Beavis Danzig wrote:arnie would have to spend most of his time on the left to cover for carroll who will never get back in time to give cresswell any protection or link ups. at that point it becomes a defacto 343.
this is why the 352 ideas don't work unless you've got two pacey strikers who can peel off to cover their respective flank. they can't just both goal hang while your midfield gets hammered. hernandez would spend just as much time wide as he would in a 343.
it's such a pointless thing to keep going on about. if you want hernadez to stay central, you need two players who can run the channels, cover their full/wingback and link up the play in wide areas alongside him. carroll isn't that.
either that or play a 1980s 442 and surrender central midfield entirely.
I think pointless is a bit strong old chap. I think it's a legit call to make with the players available.
With regards to worrying about the flanks, I elgant agree it's critical in a 352 formation to want your central Strikers to keep falling back to the wings to support the defence. That's what the wingbacks and the defence is for. Sure they're welcome to help out along the front line when defending but they don't need to be dropping deep and out wide. it's why we'd have 3 central midfielders about for that kind of thing also to cover and help out defensively. That said, I'll always be a fan of the 343 currently and won't have much of an issue playing it. Just thinking of another way to play the likes of Hernandez, Carroll, Arnautovic and Antonio without losing the shape and solidity as a team at the back.