No defensive duty in midfield- when is it opportune?

[Bunkerossian]

Another question by me, as I attempt to make sense of formations I see employed by various people. Principles stated in many guides say there should be a defensive duty player in midfield. But I did see many successful formations with only Su and At duties on roles in midfield. When does doing so make sense?

[Dr. Hook]

Another question by me, as I attempt to make sense of formations I see employed by various people. Principles stated in many guides say there should be a defensive duty player in midfield. But I did see many successful formations with only Su and At duties on roles in midfield. When does doing so make sense?

The principles are just that: basic principles designed to help people get to grips with creating sound basic tactics. Not using a defensive role in midfield is perfectly fine if, for example, you aren't facing a team with a lot of offensive threat and you are satisfied with your defenders' ability to deal with them. Alternatively, you might have a tactic or style based on the principle of 'the best defense is a strong offense.' If you use a DM, it is safer to use him on a support role, as I often do when I feel that I can get away with it. In short, I don't think there is an easy one-off answer. As with so much that we talk about in here, your team, overall system, the opponent, general match situation, all these things play a role in how you decide to utilize your midfield.

[summatsupeer]

...

When does doing so make sense?

1) When you know what your doing.

2) When you have adequate defensive cover. If you don't know what is adequate, you shouldn't of gone past point 1.

3) When you know that the extra support / attack duty is going to benefit your team and not just cause congestion. Defend duties can benefit your attack by adding depth and shouldn't be looked at purely as a defensive decision. If you don't know if your causing congestion, you shouldn't of gone past point 1.

As Dr. Hook says, they're just guidelines to try to make a balanced system. Its usually managers who spot an issue and make a change to improve it that can get away with breaking the "principles", if you change things to try something then it probably won't work.

[trajano080]

When there's still someone that defends in midfield (DMs or RGA)