(21-01-2022, 10:28 AM)BigSmokeBlue Wrote: I was at the game on Tuesday night and it got me thinking, how successful have we been when playing 3 central defenders at the back. The first half was bloody awful, with so many long balls over the top. The wing backs were not being utilised to their full effect.
I’ve been looking at Pompey’s results and formations since the start of the season. We have played 33 matches in all competitions. 17 of those have had us playing 3 at the back. This has yielded 5 wins, 7 losses and 5 draws.
Conversely, we have played 16 games with a flat back 4. The return is 8 wins; 5 losses and 3 draws. So my question is, why is Cowley persisting with a 3-5-2 formation when it clearly isn’t working???
The stats don’t lie.
I don't think Cowley likes any formation above any other (unlike Jackett who was wedded to 4231). Going to three at the back was forced by the injuries to defenders, and after the first couple of games it yielded a much better defensive record than the back 4 had been doing. It also played to Romeo's strengths as a wing back, even if we did not have an equivalent on the left, and it meant we were playing two up front.
The stats do not mean that much unless the games were against the same sides, and they ignore other factors like who else was injured in midfield or up front.
He will always play whichever formation he thinks suits the players he has available, and with Robertson back I suspect it will not be long before we see a back 4 again.