Spain: 4-6-0 formation: A revolution in the making?

In his debut article for The Football Front Thomas Payne evaluates Spain's 4-6-0 formation.

The eventual winners Spain were criticised recurrently during the recent European Championships for their lack of goals considering the plenteous and lengthy spells of possession as well as the quality of their team. La Roja's tiki-taka football was branded as "boring" by the media, due to the lack of chances created in the final third.

The predominant reason for their 'dull' football was their formation, as Del Bosque used a formation similar to a 4-6-0, with Fabregas being (on paper) their highest position player. Despite being listed as a striker in this formation, the Barcelona midfielder played a false 9 role, in which he dropped deep into midfield, meaning that Spain were without a forward quite often throughout matches.

This innovative system allows teams to dominate the midfield, as you'd expect with 6 midfielders and supported Spain's aim to control matches with possession.

However, since they sacrificed playing a striker to dominate more of the middle of the park, the long spells of possession that they had rarely had an end product. This was due to the fact that there was no one to receive through balls into the final third, since the forwards played a lot of the time deeper alongside the trio in the middle of the park.

Origins of the 4-6-0 

The birthplace of many tactical innovations is Italy, this great footballing nation is the home of the libero, the regista, and is where Lionel Messi's role, the false 9 was created. The latter of these positions was actually invented in the 4-6-0 system, at AS Roma by their manager at the time, Luciano Spalletti. Unlike Spain's 4-6-0, this formation was used for counter-attacking purposes, as the Italian side looked to score on the break through their men on the flanks.

Spalletti was somewhat forced to invent this formation, due to a lack of strikers during a small injury crisis at the club and it brought them success, and despite the forwards coming back from their injuries, Spalletti continued to use this system.

Could it Work on a long Term Basis? 

Within both examples of teams playing a 4-6-0, they used the formation temporarily. It was Spalletti's solution to an injury crisis, whilst Del Bosque only used it in the European Championships. We have yet to see a 4-6-0 be effective throughout a long period of time. The reasons to the failings of this formation lies up front, without a striker teams can dominate the possession stat, whilst creating few chances. There is no forward to make the runs behind the defence, to serve as an outlet for the through balls of Silva, Iniesta, Xavi, and Alonso.

This problem was exposed in La Roja's opening match against Italy, despite having 66% of the possession, they only scored one goal. This goal came from a run from deep and behind the Italian defence, something which they lacked throughout the tournament.

As you can see in the diagram, most of Spain's passes in the final third were short, and there aren't many through balls, which resulted in a lack of chances created for the side.

To counter this lack of penetration, the wingers need to be good goalscorers, like Mirko Vucinic in Roma's system, the Montenegrin was positioned on the left flank by Spalletti despite being a natural striker, where he now plays for Juventus.

On the attack, the side also has to get numbers forward. The front three should always be in advanced positions when their team is putting pressure on the opposition. This means that there will always be players making runs from deep and looking to make themselves available for the piercing through balls supplied by their teammates in midfield.

How it Could Work 

The 4-6-0 is a good formation for both counter-attacking and possession football. The compact midfield allows you to sit deep without giving the opposition too much space to work with, this also allows for quick and short passes to move the ball upfield, since every player is in close range of each other.

Like in the Roma side, the wingers need to be competent goalscorers to make sure you don't lack too much firepower up front. The two central midfielders also need to support the attack to make sure the players up top don't get isolated, whilst the holding midfielder behind them can either play as a destroyer (if you're in a counter-attacking side) or a regista if you're playing possession football.

This article was written by Thomas Payne. You can follow him on Twitter: @tacticalterrier  . Check out his blog too: tacticalterrier.blogspot.co.uk

Euro 2012 Team Reviews

      Hello, I’m Callum Rivett, and this will be my review of the European Championship, running through team-by-team. I’ll give a brief overview of their matches, then their highlight. Finally a rating out of 10, based on what people thought of them before the tournament (for example, a team who over-performed and came 2nd in their group would get a higher rating than one who was expected to win their group and did), and we’ll see if we agree. Hope you enjoy!

GROUP A

Poland

            The hosts were widely expected to qualify in second place from Group A, but they failed to win a single game. Opening with a draw against Greece, then another against Russia, all they needed to do was beat an average Czech Republic side. They lost 1-0, and the co-hosts were out at the first hurdle, but at least there was one moment to savour: Lewandowski’s strike against Russia was easily their highlight.

RATING: 5/10

Greece

            The 2004 winners were not expected to proceed from their group, with Russia and Poland the favourites. However, a draw against Poland and an unlikely win against Russia - which was their highlight - in the final group match sent them through, playing their almost traditional style of play: defensive. Finishing second, they faced a tough task against Germany in the quarter-finals, and succumbed to a 4-2 loss. Not disgraced, and can take heart from their performances. 

