Originally Posted by
Gogon
Yes, this is a very legitimate concern.
Yes! This is exactly right.
Two great observations here. One of the problems of playing with inverted wingers is if/when they drive to the byline by going outside their defender, they are on their less-favoured foot. In fact most inverted wingers are loathe to ever do this and it does dictate how you defend them.
The most stark example of this (for me) was the 2012 Champions League semi-final between Chelsea and Barca. A significantly inferior Chelsea side took away the channels and gave Barca the deep flanks. But Barca was so ill-equipped to hit crosses they looked confused and frustrated and were unable to adapt and take advantage of what was given to them. A great recent example was CMNT vs USMNT this past Sunday. The US team uses inverted wingers. Canada clogged the channels, intentionally hosted the match on a very narrow pitch, played with CBs who stand 6’5” and 6’3” with a GK at 6’5”. The US was welcome to take the ball deep and hit crosses, but not only did they not do so, they had no backup ideas either (a big criticism of Berhalter is his lack of tactical flexibility, and it was on full display).
So if Bob Bradley favours inverted wingers, we need to hope he has a tactical plan for when teams organize their defence appropriately. Typically this comes through deploying overlapping wingbacks who can go to the byline and be on their strong foot. But of course, your roster needs to be constructed to enable this. This is where a guy like Criscito perfectly compliments Insigne by lining up on the left side with him. But, it also makes Auro an non-option for filling in on the left side as he’s done on occasion. A legitiamte overlapping run, even if the ball isn’t played, pulls apart a compact defence.
Ever since the Richie transfer, I’ve been worried about this. We no longer have anyone who is a real threat as an overlapping right wingback. I’ve been expecting to hear a rumour about us sniffing around on this. But so far crickets. I love the roster additions Bradley has made and I love the ones who seem pending. But in order for Shaff to be killer on the right side, we do need a legitimate overlapping threat in behind him. I think we’re going to miss Richie a lot unless there is someone new coming.