The Playbook Series · No. 01 Free edition
The 4-3-3 Playbook
Variations, attacking positions and defensive shape.
The system everyone thinks they know.
- 24 pages
- 15 boards
- 3 sessions
What is inside
The system everyone thinks they know.
A field guide to the 4-3-3 for coaches and analysts: how the system is built, how it changes shape with and without the ball, and how to coach every phase of it. Every shape is drawn to scale on a real pitch.
- 01 The roles, the numbers and the triangles that hold it together
- 02 From Michels to Guardiola to Spain 2024
- 03 Single pivot, double pivot, false nine and the wingers
- 04 Build-up structures: turning four at the back into three
- 05 Five lanes, breaking lines and the box
- 06 Rest defence, the counterpress, the high press and the low block
- 07 Matchups against the 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2 and a low block
- 08 Three sessions and a match-day checklist
The impact
What you will be able to do after reading it.
Read it well and this is what changes for you, your staff and your players. Each point is a chapter of the book, not a promise on top of it.
- Your staff 1
- Analysis room 2
- Training ground 2
- Match day 1
- Your staff Ch. 01
Explain the system in one language
Eleven roles, not eleven positions. Your staff and players get the same words for every job, and for the numbers and triangles that hold the shape together.
- Analysis room Ch. 03
Pick the version that suits your players
Single or double pivot, the false nine, inverted or touchline wingers and four full-back profiles. For each one: what it creates, what it costs and who it needs.
- Training ground Ch. 04 · 05
Build up and attack with a structure
Turn four at the back into three, then attack with four rules for the five lanes: one lane one man, staggered lines, pin before you move, and the half-spaces.
- Match day Ch. 06 · 07
Defend in every phase
Rest defence and counterpress rules, the distances of a compact mid block, the pressing triggers, the curved run, and how to defend the cross and the edge of the box.
- Analysis room Ch. 08 · 10
Know where it breaks, and the fix
The four classic weaknesses of the 4-3-3 with a fix for each, matchups against the 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2 and a low block, and a checklist for match day.
- Training ground Ch. 09
Teach it on the grass
Three sessions that build the system step by step: a positional rondo, build-up in the 3-2-5 against a 4-4-2 press, and the final third with rest defence.
3 sessions and 15 boards drawn to scale turn every point into something you can show your players, then train.
Get the free PlaybookPages from the book
Every shape on a real pitch.
Contents
10 chapters, then the index.
Each chapter is a bookmark in the PDF, and every row of the contents page is a link to it.
- 01 Anatomy of the system Roles, numbers and the triangles that hold it together
- 02 Where it came from Michels to Guardiola to Spain 2024
- 03 The variations Single pivot, double pivot, false nine, wingers
- 04 Build-up structures Turning four at the back into three
- 05 Attacking positioning Five lanes, progression, the box
- 06 Rest defence and counterpress Defending while you attack
- 07 Defensive positioning Mid block, high press, low block
- 08 Matchups and weaknesses Against 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1, 3-5-2 and the low block
- 09 The training ground Three sessions that teach the system
- 10 Checklist, glossary and sources What to look for on match day
Free edition
Get The 4-3-3 Playbook.
Leave your email and the download link arrives in your welcome email. No account and no card. Share it with your staff, with credit.
The format
A PDF built to be used on the training ground.
- Format
- PDF, A4 portrait
- Length
- 24 pages, 15 boards, 3 sessions
- File size
- 2.6 MB
- Navigation
- Bookmarks for every chapter, a clickable contents page and cross-references
- Index
- Terms, people and teams
- Printing
- Laid out for A4, so every page prints as it looks on screen
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Version 1.1, October 2026. First published September 2026.
- Licence
- This guide is free. You may share it with credit to Total Football Studio. Please do not sell it, change it or present it as your own.
Questions
About The 4-3-3 Playbook
How do I get it?
Leave your email on the Playbook page. The download link arrives in your welcome email a minute later. No account and no card.
Get the free Playbook Who is it for?
Coaches and analysts who want the 4-3-3 explained phase by phase, with the shapes drawn to scale and sessions to teach them.
What format is it in?
A 24-page A4 PDF of 2.6 MB, with bookmarks for every chapter, a clickable contents page and an index. It opens on any phone, tablet or computer that reads a PDF, and prints on A4.
Do I need Total Football Studio to use it?
No. The book is a PDF and stands on its own. Every diagram in it was built in Total Football Studio, so you can draw the same shapes on your own board if you want to.
Open the StudioThe Playbook Series
The other two books
-
No. 02 · Coaches' edition Playing Out From the Back Building up against every press: count it, shape for it, bait it, beat it. 101 pages · 84 boards · 20 sessions
-
No. 03 · Coaches' edition The 4-2-3-1 Playbook One shape, many systems: how football's most-used formation builds, creates, presses and protects. 99 pages · 80 boards · 20 sessions
