Rohr: Why we played 4-2-3-1 and not 3-5-2 against Croatia

Super Eagles boss Gernot Rohr has explained his decision to play with a 4-2-3-1 formation instead of 3-5-2 against Croatia in their 2-0 loss to Croatia at Kaliningrad on Saturday.

Gernot Rohr came under heavy criticism by fans and ex-football like Austin Okocha whi questioned his decision of dropping the 3-5-2 formation for 4-2-3-1.

But the German coach has defended his tactics claiming his side conceded two goals from set play not from open play and that it would be unwise for him to go 3-5-2 with the way the Croats set up on Saturday.

“We didn’t concede in normal play, we conceded only two goals from set pieces. This is not a question of tactics or system.

“Our system was okay, we cannot play with three (at the back) when there is only one centre forward.

“We played with four defenders because there were three Croatian strikers who are very strong. I was satisfied with the organisation of the team but what we missed in the game is being professional from set pieces. Each game is different.

“We know we can play with three centre backs but it was not a good day (Saturday) to do that,” the German told reporters.

The 3-5-2 formation has been Nigeria’s most successful system in recent time, it helped the Eagles secure their famous 4-2 win against Argentina in November and also got a goal in their 2-1 loss to England in June.