RATING: 7/10

Russia

            This was a Russian side full of quality, boasting players like Alan Dzagoev, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Andrei Arshavin. Things started very well for them, a resounding 4-1 victory over a lacklustre Czech Republic side, their one and only highlight. A draw against Poland meant they were still favourites to progress, and only a defeat to Greece and a Czech Republic win over Poland in the final group game would send them out… A 1-0 defeat to Greece followed, and the Czechs won 1-0, sending the Russians home early.

RATING: 4/10

Czech Republic

            The Czechs were expected to go out with the Greeks in the group stage, but veteran Milan Baroš helped guide them to the last 16, exceeding many expectations. A heavy defeat to Russia in the opening game merely spurred them on, collecting two wins from two against Greece then Poland. They met Portugal in the quarters, and went out fighting, going down 1-0. Perhaps not the most vintage set of performances, but it’s the results that matter. The win over Poland has to be the highlight.

RATING: 7/10

GROUP B

Holland

            The World Cup runners-up had a nightmare tournament, one that fans hope can be thrown into the abyss of football history, never to return. Expectations were high, but performances and results never met those standards. Wesley Sneider hinted at an “ego problem” within the Dutch set-up, and with players like Arjen Robben, you can’t help but to agree. Losing every game and not putting up much of a fight dents their reputation, one which they hope will be restored come Brazil 2014. 

RATING: 2/10

Denmark

            Being dealt in the Group of Death meant expectations were low, and the world was expecting them to be on the first flight home with zero points. But an opening win over Holland - their highlight - put them in good spirits, and it took a late Portugal winner to deny them a point. Germany followed, and so did another good display, but they unfortunately lost 2-1, sending them home with the Dutch. 

RATING: 7/10

Germany

            One of the best German sides in my lifetime, and they were hailed as the favourites to lift the trophy before it had even kicked off. Three wins out of three in the group stage certainly helped their cause, and momentum was building. A 4-2 win over Greece and they were in the semi-finals, thinking they could go all the way. But the infamous Mario Balotelli popped out with two goals to ruin the Germany parade. 

RATING: 8/10

Portugal

            A team that has constantly underperformed given the strength of their side on paper: Ronaldo, Nani, Moutinho, Miereles… Finally they get to where they should be - a semi-final, and just penalty kicks away from a final. Going out to the eventual winners is no disgrace, and they put in some good performances along the way, and finally got Ronaldo playing well for the national side. 

RATING: 8/10

GROUP C

Spain

            Three trophies on the bounce says it all about this Spain side. They are simply the best in the world. Why would anyone ever call them boring? They play nice football, and have when their original tactic was on the verge of being sussed out, they changed it to a tactic no one expected. They didn’t play with a striker, yet they still had a striker win the Golden Boot. It seemed they didn’t get out of second gear for most of the tournament, until the final. The performances weren’t vintage Spain, but it’s the results that will be remembered.

RATING: 10/10

Italy

            The other finalists surprised many on-route, including beating favourites Germany. Even more surprising was Mario Balotelli. He stormed his way to three goals, including a brace against the Germans in the semi-final. The cool and calm Andrea Pirlo provided the killer ball many times, and his style and grace on the football pitch will be missed at international tournaments, as this was almost certainly his last one. A win over England on penalties was impressive, but they had many chances to kill us off. It has to be remembered that Thiago Motta had to go off injured in the final, and they didn’t deserve to lose so heavily.

RATING: 9/10

Ireland

            A disastrous tournament in terms of results for the Irish, but the fact that they even reached the group stages has to be seen as a success. The fans were brilliant, but that would be no consolation back in Ireland as they crashed out at the first hurdle. They gave it their best shot, but with teams like Spain, Italy and Croatia in their group no one expected them to do anything, and they didn’t.

RATING: 3/10

Croatia

            Croatia were unlucky to be drawn in this group, they had a good side and a draw against Spain would have sent them through. Slaven Bilic had them playing well, and scoring goals. They didn’t have the strongest defence, but with a bit more coaching, and with the youngsters coming through, they could be a force to be reckoned with in the next World Cup. A draw against Italy and a convincing win over Ireland made it a very respectable campaign, and a good building block.

RATING: 6/10

GROUP D

Ukraine

            The co-hosts didn’t embarrass themselves in a tough group, with an opening victory over Sweden the highlight. After falling behind, they rallied and the home crowd spurred them onto a well-deserved win. An expected defeat against France followed, then a spirited performance against England where they had a goal disallowed - it did cross the line, but the attacker was offside so justice was done in my view. They played well excluding the France game, and it was a good tournament.

