Consisting of 4 Defenders, 2 Central Midfielders, 1 Attacking Midfielder, 2 Wide Midfielders and 1 Centre Forward, this formation is all about making it extremely difficult for your team to be penetrated. Your defence is well protected while using this formation. It is normally used these days by mid to lower table teams (11th to 20th) in a pursuit of making it hard for the opposition to score. The pioneer of this formation is one of the greatest managers of all time, Jose Mourinho. Mourinho single handedly changed the narrative of formations back in the early 2000’s when his Porto team used this formation to successfully capture their second Champions league win back in 2004. But he famously used this formation at his first stinct as Chelsea manager when most teams in the Barclays Premier League would normally play different Variations of the 4-4-2 (In particular the 4-4-2A, 4-4-1-1, and 4-2-4). The midfield battle was practically always won by this Chelsea team but what made the 4-5-1 so special is its ability to make it extremely hard for the opposition to create goal scoring opportunities, let alone score goals. In order for that to happen you’ll need a set of players with high work rate in the Midfield and Wide areas. Not only do these players have to protect your back line, but they must also help the sole Centre Forward when your team is on the attack because he can beome isolate and redundant when playing this formation.
PROS
• Formation is very difficult to break down
• Midfield battle is rarely lost
• One of the best formations to protect a back 4
CONS
• Not the best formation to use for attack minded football
• Formation is not suitable for Wide Forwards
• Wingers can be used but they must have a high work rate
• Centre Forward must be Physically dominant (meaning he must be tall, strong and good in the air)
If you’re a manager that enjoys pressing in your own half and being hard to beat then this is surely the formation for you. Give this one and go and let me know how it went for you…
The Soccermanager Experience 