Everton's Midfield Implementation In A 4-4-2
A look at the in possession roles and patterns seen under new manager Scott Phelan
Scott Phelan was appointed manager of Everton Women at the beginning of February. He has set the team up in a 4-4-2 formation with a flat midfield four.
This post will take a look at how The Toffees differed in the orientation of their two central midfielders against West Ham and Tottenham, and the implications of having a right footed left midfielder.
Honoka Hayashi & Clare Wheeler vs West Ham
Against West Ham, Hayashi and Wheeler were the two central midfielders.
When Everton had possession in their defensive third, Hayashi’s role was to position in deep central areas.
This ensured that Everton had a deep midfield option, and it provided coverage in a valuable area if Everton were to lose possession.
Hayashi’s positioning allowed Wheeler to be aggressive with her positioning, runs and ability to join the attack.
In the clips below, Hayashi (the deep central presence) is highlighted in yellow. Wheeler (the assertive midfield role) is highlighted in black.
Rosa van Gool & Aurora Galli vs Tottenham
Against Tottenham, van Gool and Galli were the central midfielders.
In this game, the two midfielders had more shared responsibility than in the previous game.
The role of each midfielder was dependent on where the ball was and which midfielder was closer (ball side) and which midfielder was further away (opposite side).
Whoever was the ball side midfielder had more freedom to position at different angles to provide support. This midfielder also had the ability to make forward runs and join the attack.
The opposite side midfielder was tasked with providing a central presence.
In the clips below, the ball side midfielder is highlighted in black and the opposite side midfielder is highlighted in yellow.
Right Footed Left Midfielder Ornella Vignola
As seen in the previous lineups, Vignola lines up as the left wide midfielder.
She is a right footed player playing on the left side which means that her natural tendency to be on her right foot takes her inside.
When she does go on the dribble inside, this pulls the opposition to her physically as they step to her and also mentally as they focus in on the player with the ball.
Everton have been able to take advantage of this moment by providing a contrasting push (a run behind lines) to Vignola’s pull.
Photo: Getty Images