'It allows our players to play in areas of the pitch they feel most confident in': Danny Cowley defends his Portsmouth playing system

The head coach’s preference for operating with a back three has come under increased scrutiny of late, with his team slipping to 12th.

While the formation was employed successfully in the second part of their recent 10 game unbeaten league run, Pompey have now lost form and momentum.

Former left-back Lee Brown believes the system has impacted on the effectiveness of Ronan Curtis, while Sean Raggett’s distribution in Monday night’s defeat to Charlton was questioned.

However, Cowley remains firmly behind his present gameplan.

He told The News: ‘I know formations get analysed in football, probably over-analysed in my opinion, the truth is football is a really fluid game.

‘People call it a 3-5-2, but the truth is that in possession it’s a certain formation in your own half, then it’s a different formation in the attacking half.

‘Our formation in possession in the attacking half is a 3-1-6 actually, whereas in our defensive half the numbers are slightly different.

‘Against the ball, when the opponent has it, we like to press with a front five. When we are defending in our own half, we like to defend with a back five.

‘I will let other people over-analyse formations, our job is to try to pick the right partnerships, the right relationships, and get players in the area of the pitch that they feel happiest.

‘I think it’s a formation which allows our players to play in the areas of the pitch they feel most confident in.

‘On Monday, Charlton went man-to-man all over the pitch and left Sean (Raggett) on the ball.

‘He’s had a good season to date, I think he has played well in a back four and a back three,

‘I don’t see him so much on the sides of the back three, but certainly the middle of the back three is a position he can play.’

Pompey have netted four goals in their last seven league fixtures, putting them among the lowest scorers in their division.

Now they head to sixth-placed Oxford United, who last weekend won 7-2 at Gillingham.

Cowley added: ‘There should be goals in this system because it allows us to get two forwards on the pitch and another attacking player.

‘In terms of the offensive players we’ve had on the pitch, we went to Sunderland and there was Reeco, who we class as an attacking player, Marcus Harness, Tyler Walker and Ronan Curtis.

‘We were not short of attacking players on the pitch in that game and I don’t think we have been in other matches using that system.

‘We have been short of goals, so naturally when your team is short of goals the manager gets criticised. I accept that – and it’s our job to try to find solutions.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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