When it comes to Frank de Boer’s tactics, Saturday’s defeat on a waterlogged pitch in Columbus didn’t teach us much. After all, it’s hard to play, or judge, a possession-based system when the ball wont roll more than ten yards. But before the conditions deteriorated, we did have time to analyze one slightly new element of de Boer’s strategy, as he started in a 4-3-3 for the first time all season.
But how exactly does de Boer’s 4-3-3 work with/around Atlanta United’s specific personnel? Let’s take a look.
A New Look
We’ve already discussed how de Boer wants his wingers to play with almost complete positional freedom, asking them to drift into the middle underneath the striker, or even to the other wing altogether to overload defenses in wide areas.