Brendan Rodgers, the beauty of 3-4-2-1 and its potency as a tactical weapon | Jonathan Wilson

Nov 15, 2016

Chelsea and Manchester City have adopted this formation but it was a fraught night in Basel that caused the former Liverpool manager to set a growing trend

In a modern world in which style so often matters more than substance – and at times neither seems to matter much at all – moments of significance can be lost amid the swirl. It’s easy to dismiss Brendan Rodgers’ last full season at Liverpool: the ineffectiveness of Mario Balotelli, the falling out with Raheem Sterling, the final-day humiliation at Stoke … and yet it also included a nugget of genuine tactical innovation. It’s not to say that Antonio Conte, Pep Guardiola or Serbia’s Slavoljub Muslin have copied Rodgers or have in any way learned directly from him to point out that all have, this season, employed some of his model with success – and Rodgers, it might also be pointed out, was inspired by Paulo Sousa.

Rodgers, the story went, was fretting after Liverpool’s 3-1 defeat away to Crystal Palace. Balotelli had proved himself unwilling or unable to lead the press. Rickie Lambert didn’t seem mobile enough to do so. Rodgers turned over ideas in his mind, sustained only by tea and toast. He kept thinking back to the 1-0 defeat against Basel earlier in the season, when an injury to Behrang Safari led them to switch to a back three. Basel’s new shape caused Liverpool, operating a 4-2-3-1, major problems.

Tags: Brendan Rodgers Chelsea Football Football tactics Liverpool Sport