The Noordwijk Experiment – Ajax and the 3-4-3

by Mohamed Moallim

The last time Ajax regularly played three at the back, Sandra Bullock was one of the hottest young actresses in Hollywood with a bright future ahead, and the same could be said for Ajax who dined at the top of Europe’s elite table. Since those halcyon days Bullock has gone on to amass a fortune and bag an Academy award in the process whereas the Godenzonen have been in the doldrums, slowly losing their identity and barely feasting on the crumbs.

However a trip to a third tier (Topklasse) side, in the Dutch football pyramid, VV Noordwijk in their KNVB beker tie evoked memories of days gone by and possibly yet another example of coach Frank de Boer – and legendary player – keeping his word after he made clear on the day of his appointment the philosophy he believes in – one shared by predecessors and mentors Louis van Gaal and Johan Cruyff – would be implemented. When the line-ups were announced there was nothing to suggest he would be deploying a 3-4-3 formation; common wisdom in the system he’s been regularly using suggested Daley Blind would be asked to play at left-back where he’s regularly featured this season in an orthodox 4-3-3.

But it was once the game started that something seemed amiss. Blind wasn’t part of the defensive backline. At first it might just have been his enthusiasm – maybe he fancies himself as a left-wing back – but when he moved narrowly and the midfield pushing up leaving space between the defence it became all too clear. Jan Vertonghen seemed to be playing in the position one assumed the son of Danny would be. A scratch of the head and then realising who the coach was again a light bulb flashed.

De Boer was playing three at the back. As a lover of the formation, it took me a while to regain my composure to repeat it aloud ‘De Boer is playing three at the back’. This is one of those moments, like your favourite television character returning. At first you’re excited then suddenly intrigue sets in. Given its rarity, intrigue is automatically replaced by wonderment and then some questions: what are the instructions, where was who playing and how will they get on. Ultimately will it work?

From the onset De Boer named a much changed side from their last away game at PSV in the league. It was expected to give some first team players a rest and those on the periphery a game. Against lowly opposition it wouldn’t be much of a gamble to play this way than say against FC Twente or AZ. The back three had bags of experience: Toby Alderweireld on the right and Vertonghen from the left with Andre Ooijer occupying the central role. Not in the class of Michael Reiziger, Danny Blind and Frank de Boer but it worked as competently against Noordwijk as assumed.

Ooijer was given freedom to move forward the ball often penetrating the midfield and getting as close to the penalty box as often as possible. Vertonghen who is blessed with sheer versatility thrived in this new system, moving centrally or becoming a second winger at times. Alderweireld was the more defensively sound not making as many forward runs as his two teammates at the back.

In the midfield there were plenty of signs to answer whether De Boer was playing a 3-4-3 or a variation of it: 3-3-1-3, the latter the system Van Gaal made his own during Ajax’s last great generation of the mid 90s. Again there was a mixture of experience and talent, Thulani Serero who’s already impressed in his few outings for the club looked to have occupied a right of a midfield three with Siem de Jong and Blind across. The returning Nicolás Lodeiro in a central playmaker role – also link between midfield and attack – behind the number nine Dmitri Bulykin with Jody Lukoki and Araz Özbiliz as the winger’s right and left respectively.

As expected the away side weren’t troubled much in terms of possession however losing it on a regular basis didn’t please De Boer. Ajax ran out 3-1 winners – the only disappointment was the score line wasn’t more handsome given Ajax’s possession count. De Jong smashed the first into the top corner, very Arie Haan-esque, Bulykin doubled the lead before the débuting Lesley da Sa – who came on for Özbiliz – added his name to the score sheet. Sijbren Bartlema would pull one back for the hosts and when he did the partisan arena was in raptures.

The system

Back to the system. Playing a 3-4-3 formation even against non-top flight opponents isn’t something that can be throw together and players expected to adjust seamlessly. It’s become obvious De Boer’s training sessions planned accordingly for this and those who took to the field would have known in advance and duly practised the process of digesting their individual and collective instructions.

