Few individuals in football history can reasonably claim to have invented a new position. Even fewer managers have done so. The evolution of football tactics is often considered to be about coaches, but it’s equally — if not more so — about players, who interpret roles in different or unique ways and often spark something of a revolution.
Pep Guardiola’s innovative use of full-backs, though, is a rare example of a manager sitting down with a chalkboard and devising something original. When he pushed David Alaba and Philipp Lahm inside at Bayern Munich, he was doing something genuinely different. It changed the structure of his side: it allowed the central midfielders to push higher, it created passing lanes out to the wingers, and it kept the defence in central positions to deal with counter-attacks.
Initially, it seemed specifically geared towards the skill set of Alaba and Lahm, who had both played central midfield in Bayern’s youth system. But then Guardiola found it was so useful that he continued the approach at Manchester City. Bacary Sagna and Gael Clichy were on the wrong side of 30 and unable to adapt. Oleksandr Zinchenko and Joao Cancelo proved more suitable. Rico Lewis was groomed specifically to play the role.
Guardiola’s former assistant, Mikel Arteta, has also incorporated the idea, signing Zinchenko specifically for that purpose at Arsenal.
Rico Lewis is developing into a model Guardiola full-back (Eddie Keogh/Getty Images)
It’s a shame, then, that both managers have broadly turned away from that idea recently. When Manchester City and Arsenal convened last weekend for what should have been a thrilling game in the title race, the result was a horrendously cagey, defensive, negative 0-0. The reverse fixture was the same, save for an Arsenal late winner courtesy of a fortunate deflection.
Guardiola and Arteta have taken to fielding a system which is essentially comprised of four centre-backs, once the domain of negative, old-school English managers. They are, of course, centre-backs who are very talented in possession — John Stones has popped up at No 10 at points this season and Ben White has carried a tremendous attacking threat from right-back. But the sides clearly have a very different feel.
In the last couple of weeks, both have looked better with that more adventurous, free-spirited ‘half-back’. That City versus Arsenal game was briefly enlivened by the appearance of Lewis from the bench. Sadly, it took injuries to Stones, Kyle Walker and Nathan Ake for Guardiola to entrust him, but he immediately took up unusual positions, finding space in the pockets and allowing City to play through Arsenal.
One wonderful turn to evade Kai Havertz shortly before half-time was the first exciting moment of the game, and Lewis was disappointed Rodri didn’t find his run with the subsequent pass.
Lewis was again outstanding in the 4-1 victory over Aston Villa, his command of midfield allowing Phil Foden and Rodri to enjoy arguably their best games of the season, and then also shone in last Saturday’s 4-2 win at Crystal Palace, bursting into the box to score the crucial second goal to put City ahead.
A conventional defender, of course, wouldn’t have been in that position.
Sadly, if inevitably, Lewis was dropped for the trip to Real Madrid last night, with Guardiola deeming that a return to the four-centre-back approach was desirable against Real’s attacking flair.
Right-back Manuel Akanji was surprisingly up against Rodrygo rather than Vinicius Junior, who played centrally. Akanji was caught out when Rodrygo burst past him, then dribbled at him and poked home Real’s second goal. Using a pure defender, clearly, is no guarantee of defensive solidity.
For Arteta, it was essentially the same story.
He left out Zinchenko to field Jakub Kiwior against the speed of Leroy Sane. That’s understandable: Zinchenko struggles against direct wingers. But, again, Kiwior wasn’t exactly watertight. He was on his heels and partly guilty that Arsenal conceded possession for the first goal.
Granted, a mix-up between David Raya and Gabriel was also to blame and the pass towards him wasn’t great, but maybe the more nimble Zinchenko would have dealt with the situation better.
Kiwior was turned and beaten by Sane’s speed in the build-up to Arsenal’s concession of a penalty, which Harry Kane calmly dispatched to make it 2-1.
At half-time, Arteta corrected things. Kiwior went off, and Zinchenko came on. Arsenal’s shape changed, with Zinchenko drifting into midfield and playing positive forward passes. Some were wayward, but that’s the price you pay for attempted incision.
His positioning freed up Declan Rice to push forward, too: at one point, the Ukrainian literally pointed him forward into position.
Arsenal improved, imposing themselves on Bayern, although it took another two substitutes — Gabriel Jesus and Leandro Trossard — for Arteta’s side to get an equaliser. But on the balance of play, it was deserved. And while Arsenal were a little more exposed at left-back, particularly when Kane came deep and typically played balls around the corner for Sane, it wasn’t any more of an issue in the first half.
It’s a shame that two otherwise progressive managers have become so cautious in defensive positions. The remarkable thing about the early part of Guardiola’s career wasn’t simply that he was so successful, but that he overwhelmingly believed in technical and tactical ability over physical ability. His approach at Barcelona felt like a one-man mission to reorientate the game towards the qualities he possessed as a player: qualities that became forgotten during a period when football became about defending and physicality. Arteta was much the same type of footballer.
Both sides, of course, still play possession-based football and all the defenders involved are highly capable on the ball. Guardiola can quite reasonably claim that his system works almost identically when it is Stones stepping forward from the middle of the defence, as he did last night, rather than Lewis from the right.
That said, when he was without Stones against Arsenal and used Akanji in that role instead, it felt like a regressive step. Arteta has sometimes moved White into that narrow midfield role, although he’s more dangerous on the overlap. Kiwior, for now, lacks the ball-playing skills or tactical awareness to make him a significant upgrade on Zinchenko in most situations.
The use of an extra centre-back means more strength at set pieces, an area where both sides – particularly Arsenal – have thrived this season. But if the likes of Guardiola and Arteta are favouring set-piece height over midfield ingenuity, it seems their shared philosophy has been diluted.
Technical full-backs such as Lewis and Zinchenko are easier on the eye. On the basis of the matches since the international break, it also means their respective sides play better.
GO DEEPER
Guardiola’s evolution: From half-backs and false nines to backs staying back and Haaland
(Top photo: Darren Staples/AFP via Getty Images)
