MICHAEL CARRICK claims a switch to a five-man defensive shape does not affect the way Middlesbrough line up when they are looking to attack.

Having spend the vast majority of his time as Boro head coach playing with a flat back four, Carrick switched to a back five against Norwich City on Wednesday night, with Rav van den Berg, Paddy McNair and Matt Clarke lining up as centre-halves and Luke Ayling and Lukas Engel filling the wing-back positions.

Defensively, there was a clear distinction to the way in which Boro lined up against Norwich and the shape they adopted when they were playing with four at the back in the previous game against Stoke City.

However, when it comes to attacking, Carrick argues that his side is always relatively fluid, with the full-backs in a flat back four encouraged to push on or drive infield, often resulting in the rest of the team reorganising themselves into what is effectively a back three, similar to the one that was in evidence against Norwich.

“In possession, what we did (on Wednesday) didn’t change anything with what we do,” said Carrick. “It didn’t change anything from what we have been doing in terms of how we’ve been building up, and the shape we’ve been building up with.

“There’s no difference with that, we’ve been building with a back three anyway. That didn’t change. It was really out of position where things were maybe slightly different, but honestly, in possession, we play like that anyway.”

Carrick’s tactical approach is very much in keeping with the recent trend of inverted full-backs effectively playing as auxiliary midfielders, as pioneered by the likes of Kyle Walker or John Stones at Manchester City or Trent Alexander-Arnold at Liverpool.

If defenders are going to take up midfield positions when in position of the ball, then there is often a need for a midfielder to drop back to cover, and in Jonny Howson and Dan Barlaser in particular, Boro have players capable of slotting into defensive roles.

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Similarly, when the likes of Marcus Forss, Riley McGree and Sam Greenwood are filling the wide-attacking positions, Carrick is confident his side boast players with the flexibility to adapt when the system is being pulled around.

“Sometimes, we’ve had Dan dropping in there to make a back three,” he explained. “Other times, Luke Ayling drops in sometimes to make a three with Marcus playing wide. So, the shape is very similar whatever we do.

“I know it can look different, and (on Wednesday), out of possession, the change was more obvious. But it really just depends on how you look at it.

“I’m asked a lot about the formation, but for me, it’s not so much focusing on whether or not it’s a back five, it’s about the space that we want to attack. A lot of the time, Lukas and or Luke (Thomas), have played that wing-back role, whether we play with a five or not. It’s not always easy to see that, but what I’m trying to explain is that the actual formation often doesn’t make a huge difference to how we do things.”

It remains to be seen what system Carrick adopts for tomorrow’s game at QPR, but whoever is playing in the full-back or wing-back positions, they are clearly going to be instructed to get onto the front foot, as was the case against Norwich in midweek.

“It’s part of the game now that you’re got to be adaptable,” Carrick continued. “Full-backs or wing-backs need to be wingers, need to be full-backs and need to be wing-backs too. A lot depends on the personnel and who you’re playing with.

“But Lukas and Luke can definitely do both of those roles. Lukas played against Chelsea with Alex Bangura in front of him, so that proves he can play the deeper position as well. It’s good to be adaptable.”