Shortly after announcing his retirement as a player, following an illustrious career out on the pitch, Carlos Tevez was announced as the head coach of Rosario Central in Argentina, making any football supporter born before the turn of the century feel incredibly old.
Central had won just five games from their first 20 in the Argentine Primera División, leading to the sacking of Tevez’s predecessor and former Internazionale player Kily González.
Tevez, an Argentinian legend, had never managed a club before and was taking his first steps into management, trying to save a sinking ship at the Estadio Gigante de Arroyito. However, so far, his tenure has not gotten off to the best start.
Since taking his first game in the dugout back at the beginning of July in a 2-1 away defeat to Aldovisi, the former Manchester United and Manchester City centre-forward has guided the Canalla to merely five victories in the same number of games as González.
Despite some solid performances during the summer months, Central have nose-dived recently with results and it’s unclear whether Tevez will be given time to turn things around.
This tactical analysis piece will look at the tactics that the 38-year-old has implemented during his time at the helm thus far, as well as looking at why the Argentine side have struggled recently.
Formations and tactical tweaks
Prior to getting the job, Rosario Central were primarily set out in a 4-3-1-2 formation under González and rarely swayed from this, although there were a couple of occasions where the side lined up in a 4-2-3-1, a 4-1-3-2 and even a more unorthodox 5-3-2.
However, Tevez looked to gain defensive stability from the get-go with his new crop of players. The ex-Argentine international switched to a 4-4-2 for his first match in charge, a shape that was maintained for a few games afterwards.
Unfortunately, receiving little success with the conventional structure, the new boss trialled a 4-2-3-1 and even a 3-4-1-2. Again, no dice.
It wasn’t until Central’s emphatic 3-0 away victory over Arsenal de Sarandí that Tevez found a formation that worked best for his team – the 4-1-4-1. While results have been up and down, the 4-1-4-1 has been Rosario Central’s preferred system over the past few months.