RATING: 6/10

Sweden

            They lost in surprising fashion against Ukraine, then a good performance - helped by England’s defensive frailties - was only ruined by a sublime back-heel by Danny Welbeck and a wicked shot on the edge of the area by Theo Walcott. They were not sent home empty handed, however, defeating France 2-0 in the final group game, an acrobatic Zlatan Ibrahimovic volley giving them the lead, then a late goal secured the victory. Not a terrible performance, but the opening day loss will haunt them. 

RATING: 6/10

France

            A balanced opening game against England ended in a 1-1 draw, then a victory against Ukraine provided a massive stepping stone to qualifying for the quarter finals. But a loss to Sweden in the final group game proved their downfall, which meant they finished second in the group behind England. They faced eventual winners Spain, and got dominated. For a French side with so much quality - easily a better side on paper than England’s - they lacked the cutting edge, and this will be a tournament to forget.

RATING: 5/10

England

            Last but by no means least, we come to England. A team in transition, with a newly appointed manager meant expectations were low. Some expected us to go out in the group, most thought a quarter final was a reasonable target. We, along with Spain, were unbeaten in the first ninety minutes of football, and only went out by the dreaded penalties. This was undoubtedly a tournament where not much was known about our game plan, our manager, but we put in a good display. Hopefully we will be ready for Brazil 2014, and get further than the quarters, where we fall so many times.

RATING: 7/10

So, that wraps up the team reviews, and as you can tell this took a while: re-watching highlights, looking at team line-ups, tactics, results. If you agree or disagree, I’d be delighted to know, so drop me a line either on my twitter (@cjrivett12) or in the comments below. Hope you enjoyed, and I’d like to end on a quote which I found completely correct, one by double European Championship and World Cup winner Cesc Fabregas:

“Those people who think we are playing boring, in my opinion they don’t understand the game.”

Follow Callum on twitter: @CJRivett12. You can find more of Callum's work here.

Football Tweets of the week: 05/07

Here's this weeks 10 funniest football tweets! (In no order too!)

1.) Podolski: "I'm signing for Arsenal to win trophies." - Van Persie: "I'm leaving Arsenal because I want to win trophies." -  (@JamesD215)

2.) Pegguy Arphexad had a 16-year career, played 39 games and won 7 medals. A medal for every 5.57 games.- 90sFootballers

3.) Italy down to 10 men. Spain should bring on Torres to even things up. It's only fair. - @PickThatOneOut

4.) Money can't buy the quality of football that Spain has produced in the last 4 years. Which is fortunate as they have absolutely no money. - @FootballFunnys

5.)

- @Footycomic

6.) Injured Robin Van Persie will struggle to get a new club. The 'back injury' occurred after he was forced to carry Arsenal for 2 years. - @ThickFootball

7.) Don't get why Balotelli is crying? A postman doesn't cry when he loses the post. - @Footy_Jokes

8.) Hodgson at Wimbledon today. There was me thinking he'd seen enough long balls and constant surrendering of possession after this summer. -@Kristian_Walsh

9.) Kiev security goes into overdrive. Man in red t-shirt refused entry to players' area. He gets angry, understandably. He's Alvaro Arbeloa -@SamWallaceIndy

10.)

- @AnfieldCat

Be sure to follow all these guys on Twitter, you can follow us at @ReviewFootball

See last weeks funny tweets here

League Dominance in Euro 2012

Themba Sweet is back with a statistical review of the Euro’s for The Football Front, based entirely on where the players ply their trade. The first attempt at this really didn’t have the right grading tools. I’ve added & subtracted some attributes & also changed the weighting of these attributes. But first, let’s recap what the intention of this little project is:

• We grouped players who play their club football in the same league and gave them points for the goals they scored, assists & performances they made. So Nasri, Rooney, Torres & RVP all scored points for the EPL as long as they featured, scored or assisted.

I’ve done this to help add some flavour to the Euro’s, generate debate and, see which league carried their average form into the Euro’s. As stated before I've also changed the grading system now, so here it is:

• 1 point per shot on target
• 3 points per assist
• 5 points per goal
• 5 points per MOM
• 6 points for Team of the Tournament

So there have been 295 shots on target, 76 goals, 65 assists, 31 Man of the Match's & 15 top players.....let's see where they came from, and we'll take a little look at the top performing clubs. We're expecting the EPL to do well since they have the largest contingent at Euro 2012. Were they the top performing league though?

Let's start with the obvious - Goals:

While there were 6 players who shared the top goal-scorer title, 2 of them came from the EPL (Torres & Balotelli) & 2 came from the Bundesliga (Mandzukic & Gomez). 2 other EPL players managed to score more than once - Bendtner & Silva. In total there were 16 goals scored by players currently in the EPL. Only 9 scored by players from La Liga & Bundesliga (Bundesliga players totalled 14 goals from their 9 players). So the EPL based players, scoring 22 goals, were nearly twice as successful at scoring a goal than their Bundesliga & La Liga counterparts.

