I wouldn't completely give up on a back 5 if it allows Cacace to bomb forward frequently. He's 1 of our best players, and one of our best attacking players.
People smarter than me have frequently explained that a back 5 is not an overly defensive setup, especially if your wingbacks are attacking weapons. And in a AWs side of few if any guys scoring frequently at club level, you want Libby going forward as much as possible. AWs still managed 68% possession against Costa Rica with a back 5. Though if Bell, Stamenic, Garbett, Thomas, Lewis & Singh are all available, yes you do suddenly have midfield riches.
Oh and I can see Rojas being unavailable. It's long way from Chile to anywhere, and he's still trying consolidate himself as a starter at Colo Colo. He might not make it to 2026. Same Kosta. I'd be tempted to bypass them both for a look at younger players in the March window anyway (Rogerson, Collier, De Jong, Old etc).
Is the time to experiment, and give experience to younger players. It's a long time before the AWs will play a WC qualifier.
People smarter than me have frequently explained that a back 5 is not an overly defensive setup, especially if your wingbacks are attacking weapons. And in a AWs side of few if any guys scoring frequently at club level, you want Libby going forward as much as possible. AWs still managed 68% possession against Costa Rica with a back 5. Though if Bell, Stamenic, Garbett, Thomas, Lewis & Singh are all available, yes you do suddenly have midfield riches.
Oh and I can see Rojas being unavailable. It's long way from Chile to anywhere, and he's still trying consolidate himself as a starter at Colo Colo. He might not make it to 2026. Same Kosta. I'd be tempted to bypass them both for a look at younger players in the March window anyway (Rogerson, Collier, De Jong, Old etc).
Is the time to experiment, and give experience to younger players. It's a long time before the AWs will play a WC qualifier.