It’ll be interesting to see how Ralph lines up his team for the remainder of the season. He is a manager who likes his players to press. There are a few points I want to go over:
- Ralph likes to use the 4-2-2-2 formation, and plays with narrow wide players (effectively wide attacking midfielders). This is so a box four midfield is created allowing the full backs to come on the attack.
- Casteels starts in goal, with Lacroix and Jenz as the centre back partnership. Lacroix was a player Ralph really wanted at Southampton in his final season, but the club couldn’t deliver what he wanted. Thankfully, he has him now!
- Despite Baku’s weak defensive abilities, Ralph loves a pacy full back who can attack as long as they can press and track back, therefore he could come back into the starting 11. Mæhle would then come across to the left side, and as we’ve seen with Livramento and Walker-Peters for Southampton, Ralph is comfortable with an inverted full back.
- Svanberg and Arnold are no brainers in the midfield. If we look at Ward-Prowse and Romeu, Ward-Prowse was the box to box player and Romeu was the deep lying playmaker. Therefore, Svanberg would be the box to box player and Arnold would be the deep lying playmaker, and both could really thrive in this team. Svanberg is also another player Ralph wanted at Southampton!
- Majer is perfect as a wide player in this formation, as he is someone that can create chances for the team. However, for the left side I am not so sure, but based on this season’s form and his defensive capabilities, Paredes is the best fit.
- As for the two strikers, it is a no brainer that Wind starts, he has been the bright spark in Wolfsburg’s season. As for the other striker, it is between three options. Two of those include Tiago Tomas and Lukas Nmecha, but with Tiago’s poor form and Nmecha’s worrying injury problems, the best option shall be Behrens. A combination of these two strikers would allow either player to drop deep.