How Venezia will play under Nicola: formation, new starters and predicted line-up

Throughout his career, Davide Nicola has favoured a 3-5-2, the formation Venezia started the season with.

There is little to suggest a tactical overhaul, though Venezia's serious defensive difficulties could force a rethink.

Defence comes first for Nicola, who has sometimes changed formation to find greater balance in his recent spells, particularly with Salernitana and Cagliari.

That leaves a 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 as possibilities.

If Nicola changes formation, Mazzocchi's return will be vital. The manager got excellent results from him at Salernitana.

In a 4-4-2, Mazzocchi could play at right-back, with Hainaut further forward on the same flank. Haps and Correia would cover the left.

Juan Jesus's experience will need to make the difference in central defence, with Bella-Kotchap favourite to partner him. Once Busio returns from injury, one of Basic, Sohm and Kike Perez will play alongside him in midfield.

Venezia have plenty of wide players, and a 4-4-2 would let Nicola tighten up defensively while making extensive use of the flanks.

Up front, getting the best out of Akor Adams will be crucial. He's the physical striker Nicola has always had in his teams, but he needs to make his attacking play count. At Salernitana, for example, Nicola worked a miracle with the Djuric-Bonazzoli partnership, which was in some ways similar to Adams-Yeboah.

Lauberbach offers an interesting alternative. At 194 centimetres tall, he's a perfect Djuric-type player, of the kind Nicola has had in both Salerno and Cremona.

They can stick with a back three or switch to a back four in search of a turnaround.

Here are the two possible line-ups:

(3-5-2): Stankovic; Juan Jesus, Bella-Kotchap, Moreno; Hainaut, Basic, Busio, Sohm, Correia; Yeboah, Adams.

(4-4-2): Stankovic; Mazzocchi, Juan Jesus, Bella-Kotchap, Haps; Hainaut, Busio, Basic, Correia; Yeboah, Adams.