Mastering the Art: Unveiling the Dynamic 'Box Midfield' Tactics Employed by Man City, Brighton, and Aston Villa

These are the finest passes a midfielder can execute, notable for their ability to bypass the opposing team's forward players. Rather than simply spreading the play with long 60-yard passes, this strategy effectively removes the opposing players from the game. It was during the Monday Night Football studio session that Jamie Carragher had to interrupt Gary Neville's commentary upon spotting a passing channel displayed on the new and impressive giant screen. This passing channel was a crucial element in Manchester City's build-up to their victorious goal against Newcastle last weekend.

The 10-yard pass involves players receiving the ball in strategic positions. They are positioned on the half-turn to maximize their awareness of the field. Defenders communicate by pointing and passing the ball to their teammates, sometimes without being aware of opponents lurking on their left or right side.

This is one of the reasons why highly skilled players who excel in these roles, possessing exceptional peripheral vision, can command transfer fees exceeding £100m. The game values the courage and ability of these influential individuals.

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Mateo Kovacic's skill in making accurate 10-yard passes was clearly displayed in Man City's goal that secured their victory. Possession is of utmost importance to Pep Guardiola, who is considered the innovator of the box midfield system with his use of inverted full-backs. Players like John Stones, Manuel Akanji, and Rico Lewis are deployed to drift towards the center, thereby establishing a favorable numerical superiority in that area.

Guardiola initially implemented this tactic at City, utilizing Aleksandar Kolarov and Bacary Sagna as central players in front of his center-backs. This strategic approach aimed to block, cover, and protect the central areas ahead of the defense.

In the current season, Mikel Arteta has adopted a similar approach at Arsenal. Thomas Partey is assigned a right-back role when the team is not in possession, allowing for an extra forward player, such as Kai Havertz. This tactic has proven reasonably effective, as Arsenal has managed to maintain control of possession and secure victories against Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace.

Not only the top teams in the league, but also other teams are adopting a different strategy to create space between the lines by using a box midfield. The specific players filling the four positions may vary. Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi and Aston Villa's Unai Emery have both found success in implementing this tactical trend during the first two weekends of the season.

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Aston Villa 4-0 Everton

Employing a box formation, Aston Villa showcased their tactical prowess in the midfield. With white balls representing the key players, namely Douglas Luiz (6), Boubacar Kamara (44), John McGinn (7), and Moussa Diaby (19), Villa Park became a battleground of skill and strategy. Everton, however, struggled to contend with Emery's astuteness, as the game unfolded according to the predetermined pattern right from the outset.

Moussa Diaby and John McGinn were assigned to play as No 10s, tasked with moving inside to create a box formation, while Boubacar Kamara and Douglas Luiz were positioned at the base.

Utilizing this strategy, Villa had a chance to score within the first 20 seconds. The ball was skillfully played out to Lucas Digne on the flank, who unfortunately had his shot blocked.

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Aston Villa's box midfield was visible from kick-off

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Villa played off their box midfield to get Leon Bailey in behind

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Everton's need to come narrow allowed space for Lucas Digne wide

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Digne's shot was eventually blocked by James Garner

Everton failed to learn from previous mistakes and ended up conceding the first of four goals when Diaby found himself unmarked behind their motionless midfield. Subsequently, Ashley Young found himself alone against Leon Bailey, while McGinn cleverly maneuvered past James Garner, slipped behind Michael Keane, and successfully connected with the cut-back to score.

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Villa's box midfield set up once more for the first goal

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Villa find the space in behind Everton's midfield

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McGinn is able to run unopposed into the Everton box

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James Garner fails to stay goal side of McGinn

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Wolves 1-4 Brighton

McGinn beats Michael Keane to find the net.

Wolves 1-4 Brighton

Brighton, on the other hand, managed to score four goals against Wolves, displaying a more dynamic formation in their box midfield.

Danny Welbeck and Julio Enciso moved into deeper positions, creating additional passing options for Pascal Gross and Billy Gilmour, who were both playing as No 6. This strategic positioning opened up space for Solly March to have more freedom in his attacking role, while Kaoru Mitoma stayed out wide.

