Attacking game plan drives push for promotion
Jackett lifts lid on his core strategy for success
IT’S the surprise positional switch inspiring Pompey’s push for the Championship.
Now Kenny Jackett has revealed why he converted Ryan Williams for a striking role – and returned Marcus Harness out wide.
Williams has been a revelation for the past two months operating centrally around John Marquis.
With a licence to roam, the Australian’s pace and tireless energy levels have been instrumental in the attacking performances of the thirdplaced Blues.
Yet in October, Harness had actually been designated the role – responding with a hattrick upon its first unveiling at Burton.
Then Jackett opted for another tactical change which proved a masterstroke.
He told The News: ‘We had a spell where Marcus Harness was up the middle with John, which started off great with a hat-trick against Burton.
‘To be fair, we then had a series of matches where we just couldn’t get Marcus in the game and on the ball.
‘I felt it was the right thing to do to move him wide to a role that he knew best and where his crossing ability really came back into it.
‘Part of it has been around Marcus – and then Ryan leading the pressing with his energy.
‘We always thought Ryan has done well for us. He’s the type of player that when he’s not in the team you miss and want him back, because he’s such a good team man.
‘In terms of him going and playing quite close to John Marquis, it has been a fruitful partnership so far.
‘He drops behind, he runs over the top, he goes wide. He has some energy in that role and works very hard, turning up in all areas of the pitch.
‘For Ryan, there’s wide open spaces and he has the ability to go right along the line and is able to use his energy to get around the pitch.
‘He does cause the opposition problems and has helped with a lot of our counterattacking football.’
Whether Williams is referred to as a second striker or number 10 is irrelevant to Jackett.
Instead he focuses on the versatility of Williams and Harness – and those attacking strengths which can be brought to a variety of roles.
He added: ‘It very much depends on the terminology and how you want to look at it, different people bring different qualities.
‘You may have a midfielder who can play there – or someone like Marcus Harness, who has a lot of quality when you can get him the ball in the final third.
‘I don’t think that you always need to limit those players to a position.
‘Sometimes you use Marcus in different roles to work hard and use his quality in and around the box.’