By Edward Pham

Photos by Mark Gordon Murray and Diego Diaz

Video Highlights by MLSSoccer.com

4-2-3-1 vs. 4-4-2

MLS has, for the most part, adapted to the 4-2-3-1. With teams having playmakers, it’s the best way to really allow them to have the freedom to do what they need to do in order to make an impact on the game. It’s why the Portland Timbers have been so adamant about running it. Dallas does as well… Except not as much this season. With Mauro Diaz on the road to recovery from his ACL tear, they’ve had to improvise. Sometimes, running a 4-2-3-1 with someone else taking over Diaz’s role, but much of the time, it has been a 4-4-2 that’s seen success.

However, one of the reasons why 4-2-3-1 came into prominence was due to its ability to stifle the 4-4-2. With an extra “band” that allows the attacking midfielders play in between the defense and midfield of the 4-4-2, it gives the time they need to make crucial offensive plays.

This game turned out to be an opportunity to see both systems against one another. It also showed why 4-2-3-1 surpasses 4-4-2 tactically.

One-on-one on the wings

If there’s a weakness for the 4-2-3-1, it’s how the outside backs defend against the outside midfielders in the 4-4-2. A lot of the time, they’re forced into one-on-one situations. Sometimes, it can be one-vs-two situations if the wingers in the 4-2-3-1 don’t come back to help. If they do come back, then they’re not being as effective on the attack.

In the case with this game, Dallas could exploit either Sebastian Blanco or Dairon Asprilla not tracking back by having either Roland Lamah or Michael Barrios go one-on-one against Portland’s Vytas and Zarek Valentin. Hernan Grana and Aaron Guillen would be able to support them as well as needed, which if Portland didn’t respond, it would mean more numbers.

Whenever that FC Dallas were able to get a chance, because of the lack of numbers on the wing, it happened due to a 1v1 situation on the wing. On the play that resulted in Valentin having to make a goal-line clearance, it started with Maxi Urruti finding Barrios running into the box and Lamah being able to make the run towards goal and leave Valentin on the wrong side of him.

Valeri, Blanco, and Asprilla exploit spaces

Going back to the 4-2-3-1 and its strengths, being able to exploit the spaces between the defense and midfield is a key part to winning this game. Whether it was via a counterattack or through off-the-ball movement, the Timbers kept finding space in front of the backline.

Part of the credit to this goal was the Timbers catching Dallas out of position on the turnover. However, credit to Blanco for his heads-up play here. He pinched inside and forced the Dallas defense to make a decision: Do you challenge him or do you let him do as he wishes with the ball? Blanco punished them for being too indecisive. When Atiba Harris finally steps to the ball, Blanco makes through ball to Fanendo Adi and he scores an impressive goal.

Asprilla does the same thing. Rather than always stay out wide right, he occasionally tucks in centrally. Guillen and the center-backs don’t respect his movement, so Valeri plays a quick give and go with Asprilla, who forced Jesse Gonzalez to make the save.

The three attacking midfielders kept roaming around the field and forcing FC Dallas to make these difficult decisions. Valeri sometimes dropped deeper and one of the two wingers comes into his space. Do the center-backs cover Valeri or do the central midfielders cover him and concede space in front of the goal? Keep in mind that Adi is being occupied by the defense too. This proved to be a problem that Pareja didn’t address, as the Timbers found space behind Carlos Gruezo and Victor Ulloa throughout the game.

Particularly with Asprilla, he was able to exploit the spaces behind Guillen. That resulted in five created chances by himself. Dallas on the day had five total.

Dallas Can’t Handle Adi

To put it bluntly, Adi was a complete pest for the Dallas defense. He would be roaming all over the field. One moment, he drops deep, another time he’s right next to the center-backs. Timbers would play direct, Dallas gave him time with the ball, and he’d do something like this:

His physicality would create problems, as neither Hume nor Harris were able to nullify his hold-up play or attacking presence. Even if they did, he managed to score despite falling over in the process. While both Zimmerman and Hedges were out this game, Atiba Harris and Walker Hume are both sizable defenders. They didn’t do much to frustrate the big striker and because of it, he was able to create shots and score two goals.

All credit to Adi for his play though. He was rewarded with another brace in the process. If he can continue to put his frustrations aside when opposing defenders try to play physical with him through more diverse play, he should be able to score like this more regularly.

Pareja’s Approach Wasn’t Wrong… Just Hard to Execute

Despite logging only two shots in the first half, you could tell that Oscar Pareja wanted to be direct. Simply put, use their attacking players’ pace to get past this backline and score. It made sense. Portland’s backline wasn’t exactly fast. Particularly with that chance that resulted in the goal-line clearance. Especially once Liam Ridgewell and Roy Miller left the game due to injuries, you could exploit the lack of pace in the backline through a simple through ball to one of your attacking players. Recover the ball, play it quickly to your attack, and score a goal. Easy right?

Executing this though was the challenge without a true playmaker. With two holding midfielders present to challenge the ball in dangerous positions and help clog up passing lanes, the Timbers could intercept passes. They finished the game with 24 interceptions. The Timbers were then able to transition and create chances.

In a 4-4-2, it’s hard sometimes to be able to do that because (1) you get outnumbered in the midfield and have less space to make plays and (2) you have to be wary of your positioning. If your midfield is too high, you concede the space behind you. Play too deep and players will have time to do as they please with the ball. You don’t have that flexibility as you would with 4-2-3-1.

What If Diaz Played?

In the brief time that Mauro Diaz was on the field, you could see the problems he creates a playmaker. His vision and ability to find the final pass was impressive. Particularly in the play that saw Cristian Colman shoot well wide of goal, Diaz’s ability to make that decision with such poise was what left Portland scrambling. It’s why Dallas missed him so much and why he’s so valued. It could have been a completely different story had Diaz been healthy and starting.

Final Thoughts

Credit to Porter and the staff here for preparing the team as well. Injuries forced them to change defensive midfielders three times and have two completely different center-backs by the end of the game, which is unheard of. But that’s part of the preparation of such a system: Having each player understand the various roles and be able to execute them properly.

Particularly in the MLS, where your roster size is very limited in terms of talent and money, versatile players are important because of injuries and international duty. In the case here with Amobi Okugo and Lawrence Olum moving from defensive mid to central defender midway through the game and Zemanski coming in too while keeping a clean sheet, that’s huge props towards the coaching staff and the players. It’s a testament to the Timbers’ depth.

Caleb Porter did a good job of instructing his team with the tactics that they had against FC Dallas. Exploit the spaces, clog up the passing lanes to prevent Dallas from getting anything going, and you’ll be rewarded. They executed it well and it proved to be one of their best games of the season, despite losing both center-backs to injuries. Seeing 4-2-3-1 in action against a 4-4-2 typically will favor the former. More flexibility with player position helped exploit 4-4-2’s inability to cover the space in between the “bands” properly. And in this case, it gave Portland the three points at Providence Park.

What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts about this game and why the game went the way it did.



Ed Pham is a Portland Timbers contributor that loves to talk tactics. He can be found on Twitter at @edpham, covering the Portland Timbers, Arsenal, Olympique Lyonnais, and Ligue 1.