Another point is how often playing three at the back is practiced in training. If it’s a regular aspect, this raises an interesting question. Will De Boer consider making it the norm on the field, or was this just a one off?

Hypothetically it’s possible with the players he’s been regularly using: Vermeer; Van der Wiel, Alderweireld, Vertonghen; Anita, Janssen, Eriksen; Siem de Jong; Sulejmani, Sigþórsson, Boerrigter. One must accept though, that it might be a while before its reintroduction is complete, if indeed De Boer is heading in that direction.

It was under Cruyff, when he was manager between 1985 and 1988, where he devised a 3-4-3 system as a way to carry out the brand of football he wanted to play. Ajax managed to score 120 goals in his first season but lost the league on the count of drawing more games than PSV.

The seduction of a 3-4-3 lies in the balance of risks in a symmetrical formation: a thin line of three defenders being the ‘yin’ to an attacking trident’s ‘yang’. Two wing-backs flank a sole centre-back behind whereas up front two wingers are fielded either side of a number nine. Sandwiched in between the three-man defence and three-man attack we have a rhomboid midfield with two apices. Almost overlapping with the lone pure centre-back, a defensive midfielder is the bottom peak of the midfield diamond. Up front at the cutting edge of the ’stone’ is an attacking midfielder, either flank fleshed out with the side edges of the diamond being an inside left and inside right. This is the classic 3-4-3.

Van Gaal would take up the baton and with a few tweaks altered it to a more 3-3-1-3 formation. With the right players, Ajax played football that some described as near perfect. The sudden adopting of a formation Ajax was accustomed to for more than a decade strikes of a man living up to his word. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and the same should be said of the steady transformation of Ajax under De Boer.

His steadfast refusal to acknowledge the football played under Martin Jol to be Ajax worthy sums it up. In no way was he self-righteous in his critique, only pointing out that the pragmatism involved in that brand of football is something alien to Amsterdam.

De Boer after arriving commented.

“We had to ensure that the players bought into this idea again, and rid themselves of a certain apathy that was evident on the field.”

“That was the feeling I had when I watched games from the stands. The full-backs rarely moved up the pitch and the centre-backs kept pumping long balls forward, when they should in fact be free to dribble if the situation calls for it, and relaunch an attack properly.”

The contrast from twelve months on suggests the football De Boer prefers – he’s not the only one – wasn’t out of the realms of possibility. Aspiring to play like Van Gaal’s side isn’t something to be scoffed at or labelled a pipe dream. De Boer should be commended. Living up to the club’s rich history has left many managers drained and exhausted but so far not him. His principles – more than his recent predecessors – have tapped into the lost psyche of a club whose name was once feared and respected.

Ajax have always prided themselves on possession based football, short passes, circulating the ball rapidly and accurately. The importance of playing with out-and-out wingers is a requisite and non-negotiable. Against Lyon and then PSV, playing in the more traditional 4-3-3, the midfield looked disjointed at times, as a result the disrupting the tempo making it slow and attacks breaking down as quickly as they began.

Nonetheless the balance can be adjusted to suit the desired football. At the moment De Boer wants a controlling playmaker (Theo Janssen) and floating trequartista (Christian Eriksen). Balancing this out a screening midfielder behind the two is an option. This of course enables both players to be further up the pitch and in particular for Janssen playing in his more favoured left-CM role. The by-product of this will be dropping Siem de Jong who has acted like a trequartista behind main striker Kolbeinn Sigþórsson. Then again De Boer might just prosper with the midfield three he’s comes to trust.

After watching FC Barcelona earlier in the season playing three in defence and dismantling Villarreal De Boer commented how highly he favours the model and hinted he could even deploy it. At the time many brushed it off, but the Noordwijk experiment – in the long term – might just be the first small step for De Boer’s Ajax playing the brand of football he was accustomed to as a player and one he’s more often that not stated wants to bring back.

Mohamed Moallim is a Dutch football columnist for Just Football focussing on Dutch football and football history. Read more from him at La Croqueta.

Ajax, Dutch Eredivisie, Dutch Football, Frank de Boer, Holland