Frank Lampard outlines his ‘ideal world’ Coventry City system & explains evolution of thinking on formations
Frank Lampard has explained exactly what has dictated the formation he chooses and what his “ideal world” system is for Coventry City as the squad evolves under his tenure.
The Sky Blues boss draws from his earlier experiences in management from starting out at fellow Championship side Derby County - next Tuesday's opposition - to taking charge of elite level squads in the Premier League with Chelsea and Everton.
Now back in the second tier, the 46-year-old started out with a back four but switched to a back three in a bid to stabilise results while also making in-game changes in the second halves of matches. And, in the last few games, Lampard has reverted to a system he hopes will produce a “nicer on the eye” brand of football, while also remaining “adaptable” to the circumstances of the day and opposition.
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The head coach is a real student of the game and spent his time out of management in between his second Chelsea stint and joining the Sky Blues visiting a number of coaches he admires, from lunch with Gareth Southgate and Roy Hodgson, to spending time at the training ground with Brentford’s Thomas Frank and an extended chat with Pep Guardiola.
Explaining what dictates each system since he’s been at City, Lampard said: “Player availability, the wingers. I feel like I came into a club that was transitioning from a back five squad into a back four. I think that’s true, it was happening.
“So when you have got the tools there I think one of the biggest things for a manager is first of all to pick the right players in the right positions in the right system to get the best out of them all.
“We found a point because of a few injuries that we had to go to a back three to find more solidity, but not to be a negative back three, but a positive one and drive the line and be compact. I enjoy those different sides of coaching.”
The availability of Ephron Mason-Clark, and now Haji Wright, both of whom are now back from injury, as well as the addition of Jamie Paterson – all of whom can play off the left – has provided balance to Tatsuhiro Sakamoto on the right.
Reflecting on systems he’s gravitated to in the past, he said: “I worked with a 4-3-3 at Derby, 4-3-3 mainly at Chelsea with a back three sometimes. Everton went to a back three so I have got a good understanding of the strengths of different systems, and it can be a strength that different teams don’t know where you’re coming from at different times.
“In an ideal world when we are all fit, like Saturday (at Oxford), I think you can see the back four and where we want to get to because it allows higher pressure up the pitch, which we want to have with an extra number up the pitch.
“And it is probably a nicer on the eye system because of the attacking players in the team, and we have got some, so we will just keep an eye on that as we go along; who’s available, what’s the opposition...
“But if we can keep focusing on our own principles and the players know (what they’re doing), and we keep it pretty simple with that, then I think we can be a bit adaptable but have an understanding of where we want to go regardless of system is my feeling.”
