As a coach instructor, one of the subjects that gets a lot of discussion is “What system of play should I use.” In soccer, systems of play refer to the arrangement of players on the field at the start of the game. While a lot of attention is paid to a team’s system of play, soccer is such a fluid game that teaching players their responsibilities with respect to their position on the field, the position of the ball, the position of the other players, and the time on the clock is much more important than whether you have two forwards or three. However, choosing a system of play gives a coach and a team a starting point from which to discuss responsibilities.

A Numbers Game

Systems of play are referred to in terms of the number of defenders, midfielders, and forwards on the field. For example, a common system with 11 players is the 4-4-2. In that system you have four defenders, four midfielders, and 2 forwards.
The numbers add up to the number of field players; we don’t talk about the goalkeeper, because the laws say you have to have one, and everyone knows where the goalkeeper stands.

In AYSO we play with odd numbers of players. 3-a-side at U5-6, 5-a-side at U7-8, 7-a-side at U9-10, 9-a-side atU11-12 and finally 11-a-side at U13 and older. This gradual progression (called small sided games) was a long time coming, but it is great for the sport. Players are a lot more involved in a game when their are fewer teammates to rely on. Other organizations play different numbers of players. For example, Duke City Soccer League uses a progression of 4, 6, 8, and 11 players as the players get older. Personally, I like the odd numbers, but their is nothing inherently wrong with an even numbered progression either.

History

Systems of play at the professional level have gone through a huge transformation over the last 100 years. As the players have gotten bigger, faster, and more skillful, attack has given way to defense. As the game evolved from mates playing for the love of the game to workers toiling out a living for the company, adventure has given way to caution. As Eduardo Galeano put it in Soccer in Sun and Shadow, “The history of soccer in the twentieth century, a journey from daring to fear, is a trip from the 2-3-5 to the 5-4-1 by way of the 4-3-3 and the 4-4-2.”

When I was growing up, the 4-3-3 was a popular system. The three forwards were a striker and two wingers. When the winger took the ball to the corner, the striker covered the middle and the other winger had far post. The midfielders moved up to support around the periphery. But the game was often decided in the midfield. The team that could control the ball in the middle often won. So the soccer coaches moved one of the forwards to the midfield and created the 4-4-2.

The 4-4-2 is still the most popular system of play for 11-a-side youth soccer. The difference between the 4-3-3 and the 4-4-2 is dramatic. In the 4-4-2, you have twin strikers. These are players who must be able to work together, often while tightly marked. The best strikers in a 4-4-2 system are tall, strong players who can hold the ball under intense pressure and still turn and strike the ball into the back of the net. The width in a 4-4-2 is provided by the outside midfielders. In fact the main weakness of the 4-4-2 is that the poor outside midfielder has to run the touch line from corner flag to corner flag all day long. Fitness, an ability to cross, a willingness to turn inside and go to goal when the opportunity arises, and the ability to chase down an attacker on the wing and shut him down are all essential strengths in your outside midfielders.

The law of defensive balance says you need one more defender than the other team has attackers. Once everyone started playing 4-4-2, some coaches reasoned that three defenders was sufficient to meet two attackers. Thus the 3-5-2 was born. In the 3-5-2, you have a lot of bodies in the midfield, and your goal is to control the ball there and not let the attackers penetrate. In the 3-5-2, your midfielders must be willing to fall back to meet an attack by the other team’s midfield, or all will be lost.

Options

So, how can you arrange players on the field? The beginning system of play is “bunch ball” or “the swarm.” Young players will move to the ball and wind up in a bunch. It is not until the players have the ability to control the ball, dribble, and pass that the game opens up enough to make talking about systems of play matter. So at U5-6, teach the players to play in a triangle, and don’t worry about systems.

At U7-8, you have five players, a bigger field, but little additional control over the ball. To make matters worse, you have no goalkeeper. Generally, this leads coaches to station one player way back in front of the goal as a goalkeeper surrogate. Aesthetically, I’m opposed to this style of play, but experience has shown that without it, you give up lots of easy goals. So, put one player back, but tell that player to stay connected to the front. Move up and back with the ball and be always at the “back of the bunch.” If you can get your other four players to form a square, two up and two back, you probably have as good a system as you can.

