What is the best formation for a football team?

The football season is in full swing. Managers are starting to understand their best teams after the end if the transfer window and the shape of the season to come is upon us. The two Manchester clubs have carried the best form into the international break and sit neck and neck at the top of the league. Pep Guardiola has gone for the style that brought him unheralded success at Barcelona while Jose Mourinho across the city is straying a little from the defensive formula that has followed him throughout his career.

The formations that these two coaches have chosen is the most interesting aspect of the season so far. The signing of Nemanja Matic was the sign that Mourinho was going to cover his defence with a defensive midfielder or two. Pep spent a lot of his summer budget on fullbacks, to go back to the formation that he worked so well at Barcelona – also with a central defensive midfielder ahead of the back four.

There are so many different ways of setting out your team and the ideas of the big managers differ wildly – and not just in the Premier League. Think about how these guys set up their team –

• Antonio Conte
• Zinedine Zidane
• Jurgen Klopp
• Diego Simeone

It looks like both of these managers have a similar formation of 4-2-3-1 and this is the success of the season so far. The Chelsea surge in the league last season was built on three centre backs, wings backs and Ngolo Kante covering. Other teams followed suit. This season four-at-the-back is back in vogue.

The football fan and formations

Social442 is the perfect website to test out the formations you would use for your club and all the big teams in the leagues. Whether you agree or disagree with Pep and Jose, you can try out the different formation with the Social442 Football Formation Creator and have hours of fun in the process.

Think that you can do better than the top two? Give it a go. Have some ideas to help our crystal Palace at the bottom of the league? Well, I’m sure Roy Hodgson will appreciate your help.

But Social442 is about far more than the Formation Creator. You can keep up with all the latest news in the beautiful game. Don’t miss a beat with Social442.

Check it all out at https://www.social442.com/football-news

What the Manchester derby told us about the state of the game in Manchester

It was derby time in Manchester last night. I have spent the week in the city looking at the state of the game here and how the future looks for the two clubs. It could be looked at as a game in the middle of a crisis in the footballing city.Going into the game there has been much criticism-

• Manchester United lost 4-0 to Chelsea on Sunday after a poor showing at Liverpool the week before
• Jose Mourinho has spoken about his unhappiness living in the city
• Pep Guardiola's City went into the match on a streak of 5 games without a win
• The old guard of Vincent Kompany and Sergio Aguero seem to be out of favour

But in and around the city of Manchester you couldn't sense any panic or even much frustration towards the clubs or the players.These are generally proper football fans that love their club, are happy with the success that they have had but don't feel as though they are entitled to it. Contrast that to the glory-hunting Manchester United fan from other parts of the country and the globe. The fact that the United fans were still out-singing the Chelsea home support while being 4-0 down in Sunday shows that these are people who know their football and love their club.

Near the Old Trafford stadium I spoke to Mike, a United fan that sees a future that doesn't look as rosy as the recent past but will still support the club all the same.

"I can see us going down the same route as Liverpool did after their domination. Football goes in cycles and they have not really been near to winning the title again in over 25 years. I'd like to see them up there challenging for titles with us, but losing out to us every time! We have a future where we could go down the same road. I see Mourinho as a manager that could go one way or another. He could stay for 15 years and we could go on a run of winning trophies every year again or he could end up braking the club. It is a bit of a crossroads," said Mike.

The game does move on and it would be difficult to reliably predict what the future holds for the club. The longer they are out of the Champions League then the more they have to spend in wages to attract the big starts and the less likely it is that they will get another Cristiano Ronaldo or even another David De Gea.Mourinho is a gamble that the Glazers thought they just had to make after the failures of David Moyes and Louis van Gaal. Where the club goes from here is in his hands.

On the other side of the divide is the light blue half of Manchester. The game last night ended in defeat so Pep Guardiola is facing probably his worst managerial crisis - six games without a win. After the amazing start to the season not many would have predicted this but it is happening. In the club shop on Market Street they are selling those detested half-and-half scarves and training tops with the Champions League logo alongside merchandise from their sister clubs in New York, Yokohama and Melbourne. This is big business.

But without the players to enact his tactical game, and in possible the wrong league and conditions to do it, Pep is fining managerial life tough for probably the first time. It is not a full-blown crisis and it won't cost him his job but clearly there is work to do.

I spoke to Peter who lives and works in the city. He didn't buy into the Guardiola project but backs the club to get it right, "It will take time. He can't turn all of these Premier League players into La Liga players overnight. It looks like tactically he knows what he wants but the players aren't quite there yet. Maybe in a few months we will look back on this as part of the transition. I certainly hope so."

That was before the match. That was before the defeat in the derby. Although it was 'only' the EFL Cup and there were run outs for some players that were not in the usual first team it will still hurt. Manchester City's owners have bankrolled the club to deliver success and this current run of form and a tame loss to their neighbours isn't part of the blueprint.

What happens next really is down to Pep.

Who will be the big movers in the January transfer window?

