Choosing a Formation in Soccer

Lineups are the way a soccer team lines up their defense, midfield, and attacking line at the start of a match. If you want to become a technician, you can produce dozens of formations due to the mathematical possibilities and new ways that coaches are trying to devise to play the game.
Football is a smooth game where a midfielder can become a striker for five or ten minutes and then return to his original position. Or, similarly, the attacker can come back to defend.
When talking about formations, defenders are listed first and then midfielders and attackers. For example, a 4-4-2 formation includes four defenders, four midfielders, and two attackers. Goalkeepers do not count because they are the only position that has not changed over the years.
Just remember that the best coaches are not necessarily the ones who create the best formations, but rather the ones who create the best formation for their team to highlight their strengths and hide their weaknesses.

Football youth
In youth football, coaches should only introduce tactics after players have really learned the game – usually around the age of 14 players need time to develop, breathe and have fun.
For starters, football begins in much the same way. All players run after the ball or the player with the ball, like bees after honey. Slowly, but surely, they learn to find their own space and spread across the field.

4-4-2
England used a 4-4-2 method (see Figure 1) on their way to securing their first and only World Cup title in 1966. A striker was moved into midfield, putting more pressure on the players up front to score goals. . Having said that, 4-4-2 is one of the favorite formations in today’s modern game. The theory in using another midfield player is that he fills up the opponent in midfield before they can reach the offensive third.
This formation is a long shot to use consistently and successfully today because most coaches prefer to use five or even six midfield players.

4-3-3
Many North American Football League teams used the 4-3-3 method (see Figure 2) in the 1970s, moving a quarterback to the front position. Everything is relative. This formation, which uses a sweeper (safety free), is more defensive than a 4-2-4. But compared to today’s more cautious approach, 4-3-3 would be considered an offensive formation in some quarters.
4-2-4
The 4-2-4 formation (see Figure 3) is the most offensive of the modern era. The 1958 world champion Brazil, with 17-year-old Pele, made this strategy famous and made it work. To take advantage of this formation, you need to have skilled and talented midfielders and strikers to attack early and hold the ball for long periods of time because the pressure on the midfield and defense is a big time when opponents have possession of the ball.
3-5-2
Today’s match is won or lost in the midfield, which is why the 3-5-2 method is popular. A team that does not have a midfield operating at full capacity suffers in possession of the ball and the chances of scoring. Therefore, many coaches like to use up to five midfielders, although outside midfielders may have more defensive responsibilities than their teammates.

3-6-1
Many German teams use a 3-6-1 formation (see Figure 5) in road matches where they try to block the opponent in the midfield, in an effort to equalize or win.
This strategy can be dangerous. Former US national team coach Steve Sampson used this formation during the 1998 World Cup and failed miserably. Having mainly used the 4-4-2 method, Sampson used it two months before France 98, and it backfired, producing only one goal in three matches.
The coach should not drastically change the way the team is formed during a match, especially for young or inexperienced teams who may get confused. If the team is behind and trying to tie the match, taking out a midfielder for the attacker works. If a team is leading, replacing a midfielder with a defender and/or striker with a midfielder are also appropriate tactical steps.