Using Wingers In Central Roles: Crystal Palace, Liverpool & PSG Tactics 2024/2025 – Tactical Theory

Football is an ever-changing sport, with no two seasons ever being the same, and the game constantly evolving.

As each year passes, new players are discovered, teams alter their appearances, and emerging coaches seek to add their stamp to the game.

The other aspect that changes year-on-year is the tactics that enter and leave favour, with new ideas constantly being developed as each side attempts to find innovative ways to achieve success.

The current season has been no different in that regard, and one tactical trend to have emerged this time around has been the deployment of wingers in interior spaces.

Whilst it is not a novelty to see those on the wings cut inside the pitch when the opportunity arises, not many coaches have sought to keep them there for extended periods of play.

This campaign, though, has seen a change in that mindset, which is what this tactical analysis will explore.

The scout report will highlight three teams—Crystal Palace, Liverpool, and PSG—that currently use this strategy and show what each gains from including it in their game plan.

Ismaïla Sarr Scout Report At Crystal Palace

The first and arguably best way to enable a winger to stay inside the field is undoubtedly to select a formation in which they start in a central position.

The most common way to do this is to select either a 3-4-2-1 or a 4-3-2-1 formation.

Both create a tight front three in which the striker is flanked by two inside forwards instead of two wingers who hug the sidelines.

In the Premier League, one side who have continually favoured the former is Crystal Palace, and there is no doubt that having inside forwards has been a key factor in Oliver Glasner’s side enjoying a strong but largely understated campaign.

However, whilst the likes of Eberechi Eze and Romain Esse (and, until his departure last summer, Michael Olise) have always had a natural instinct to operate further inside the field, Ismaïla Sarr is a winger by trade.

As a result, the inside forward role is not something he would ordinarily play in, yet this season has shown that he has had no problem acclimatising to it.