3-2-2-3 (WM)

WM formation

The WM formation, named after the letters resembled by the positions of the players on its diagram, was created in the mid-1920s by Herbert Chapman of Arsenal to counter a change in the offside law in 1925. The change had reduced the number of opposition players that attackers needed between themselves and the goal-line from three to two. This led to the introduction of a centre-back to stop the opposing centre-forward, and tried to balance defensive and offensive playing. The formation became so successful that by the late 1930s most English clubs had adopted the WM. Retrospectively, the WM has either been described as a 3–2–5 or as a 3–4–3, or more precisely a 3–2–2–3, reflecting the letters which symbolise it. The gap in the centre of the formation between the two wing halves and the two inside forwards allowed Arsenal to counter-attack effectively. The WM was subsequently adapted by several English sides, but none could apply it in quite the same way Chapman had. This was mainly due to the comparative rarity of players like Alex James in the English game. He was one of the earliest playmakers in the history of the game, and the hub around which Chapman’s Arsenal revolved. In 2016, new manager Patrick Vieira, a former Arsenal player, brought the WM formation to New York City FC.[6] In Italian football, the WM formation was known as the sistema, and its use in Italy later led to the development of the catenaccio formation.[7] The WM formation was used by West Germany during the 1954 FIFA World Cup.[8] It antedates Pozzo’s Metodo and made more radical changes to the widely used system of that era: the 2-3-5 formation.

3–2–4–1

Manager Pep Guardiola used this formation at moments in his time at Manchester City, using one main centre-back and two defensive midfield anchors.[74] It begins as a typical 4-2-3-1 formation, but differs in attack, with the left or right half-back sliding into a defensive midfield position, and a defensive midfielder sliding up to create the “4” in midfield. The formation helped Manchester City to win the UEFA Champions League in the 2022-23 season.