The advantage of a 4-2-3-1 is that six of the back seven are solid, and you limit problems to the front four. Hart Cole/Baines Lescott Somebody (Not Smalling, maybe Cahill or Jagielka, maybe even Ferdinand) Walker/Richards Barry Parker (Okay, here's where the problems start) Young Welbeck Walcott Anyone but Rooney/Who the hell knows?/Bent, Zamorra, Crouch????--no fan of Sturridge, sorry, plays 1 on 11 too much.
At the beginning of the season Capello tried this successfully a few times and I thought the future would be a 4-2-3-1. Some of the players I would have included then may not have developped as much as I had hoped eg. Smalling, Sturridge and Oxlade-Chamberlain but I still see that this kind of formation could work. Personally I think Welbeck could be the front man as he is good in the air and does not drift around as much as Rooney, who could be at the centre of the 3 behind the front man. Hart Johnson Cahill Lescott Cole Carrick/Milner Parker Walcott/Oxlade Chamberlain Rooney Milner/Sturridge Welbeck/Crouch