That 4-3-3 and the choice of players for the 4-3-3 was a huge mistake....Still, most here were thrilled by the starting XI.
We badly miss Momo, Marchisio, Chiello and even Molinaro...
I was happy to see the 4-3-3, because our coach finally tried to change things up after so many poor results; unfortunately we’re missing some important pieces, and as happens too often, Claudio didn't pick a great starting XI. For me, Giovinco is crucial in this setup because he provides a speedy outlet to roam down that left flank; we're desperate for some pace at the moment. Seba is excellent at possessing the ball, and he can combine with, and create for others –after that initial 10 minute burst, we really couldn’t string two passes together that first half. Number 20 can put pressure on defenders in more ways than IQ can and I feel that he forces the other team to be more honest in their positioning. With Seba, we can set up a more controlled pressure, which slows our opponents counterattack.
Given the fact that we were missing half of an already weak starting back four, the 4-3-3 was not the way to go today. Alen is also right that Poulsen should have started ahead of Zanetti.
Still, with the wrong personnel in our 4-3-3 (which we basically never play), we created some decent pressure for the first 10 minutes, before conceding 1 offside, counterattacking goal. We then played a pathetically lackluster half, but didn't really allow Lecce to seriously threaten our goal again. We've certainly had a worse 45 minutes this season playing the 4-4-2 and I’ve certainly seen us play a very good game with a 4-3-3 this season (Chelsea, leg 2).
The 4-3-3 obviously didn't work out today, but neither has our 4-4-2 in awhile.
It really shouldn't be a huge deal to start with one formation, and switch to the other if the initial formation proves to be ineffective. Our team is struggling, and it's pretty clear that the issues run much deeper than our formation (even if it was the wrong formation today, given the absentees).
One last thing: people need to chill out a bit on De Ceglie; talk about a vitriolic reaction. He had a poor game, no doubt, but how many poor games have we endured from Moli (and yes, Molinaro is currently a better defender then DC, so save that angle for now), or Grygera? This is definitely the most tense/stressful time of our season (given all of the internal turmoil), and DC wasn't getting much support from his fellow defenders, or the midfield. So he's out of sync, nervous, and unprotected. What did everyone think would happen?
On that second goal, Zebina was totally out to lunch, gave the defender tons of space and all day to cross that ball into the middle; he froze completely flat footed, instead of closing on his man. Olof could only muster a two inch vertical, allowing the ball to pass directly over his head, and as we all saw, De Ceglie totally lost his mark. That goal was not 100% his fault, as some here contend. Three different defenders could have prevented that goal… which obviously highlights our biggest issue.
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