Jim Hand of Attleboro, Mass., asks: New England Revolution coach Fernando Clavijo was recently quoted as saying there is a shortage of wing players in MLS. My questions are why is this so and why is it so difficult to convert a forward or central midfielder to a wing? How do the skills needed for a wing differ from those of a forward or central midfielder? How does playing the outside in a 3-5-2 format differ from a 4-4-2 setup? Ridge Mahoney: A winger is usually defined as a forward who plays wide and has little or no defensive duties. Fernando may be referring to players who can play on the wing, i.e. out wide, be they forwards, midfielders or something in between. If we define a wing as an out-and-out attacker who plays in the frontline, wingers need speed, dribbling and turning skills, and an ability to cross the ball accurately and consistently as well as the technique and confidence to score goals. That is a rare array of talents. So we can’t talk about 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 until we define what a winger is. A player like Cobi Jones, who can attack with speed and likes to play wide could be classified as a winger. So, too, could William Sunsing and Eric Wynalda. The Galaxy will sometimes play a 4-4-2 that looks like a 4-3-3 with two forwards and Jones playing out wide on either side. That would be my idea of a winger. But Jones has also played as one of the two forwards as well as in midfield. In either a 4-4-2 and 3-5-2, a midfielder could be playing as a wing along with two forwards. Is he a wing or a midfielder? Or both? If we’re talking about midfielders, we usually refer to those playing on the wing as flank midfielders or outside midfielders. Most elite midfielders prefer to play in the middle, where they have more space, more time and see more of the ball. Those that play wide must possess some outstanding ability, such as speed (Frankie Hejduk) or strong crossing (Eddie Lewis). But there are a lot of outside midfielders who play there simply because other midfielders on the team are more suited to the middle or just plain better. For those midfielders out wide in a 4-4-2, they have some protection behind them — the outside backs — and so often have more freedom to attack or tuck inside. In the 3-5-2, those outside players in midfield are expected to cover a lot of ground defensively so that the three defenders can tackle and win balls in and around the penalty area. These are broad classifications and definitions that coaches can tweak to suit their preferences. Players like Jones, Sunsing and Wynalda have the abilities to play as wings. Many forwards can be further classified as 1) box players, who usually stay central and can receive the ball and shoot under pressure, and 2) second forwards, who cover more ground and play combinations with teammates. Box players seldom drift out wide. Many second forwards will often go wide to find space and deliver crosses or beat defenders one-on-one. The Chicago Fire teams of 1998 and 1999 often used Roman Kosecki as a winger. He usually stayed wide and left the middle open for teammates Jerzy Podbrozny, Peter Nowak and Ante Razov. To get back to the Revs, Ted Chronopoulos plays on the left side of midfield or defense, but few people would classify him as a wing with the definitions we’ve discussed. When New England lost to San Jose, 3-2, on May 5, Clavijo fielded four players listed as forwards: Wolde Harris, Matt Okoh, Andy Williams and Cate. Only Williams played out wide and so he could have been classified as a winger, but he and Cate played behind Harris and Okoh, so Williams also could have been called a midfielder. Whatever it was supposed to be, it didn’t work very well. I hope this answers some of your questions, although wings and wingers may not be synonymous depending on definitions. If I’ve only confused you more, I apologize. More important than the definitions or the nomenclature is what the players are asked to do and how successful they are. (If you have a question for a Soccer America Magazine editor, click “Ask Our Editorsö at the top of the home page.”)