................................................. TEAM ENIGMA .................................................................................................... TEAM P-NUT .................................................
TEAM ENIGMA
Formation: 4-3-3 / 4-2-3-1
Defence:
Marshaled by no other than the great Franco Baresi we have two full backs that are able to contribute going forward in Dani Alves and Jan Heintze. Heintze was important part of hugely successful PSV side that won the European cup in 88' and 9 domestic titles when the Eredivisie was successful league packed with talent. Perfumo plays in his natural role as a classic stopper next to Baresi.
Midfield:
Makelele anchors the defence in a role that he made an entire football community to name after him. Matthaus is at the heart of the midfield with his great motor and in classic B2B role, able to impact both phases of the play. Zico spearheads the midfield in the attacking midfield role, offering playmaking, creativity and ability to score ton of goals.
Attack:
Figo and Stoichkov are one of the most notable wingers in the game, able to be a creative outlet working their magic out wide, cut in and score important goals or find Law in the box with their pinpoint accurate crosses. Speaking of Law, he blends in the team style seamlessly with his hardworking style, grit, determination and be our first line of defence harassing the opposition defenders and forcing them into a mistake. Our forward line is pretty industrious and in Stoichkov/Figo's case they are able to help the midfield and also their full backs in case the opposition tries to go wide.
Advantages:
Biggest one is playing against a sheep keeper. Jose Porras was a Costa Rican keeper who couldn't even break into his local team Saprissa until their main man Erick Lonnis retired. Porras will face one of the very best attackers in the game, but couple of things also needs to be underlined - Zico, Stoichkov, Matthaus and Figo possess one of the most accurate strikes from distance and are dangerous both inside and outside the box. Especially in Zico and Stoichkov case they scored numerous goals with accurately placed shots outside the penalty area and would provide a ton of pressure on an inexperienced keeper in all time sense. On top of that we have Law's prowess in the air and positional ability in the box supplied with the creative force of our wingers and Matthaus/Zico core combo.
Central core and midfield:
P-nut team looks top heavy from initial drafting and midfield is where we can exert control over the proceedings of the game. We have a central core that is able to provide a wall for our central defence in Makelele and Matthaus, but in addition to that we have very hard working forwards and generally winger duo that is able to shorten the time and space for the opposition attack.
Attack:
The opposition boasts with some really impressive names in terms of attacking output, but our attack is really no pushovers. 4 of our front 6 are ballon D'or winners (Law, Figo, Stoichkov and Matthaus), and considering the challenge in oppositions defence (either forced to play another sheep in Lalas, play three at the back or push Bonhof in a bit more uncomfortable role as a RB in a back four) we have the ability to outnumber and isolate the opposition defence in one on one scenarios or even numerical advantage where we can capitalize.
In the middle of the pitch Zico / Matthaus combo is too hot to handle for the opposition, especially if that base needs to cover either wide or for the defence, leaving pockets of space that we can exploit.
TEAM P-NUT:
Defence is rather self explanatory. Cole and Thuram covering the width and Cannavaro marshaling the middle. Was important to get Cole at the end as I needed a defence first defender and he should slot in nicely.
The next line has the German duo with plenty of stamina to shuttle up and down and link defence and attack, both excellent ball players whilst never shirking their defensive duties should add a balance to a notoriously difficult formation to balance.
The 2 AMs should thrive here, Iniesta the pass master in his perfect position where he can drift out wide when CR comes in off his flank. Mazzola has another playmaker alongside him which allows him to be the breaker from midfield and get in and around the box sniffing out goals like he did throughout his career.
Front line CR and Muller take up their renowned positions and the only one that likely needs explaining is Park on the right. It again brings balance to the formation with Muller and CR having low defensive responsibilities, Park will work as hard as ever to help the midfield and defence on transitions.
