Everton Football Formation

Starting Lineup

Branthwaite · O‘Brien · Coleman · Mykolenko · Garner · Beto · Grealish · Dewsbury · McNeil · Alcaraz · Pickford

Everton plays a 5-2-3 formation. The team focuses on being defensively solid and playing a vertical game. This lineup is built to sit deep and hit in behind on the transition to catch opponents off guard.

Pickford stays in goal to command the area and clear the lines. The back five uses Garner as the central man to win the header and protect the middle. O'Brien and Branthwaite act as wide centre-backs to provide aerial strength and cover the spaces. Mykolenko and Coleman play as attacking wing backs to provide width and stretch the defence. The defensive unit works to maintain a narrow defensive block to deny the turn and keep the block compact.

The midfield consists of a double pivot with Dewsbury and Alcaraz. Dewsbury works to shield the defence and press in a mid-block to win the ball back. Alcaraz is able to carry the ball forward to connect the defensive and attacking lines. They must work to compress the midfield and prevent the opposition from playing through the lines. This pairing helps to recycle possession and move the ball quickly from the back to the front.

The attack features Beto as a target man who can hold up the ball and win the second ball. Grealish plays as an inverted winger on the left to cut inside and create chances. McNeil stays wide on the right to whip it in and cross on the run. The movement is designed to create runs in behind and use the width from the wing backs to provide cutbacks from the byline. The front three will press from the front to force a long ball from the opposition defenders.

This formation offers great compactness when defending in a low block. The team can shift to create wide overloads through the overlapping runs of Mykolenko and Coleman. Additionally, the lineup allows for a very fast speed of transition once the ball is won in the middle third. This makes the team very dangerous when they break quickly.

The 5-2-3 is a reliable formation for maintaining a solid defensive presence. It is best suited for games against teams that control possession where Everton can defend zonally and counter at pace.