Average Stoke and ‘Outverted’ Centre Backs

It was Tuesday night, but it wasn’t rainy or in Stoke. Perhaps Lionel Messi would have been able to hack it? Instead, it was South Yorkshire where the recently relegated side visited high flying Sheffield United. You would have been forgiven for getting confused between which side had recently been in the Premier League for ten years, though, and which had spent but one season in England’s top flight since the mid 90s.

Stoke were a curious side to watch. They bristle with individual talent but none of it seems to really gel. James McClean managed a few mazy dribbles, Joe Allen fired in a clever free kick to equalise and Benik Afobe was a nuisance, but none of the Potter’s finer talents ever seemed to be pulling together. This was further exacerbated by the anonymity of Saido Berahino, and the unique enigma of Tom Ince; a player who is obviously incredibly talented but at the same time, does very little of any use.

The cliché term of ‘a great side on paper’ is painstakingly appropriate to them. Allen and McClean could potentially still do a job in the Premier League, Jack Butland is an international keeper and Afobe is one the most highly rated strikers in the Championship. Yet none of it really seems to fit together. No style is evident, there isn’t a way of playing or tactical system that is particularly adhered towards. A big lad up front with a little lad behind him, two good dribblers on the wing and a guy who can pass in midfield. Simplistic ingredients but ones not held together by any particular identity.

Sheffield United, on the other, were pretty much the polar opposite. They are generally a band of misfits, players who you wouldn’t usually expect to be at the top of most manager’s recruitment lists. It all seems to click together rather nicely, though.

Chris Wilder has implemented an intriguing 3-4-1-2 system. Pretty uniquely, the wide centre backs bomb forwards like full backs down the channels and into midfield. It’s a very clever system that helps United create overloads in midfield. It also does a great job of catching out defences down the flanks, as one of the Blades’ centre backs makes a dash for the byline. ‘Outverted’ centre backs?

Part of what makes the system so effective is how well every member of the team understands it. Every player on the pitch knows their role and how to carry it out. The execution is perfect, and it’s clear to see why Sheffield United have had such a (previously) unexpected excellent start to the season. Indeed, they dominated Stoke for much of the game.

The main drawback in Wilder’s side was, however, painstakingly revealed with the help of the Potters. While United had dominated Stoke, they struggled to apply that bit of gold dust and goalscoring nouse in the final third. The front two consisted of the strong and technical David McGoldrick, and general nuisance Leon Clarke. Mark Duffy sat behind them, helping to unpick the Stoke defence with his tidy and smart play. What stood out, though, is that all three men appeared to be more ‘support’ attackers, rather than proper goal getters. United do have an experienced goal getter in Billy Sharp, but the Sheffield native is now 32 and was understandably rested midweek.

Stoke, meanwhile, boast some more stellar players who can pull it out of the bag very suddenly. And Joe Allen did just so. The Welshman is a classy player, particularly at Championship level. He did well to spot the space on the outside of an arguably undermanned wall from a free kick, and showed he possessed the class to exploit it. The Potters may well work pretty poorly as a team, but they do have players can, as previously mentioned, just pull it out of the bag.

Even though they struggled to finish, it was very easy to admire Sheffield United. They executed their system with excellence and fluency. Their lack of premier quality may hold them back at times this season, but they can still hope to keep themselves at least in contention for the playoffs. If Stoke get their act together, they will be one of the most dangerous sides in the league. For now, though, it’s hard to see them making much of a push towards the top six.