Former England U19 head coach Noel Blake: “systems of play change as soon as the ball moves”

Game | Systems| Noel Blake | 24.5.21

Former England U19 coach, Noel Blake, discusses systems of play in the modern game and how formations change as soon as the ball moves.

Learning: 

• The fluid nature of systems of play

• Flexible systems of play and the importance of ‘overloads’

• How ‘situational coaching’ can help players develop game understanding

Systems of play shouldn’t be seen as static formations but ‘flexible shapes’, explains former England national youth coach, Noel Blake.

“You might set up 4-3-3 but that is only the shape of the team to start.

“The minute the ball moves, what does the system become? It's no longer 4-3-3 because the ball is moving.

“If you're playing 4-3-3 and you push the ball forward and you say to two of the central midfielders you can go, but one sit, now all of a sudden you're not 4-3-3. 

“So, the system is a set-up, a starting position and it's a structure to play from.” 

Pep Guardiola’s system of play 

Blake, who worked with England’s national youth teams between 2007-14, references Manchester City and their movement off the ball to illustrate the fluidity of a system of play.

“Over the years people have tried to analyse Pep Guardiola’s set-up or system - basically it's a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1, but within that it’s very flexible.

“The recent discussions about Cancelo playing as a full-back infield is not a new phenomenon. Pep’s been doing that for years.”

Blake, who has tutored on the UEFA Pro Licence course and also coached at Exeter City, Stoke and Blackpool, is a keen student of the game and believes coaches should try and understand when and why a system changes shape during a game.

“When Pep went to Bayern Munich he would sometimes play a back three. 

“But in my view, what he did, he had David Alaba at left-back and Phillip Lahm at right-back and they would push in narrow to provide an overload in midfield.

“Which then enabled the two wide players Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery to come in off the line and play. Alaba and Lahm could then be the overlap if they needed. 

“So they had what they call a ‘numbers game’. They had numbers wherever the ball was.”