Maryland men’s soccer coach Sasho Cirovski said none of the teams he’s coached in his 32-year tenure have been conformed to one play style or structure.
On Friday, as he’s done before, Cirovski opted for a change.
The coach’s decision to move junior Chris Steinleitner from center back into the midfield while going to a 4-3-3 formation — which features three midfielders and three forwards — provided the defensive cover his players needed. It helped Maryland beat No. 8 Wisconsin, 3-0, for the team’s first Big Ten win in 679 days.
“We build our program on principles of play, not necessarily systems of play,” Cirovski said. “Based on the personnel we had, [a 4-3-3 formation] made the most sense, and also with respect to with what we thought needed to neutralize Wisconsin.”
The Terps typically play with four midfielders spread across the field and two attackers, also known as a 4-4-2 formation. Leon Koehl and Kenny Quist-Therson played in central areas while Sadam Masereka and Max Rogers spaced themselves out wide up the pitch. Colin Griffith and Luke van Heukelum are normally the forwards of choice up top.
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But with van Heukelum out with an injury he sustained against San Diego State, Cirovski employed a formation with three midfielders in an attempt to limit the Badgers’ offensive output. It prevented Wisconsin from generating any quality attacks.
Wisconsin entered Friday’s match as one of the most clinical attacking teams in the country with 16 goals in its first five games. The Badgers scored four or more in three contests and averaged more than three scores a match, a mark tied for sixth nationally.
Steinleitner played a variety of roles in midfield and defense at Eastern Florida State College before he transferred to Maryland ahead of the 2024 season. Friday was his first start in the midfield for the Terps.
Steinleitner played alongside Koehl and Quist-Therson in the midfield and occupied space right in front of Maryland’s center backs, Bjarne Thiesen and William Kulvik. As a holding midfielder role, which is a defensive position to disrupt opponents’ attacks, Steinleitner’s presence limited the Badgers’ potent attack.
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Steinleitner’s ability to win the ball as he cut out the passing lanes Wisconsin sought is what prevented the Badgers from spending time inside the Terps’ box. Any time a Wisconsin attacker attempted to run in behind the Maryland back line, Steinleitner stopped it by intercepting a pass or tackling the ball from an opponent.
“We had, maybe, a little bit of a problem last game, about exactly that space,” Thiesen said. “[Steinleitner] filled it up perfectly. There were less runs on our last line. He was always there. He won headers, he won challenges.”
The Badgers’ two efforts on goal was the second-lowest mark Maryland allowed this season. It helped the Terps collect their first clean sheet of the campaign to begin Big Ten play.
The new arrangement proved effective in preventing one of the country’s most lethal attacking teams from scoring, just after Maryland conceded eight goals in its first six games. The formation will be crucial for Maryland to continue shutting out teams as conference play continues.
“I think, in the defensive shape, that definitely has benefitted us a lot,” Steinleitner said. “We got way stable. We just defended the blocks like we should, and then we didn’t concede. That’s exactly what we wanted.”