 

You may have not spotted this but there were 76 goals scored in Euro 2012 (excluding penalty shoot-outs). The reason there are 75 in the table above is because Glen Johnson scored an own goal & this doesn't count towards any league.

Assists:

There were 65 assists throughout Euro 2012. Once again our expectations that the EPL, by sheer number of participants, has contributed the most assists during the competition. 16 assists for EPL based players puts the EPL ahead of La Liga. This strange way of looking at the Euro's his highlighted in the finale when Torres set up Juan Mata. Although the Spanish team-mates scored for Spain, Torres' assist was the EPL's 15th of the tournament, and Mata's goal was the EPL's 22nd of Euro 2012. Obviously, since they don't play in La Liga, their goals counted for the EPL. Currently it appears as if the EPL is running away with these stats, but that's about to change. Firstly, see the assists chart below with an impressive appearance by the Ukranian Premier League.

 

Shots on Target:

Ronaldo has to be mentioned when looking at Shots on Target. He had the most in the tournament – 15. Iniesta was only 1 shot off target, with 14 on target (yet no goal), and Benzema also making double figures. It is not the easiest feat in the world to get a shot on target, but with this weighting, 5 shots on target is equivalent to 1 goal. With this grading system, 2 goals earn you a solid 10 points. A player from a league would have to take 10 shots on target to match this score, which is unlikely since the most shots on target by 1 player was 15. We also only took into account players with 3 or more shots on target.

 

Carlsberg Man of the Match:

We used the Carlsberg Man of the Match winners since this is a neutral selection & doesn't favour any league in particular. Using a grading system of 5 points for every MOM, we see that La Liga clearly dominate this category. In fact, only 3 EPL players earned themselves MOM awards (Gerrard, Nasri & Torres). 4 layers earned the MOM award more than once during this tournament: Pirlo (Serie A) & Iniesta (La Liga) earned 3 Man of the Match awards, while Ronaldo (La Liga) & Ozil (La Liga) each earned 2 Man of the Match awards.

 

Top 15 players of Euro 2012:

On UEFA.com you can find a write up on how the Castrol Edge rankings work. It basically tracks everything a player does. Xavi won Player of the Tournament in 2008 nad that was entirely based on the Castrol Edge rankings. The Top 15 Players has the highest weight and for good reason. This isn’t the Best Starting XI of Euro 2012, simply the 15 best players:

 

Overall:

Taking all of the above into account and remembering the grading system, below is the overall table which should reflect which league dominated Euro 2012. Our winner is La Liga which ended a clear 40 points ahead of the EPL. Although more goals & assists came from the EPL, La Liga players had more Man of the Match performances & 11 of the top 15 players come from La Liga.

When looking at the actual table, it may not be a surprise to see which leagues make up the top 5: La Liga, EPL, Bundesliga, Serie A & the Russian Premier League:

 

Another point to take note of is the minor influence of the Eredivisie. The truth is that very few players were picked from this league & those that were chosen had very little to do with the outcomes during Euro 2012.

I’ve thrown in a bonus chart using the above scoring system, but one that looks at the actual club instead of the league. Remembering that Ronaldo would score points for Real Madrid, and that a goal is worth 5 points, take a look at the below table and see if it’s something you expected:

Club	Score
Real Madrid	179
Barcelona	88
Man City	83
Bayern	62
Juventus	51
Arsenal	50
Wolfsburg	46
AC Milan	44
Dortmund	41
Chelsea	38
CSKA Moscow	26
Brondby	22
Dynamo Kyiv	22
Liverpool	19
Man United	19
Olympiacos	16
PAOK	16
Plzen	15
Sunderland	15
Cologne	14
Valencia	14
Zenit	14
Udinese	13
FC Porto	11
Lazio	11
Newcastle	10
Panathinaikos	10
Dnipro	9
Munchengladbach	9
PSG	9
Bologna	8
Everton	8
Lokomotiv Moscow	8
Sevilla	8
Tottenham	8
Fiorentina	7
Inter Milan	7
Bordeaux	6
Shakhtar	6
Celtic	5
Leicester City	5
Leverkusen	5
Samsunspor	5
Zaragoza	5
West Brom	4
Ajax	3
Al-Hilal	3
Club Brugge	3
FC Copenhagen	3
Galatasaray	3
Istanbul BB	3
Liberec	3
Lyon	3
Mainz	3
Marseille	3
Roma	3
Spartak Moscow	3
Sporting Lisbon	3
Grand Total	1110

EPL only: 

La Liga only:

 

Twitter: @thembasweet

Site: http://footiecall.blogspot.com/

You can find more of Themba’s work here for The Football Front.