What happened to 4–4–2?

The traditional formation of 4–4–2 lent itself to exquisite and tantalising football but now it’s a long, lost philosophy. The great Sir Alex Ferguson and many of his teams tasted long lasting success with a solid back four, 4 midfielders working in tandem and 2 clinical strikers… so what happened to such a style?

1 word is the cause of 4–4–2’s pathetic existence in the modern game. Europe.

European football is to blame for the lack of success a 4–4–2 formation can provide. British fans in particular have forgotten what 4–4–2 looks like, because now our cream of the crop adapt their European competition approach to cope more competently with the very best teams representing Italy, Spain, Germany and co.

4–4–2 isn’t cool anymore… nobody plays it who is worth mentioning. The cream of the crop in Europe have coaches and managers focussed on team balance, rather than offensive flair and it’s totally understandable because of the results driven business their jobs are pressurised by. If your a paying customer however, these fancy, modern formations nullify entertainment. I grew up watching electric wingers with blistering pace and an ability to put a ball on the strikers toe, but such players are now a rarity, a dying breed. Strikers used to have partners when I grew up. Fowler and Owen, Yorke and Cole, Henry and Bergkamp, Ronaldo and Romario, Zola and Hasselbaink… those were the days! In today’s game, we get used to seeing a striker ‘do a job’ or ‘lead the line’ like a lone wolf, whilst trying to occupy 2 6ft plus centre halves.

The new complexities in football tactics increase the chances of boring games and less entertainment. As a fan, you expect goals, crunching tackles, passion, plenty of goalscoring opportunities and the anticipation of controversy. Instead, we’re served a midfield cluttered formation to somehow cope with the opposition’s best threats, a 4–5–1 formation when playing away from home because 1 point is better than none on the road and pointless substitutions in the 88th minute.

Managers need to be brave. Unfortunately, football has turned into a cut-throat, results driven industry with stratospheric pressures for the people labelled ‘Manager’ / ‘Head Coach’. This has driven managerial longevity into the abyss, with Arsene Wenger the only example worth highlighting to prove my point. He’s the last. With manager’s trying to approach each game as it comes, as well as earn their wedge for as long as possible, it’s no surprise we experience football teams settling for draws instead of gambling 1 point for 3. ‘Parking the bus’ has become an actual philosophy, rather than a line you throw at your mates for their team’s negative setup on the weekend. Chelsea won the bloody Champions League with a double decker on the pitch.

Over complicated tactics which players don’t understand + selfish managers = fans lose.

Football is a simple game, but it’s now become a tactical circus fully dependant on data, numbers, stats and strategies. It’s blatantly obvious that not all football players even know what’s being asked of them. Players are now receiving information from data analysts, video analysts, medical scientists, physios, nutritionists, doctors, psychologists, coaches, technical directors and fitness coaches… It’s not surprising they’re confused! The legend that is Johan Cryuff once said, “soccer is simple but it is difficult to play simple”.