Ashley Young: The Missing Link For England In 4-3-3

In a recent article ‘Fabio Capello Must Ditch 4-4-2 To Give England And Rooney a Chance,’ I argued that Capello should play Wayne Rooney alone up front, supported by three advanced midfielders and two deep lying holding players in the fashion of the top sides in the Champions League.

Last week Jose Mourinho’s Inter side knocked out Chelsea with a master class in this type of football.

Mourinho played Esteban Cambiasso and Thiago Motto as the dual holding players screening the back four. Samuel Eto’o led the line as the lone centre forward, supported by Diego Milito and Goran Pandev in wide advanced positions.

Playing behind Eto’o and ahead of Cambiasso and Motto, Wesley Sneijder excelled in linking the defensive midfield with the forwards and dictating the tempo of the game.

It wasn’t very pretty, but it was absorbing, accomplished and most importantly, it was effective. Inter are through to the next round, Chelsea are out.

You need top quality players in numerous positions to pull off this type of performance. Inter required their centre backs Walter Samuel and Lucio to shackle the usually devastating Didier Drogba and remove not only his individual threat, but also restricting the role he performs in bringing others into the play.

Full backs Maicon and Javier Zanetti played Chelsea’s wide forwards Florent Malouda and Nicolas Anelka out of the game and substituted the width that Inter lacked with no orthodox wide midfielders.

Samuel Eto’o had the pace, strength, and skill required to play up front alone without becoming isolated, but the key man was without doubt Sneijder, turning in a world class performance in the hole behind Eto’o.

England do not have the same myriad attacking options enjoyed by World Cup favourites Spain and Brazil. What they do have is the players to field a flexible team set up to absorb the pressure they will be under against such opponents before attempting to hit them on the counter.

Much has been made of England’s injury problems at the back, but the defence should pick itself based on form and availability.

David James is too old, he has been injured all season at a doomed club and was hardly Mr. Reliable in his prime, he should be discounted.

Joe Hart is the nation’s in-form goalie and the bravado of youth may help him avoid the curse of hesitancy that has befallen Paul Robinson, Ben Foster, and Scott Carson in previous outings.

Rob Green is talented and has the experience that Hart lacks. The No. 1 jersey is between them.

Hopefully, Ashley Cole will recover and be match fit by June, but that may be a big ask. England cannot afford a passenger at left back in this formation and unless he is 100 percent, the spot should go to Stephen Warnock or Leighton Baines, depending on who is in better form. My shout is for Warnock and I will explain why later.

Rio Ferdinand and John Terry are the obvious choices at centre back and England need at least one to be fit.

If both are missing, the next in line are the capable but ponderous Matthew Upson and the talented but mentally questionable Jolean Lescott. If they must be paired together, England are in trouble.

The injuries that have plagued Ledley King and Jonathon Woodgate should be cursed by England fans as much as they are by those of Spurs, as both would be worthy deputies to Terry and Ferdinand.

Glenn Johnson is in pole position for right back and his pace and attacking instincts are crucial to the 4-3-3. If he is missing, Wes Brown and Micah Richards vie for the spot.

If he is not required at right back, Brown could be preferable to Upson or Lescott as a replacement centre back. He has the experience at the highest level that both lack.

With an array of talent to call upon, the midfield is England’s greatest strength. In a 4-3-3 with two holding players, Michael Carrick and Gareth Barry are the obvious choices to sit and screen.

Owen Hargreaves, inspiring in the role in 2006, played 45 minutes for Manchester United reserves in mid-week and is a dark horse to make the squad. Nigel Reo-Coker, Steve Sidwell and Scott Parker are the fall back options.

If Rooney is to be on his own up front, three players are required to assist him, two out wide and one in the hole.

Having solved the dilemma of making Gerrard and Lampard function in the same team, Capello will be loathe to leave one out. Lampard is the natural choice behind Rooney, replicating his role for club.

Fortunately, Gerrard is able to play wide, because Lampard would struggle on either flank.

Gerrard has been played left-ish by Capello in a 4-4-2, but in my 4-3-3 he would be wide right, cutting in to support Rooney and tracking back in a replica of the hybrid role his team mate Dirk Kyut excels in for his club.

This leaves England’s long running problem position of left flank. Although England still lack a true left winger, they have a number of options in this position.

Ashley Young has shown great promise for Aston Villa but has struggled in a 4-4-2 for England. If he is pushed into a more advanced role on the left of Rooney, this could replicate the role he plays for Villa and may bring the best out of him.

If Stephen Warnock replaces Cole at left back, his understanding with team mate Young would be a bonus.

Another candidate for wide left is Joe Cole, who played there in 2006 and should be on the plane now that David Beckham is out.

Stewart Downing has never shone for England on the left flank under McClaren and Erikson, while Aaron Lennon and Theo Walcott might struggle trying to cut inside on the wrong wing.

One alternative is to retain Gerrard on the left side of the forward three and play any of Young, Lennon, Walcott, Milner or Cole on the right.

The third option is a more attacking one, to be deployed when the threat from the opposition is not deemed to be so great as to require two dedicated holding players. It could also be used when England are behind and obliged to attack.

Only one of Carrick or Barry would be retained in front of the back four. Lampard would remain central, with any of the previous combinations of Young, Walcott, Lennon or Cole flanking him.

Gerrard could then be pushed in advance of the attacking three, playing directly behind Rooney, replicating his role behind Fernando Torres that proves so effective for Liverpool when both are fit.

This is the option England should turn to when they need a goal, rather than throwing on a substandard striker such as Heskey or Crouch, who I believe will only encourage the midfield and defence to pump the ball long in the age-old fashion of an England team under pressure.

The 4-3-3 I am proposing relies on a number of variables, particularly the fitness of key players.

Perhaps more challengingly, it will also require England to play comfortably under pressure and to choose effectively between retaining possession at a low tempo and then springing the counter when the time is ripe (something England teams of the past have proven violently allergic to).

The majority of the players I have mentioned perform the roles that would be required of them as second nature for their respective clubs.

They must be convinced that they are capable of doing so while wearing the Three Lions in order to avoid another exit at a major tournament while chasing the ball.