We are edging towards the January transfer window and clubs will have already set budgets, discussed targets and made init enquiries about how they wish to recruit. With a few "big" clubs underachieving and untold riches available for staying in the Premier League, I expect a considerable amount of money to be spent. Here I take a look at the major recruiters in January and where I expect them to splash the cash.

Chelsea

The champions have has a dreadful start to the season, and Jose Mourinho is no stranger to spending his club owners money. They have looked weak in defence and long-term replacements for John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic are needed. With Diego Costa looking injury-prone and neither Loic Remy nor Radamel Falcao cutting the mustard I can see a move for a striker - especially of they can offload Falcao back to Monaco.

Newcastle

Although Steve McClaren has stated that he's happy with the current squad, the loss of Tim Krul is a massive blow. A quality keeper is worth 10 points per season, and this could be the difference between survival and relegation this year. I'd expect them to look for a short-term option, someone like Victor Valdes, as Krul will be number one choice again when he's fit.

Sunderland

After another terrible start to a season and another managerial change I would expect some Big Sam wheeling and dealing in the transfer window. There will undoubtedly by some players leaving and others coming in, but the true nature of who comes in is dependent on who leaves. Expect some of the older players such as Wes Brown and Jermain Defoe to leave and some defenders to come in.

Aston Villa

Another big club with a new manager and an awful season to date. Villa haven't spent much for a long time now and, like Sunderland, I can't see loads of players coming in unless loads of players leave. But they have to improve immediately if they are to have any hope of statyng up.

These won't be the only teams that need strengthening in January but are the ones that stand out to me as the most likely at the moment. But all it takes is an injury for a team to suddenly see a gaping hole where that they think needs filling with an expensive player.

Watch this space!

I've found another gem in Soccer 360 magazine

So much is said and written about football. Newspapers have column inches to fill, Sky have built a media empire on its shoulders and websites churn out tens of thousands of words every week. What Dave Gorman refers to as "the bottom half of the internet" is awash with comment, banter and abuse. And all of this is before we start to scratch the surface of social media and all that is written there about the game we love. In some places, what is written is poor quality, derivate and offers nothing different.

In Off The Post looks for something different is this game we love. And I think I’ve found another gem.

I used to read Shoot and Match magazines when I was a kid, with basic short articles on players with an interesting story, and the back portion full of adverts including the obligatory Steve Earl football programme collectors adverts.

Just like In Off The Post, Soccer 360 Magazine is different. It looks at the game with different eyes. The magazine focuses on producing quality work and its success continues to grow, as it has recently published the 60th issue, stretching back to 2006. Soccer 360 is a creatively designed magazine and offers a unique extra large format size at 9.5” x 13.5”. This gives you a bigger, better experience and every page is in full colour. Its reach is global as it is available for digital subscription via the app or shipped worldwide to print subscribers. This marks out Soccer 360 Magazine over the alternatives.  Soccer 360 Magazine features the best of Premier League, MLS, Serie A, Bundesliga, La Liga and all the other big leagues from around the world. Ongoing coverage includes the world’s biggest soccer events - the Champion’s League, Europa League, World Cup qualifying and Euro 2016.

http://www.soccer360magazine.com/

Football fans want coverage of the biggest and best events, they want it in colour and they want it featured with insight and quality. Step forward, Soccer 360 magazine into the limelight. The magazine is over 100 pages per issue and this gives the writers the space to include quality articles about the players, teams and other aspects of the game in full. Being a magazine that is well-established and truly global gives them the opportunity to access the best players and the biggest names in the game. The 60th edition features Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimovic , Paul Pogba and Jose Mourinho among others. This a wish list of the stars of world football for any reader and every issue is similarly jam-packed with the names of the game that you know and love (and sometimes loathe!)

If you are a discerning reader about football (and I would already assume that you are if you’re reading In Off The Post) then Soccer 360 Magazine is the one for you. I want to be able to bring something different to the readers of my blog every week and this magazine is another step in developing the ultimate football experience. Get in the know, get the app or subscribe to the magazine.

Check it out at-

http://www.soccer360magazine.com/

Does the game need "characters" or are we fine without them?

I've always seen quotes, usually in the tabloid press, that the game of football needs characters. That the likes of Mario Balotelli are "good for the game" as they keep up the interest level, create headlines and make the game more interesting. They say that the negative antics of Jose Mourinho where he attacks referees, other players, other managers and the authorities adds to the game because he is a character.

I completely disagree. I think that the phrase "bringing the game into disrepute" is wholly appropriate and I think that the lawmakers need to stamp down hard on all of these things.

I've been reading in my local newspaper this morning about Adam Johnson being arrested on suspicion of sex with a 15 year old girl. This man is a role model. With the outrageous riches he is paid, he owes the fans, his teammates, the club and the city a debt of representing them. I dread the conversation with my 8 and 6 year old boys when they ask why one of their favourite players is missing. When they ask why he's on Sky News instead of Sky Sports News.

I think that as a whole, football owes it's supporters. I don't expect all players to be angels all of the time but I don't think that it's too much to ask that they keep their heads down and work hard for the 15 to 20 years of the career, when they're paid huge sums of money to represent their club and fans.