At U9-10, things get a little more interesting. With six field players, you have the temptation of setting up a midfield. Try to resist the temptation. At this age, most players are just grasping the concept of forward and defender. Adding a midfield position at this time is probably a bad idea. So how do you arrange six players in two groups? Two obvious answers present themselves. You can play a 3-3, which is reminiscent of the old days of 4-3-3, or you can play a 4-2, which is so much like a 4-4-2 that the same principles apply. The decision will determine whether you try to provide attacking width with one of three forwards or if you will “bring it from the back” having one of your outside defenders bring the ball up and provide width for two strikers. If you have the speed and stamina for the outside back to run up and down the field, the 4-2 might be exciting.

When you get to eight filed players, you need to introduce the midfield, and you should start thinking about where you are heading with your team. If you are heading to a two striker offense, you probably ought to play with two strikers; if you plan to use a three striker or, heaven forbid, a one striker formation when you play 11-a-side, then you should probably start that offensive system now. You should also consider your defensive system. Do you like four defenders or three. Are your fields narrow enough for three defenders to be effective, or do you need four to cover the space? These are the considerations you have to wrestle with playing eight players. The 4-2-2, 4-1-3, 3-2-3, and 3-3-2 are obvious consequences of these decisions. When I coached a girls teams years ago, I chose the double diamond: four up in a diamond and four back in a diamond. That worked with the players I had.

How Do I Organize My Defense?

When playing four defenders, you have a choice between the sweeper-stopper system and a flat back four. That is, you can organize your defenders in a diamond with the back defender, called the sweeper, being responsible for playing as the second defender behind any of the other defenders. The sweeper should be fast, strong, and very, very dependable. If the ball gets past the sweeper, it’s often one-on-one with the goalkeeper. The defender at the front of the diamond is called the stopper. The stopper’s job is to stay connected with the midfield (or forwards if there is no midfield) and stop the attack before it crosses the midfield line. The stopper should be a smart player who can read the play and move to the right part of the field to stop the opponents from organizing their attack. What’s more, the stopper must not be a glory hog; if the stopper gets beat, it is very important that he or she get back to help the defense. If the stopper gets stuck playing up, the defense will be out numbered and in trouble. The outside defenders in the sweeper-stopper system are important in both their defensive roles, taking on the attacking winger, but also in getting wide when the attack starts and supporting the attack up the side.

In a flat back four system, the role of the outside defenders is very similar. However the middle two players are very different. The middle two defenders will not have assigned roles of sweeper and stopper. Rather, they will be responsible for deciding who will step up as first defender when the ball comes down the middle and who will be the second defender. When an outside defender takes on a winger, it is the responsibility of the nearest defender to act as the second defender. The other inside defender and the far outside defender then provide balance across the field making sure the center and back door are covered.

The sweeper-stopper system is extremely popular and is often implemented by teams with a star defender that they want to build a defensive system around. With its clearly defined roles, it is fairly easy for young players to understand the job they’ve been assigned. On the other hand, if you are an AYSO team rotating players through positions to make sure their soccer experiences are well balanced, you may not want to play every player as sweeper. It is a difficult position for players who are a bit timid or slow.

The flat back four system is popular at the highest levels of the game. The flat back four system provides good flexibility for the inside players to react intelligently to the situation at hand without the baggage of being told their specific responsibilities. If your players understand defense fairly well, they might do well with the flexibility of the flat back four.

If you choose a defensive system based on three players, you have the choice of designating your central defender as a sweeper and making a different player always step up as first defender, or you can use a flat back three in which the player closest to the ball is first defender and the others provide support and balance. The considerations are the same as with four defenders.

How to Choose

First, a coach has to assess the team’s strengths and weaknesses and choose a system of play that complements the strengths while minimizing the weaknesses. If your team has good outside speed and big strong goal scorers, a twin striker system like the 4-4-2 might be for you. If your team has good ball handling in the middle and a number of creative goal scorers, you might be happier with a three person front.

Remember, no system of play will make up for a lack of individual skill. Your players must be able to dribble, pass, control the ball, shoot, and defend if you are going to be successful. As you are covering those bases, you can begin to think about what arrangement of players will complement the talents of your players.

Good Luck!