Wolves, similar to Everton, failed to offer any response as their defense was consistently vulnerable. This vulnerability was a result of the gaps created, either between the center-backs allowing Mitoma to exploit and score a goal, or the space behind them where March was able to replicate his strikes twice in the second half.

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The No 10s create gap between the two Wolves centre-backs

How boxing the midfield can fail

The arrival of managers with their own philosophies is bound to result in some initial challenges.

Tottenham's first two games have yielded four points, leading to a renewed sense of optimism permeating through the Tottenham Hotspur stadium after the appointment of Ange Postecoglou.

Both of the Australian matches saw Tottenham's opponents having a higher total of expected goals. The strikes over the weekend against Manchester United involved fortuitous deflections, with the opposing team missing chances to take advantage of their rivals' errors. As highlighted by Neville on Monday, Angeball comes with a "high risk, high reward" approach.

One aspect of it witnessed in the win over United was the use of full-backs Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie in central positions.

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The graphic shows how Man Utd's high press caged Spurs' attempt at using inverted full-backs

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Pedro Porro was quickly put under pressure

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Man Utd went man-for-man in midfield but were bypassed more through dribbling

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Tottenham's two center-backs and full-backs are surrounded by James Maddison and Pape Sarr positioned further upfield. It has been noted that part of Spurs' success stemmed from the United midfield, comprising Casemiro, Mason Mount, and Bruno Fernandes, lacking the necessary dynamism, intensity, and, frankly speaking, familiarity to effectively operate as a unit of three.

On a different occasion, facing a stronger opponent with an improved high press, Tottenham's decision to position their full-backs deep in their own penalty area could have resulted in a contrasting outcome.

When Tottenham did find success in playing out from the back, it mainly involved utilizing Yves Bissouma, a skilled defensive midfielder adept at receiving the ball in restricted areas, to create separation between the two center-backs and entice the opposition to break through United's pressing.

Having the required skill is crucial to navigate through these areas. In Liverpool's eventual 3-1 victory over Bournemouth, Trent Alexander-Arnold was sacked, using American Football terminology, by Philip Billing just before Antoine Semenyo scored in the third minute.

If it hadn't been for Liverpool's front three's consistent scoring ability, as evident from their pre-season and previous matches, this mistake would have had much more severe consequences.

But plans are not easily abandoned after one system glitch. The addition of Japan midfielder Wataru Endo allows Jurgen Klopp to experiment with Alexander-Arnold as an inverted full-back in a 3-2-2-3 formation. This formation includes Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister as his two No 8s. It can be said that Trent now has his 'Fabinho' back, so once Endo is fully prepared, we can anticipate the return of the successful system and results that Klopp developed in the latter part of last season.

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Bournemouth scored their goal by dispossessing Trent Alexander-Arnold. As for Szoboszlai, he is familiar with playing in a box midfield, as he used to cut inside from the right flank for RB Leipzig under Marco Rose. The process of trial and error is an integral part of the reboot.

"We are pushing the limits of what we expect from full-backs," stated Neville. "If I were a full-back and received a pass inside my defensive third, I would feel vulnerable to an ambush."

Regarding Spurs specifically, Neville observed, "I believe there are weaknesses in their setup. During the early stages of the game, despite Tottenham being ahead 1-0, they could have easily been trailing 1-0 as United recognized Postecoglou's utilization of Porro and Udogie and applied pressure. This tactic almost resulted in two goals."

Getting out of the press allows you to move the ball into wider areas and engage in one-on-one situations, which is the ultimate reward. However, it seems that some coaches have taken the concept inspired by Pep Guardiola and transformed it into an ineffective strategy. There must be a reevaluation of the expectations we have for full-backs, as I firmly believe that the current situation involves taking a well-founded idea to an impractical extreme.

Brighton and Hove Albion

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Saturday 26th August 5:00pm

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In the defensive third, when a full-back is given a ball with surrounding players, the chances of them losing it are higher than retaining it, especially at this early stage of the season when managers are still assessing their players' capabilities.

Manchester City, Brighton, and Aston Villa stand out as the Premier League's top contenders in terms of well-coached teams. Their mastery of the box midfield playing style is evident and has breathed new life into the game, solidifying its place as a long-term fixture.