I didn't mind that line up at all, I wished it had been a 433 though, mirroring Wolves kind of worked for us and against us, we got Aurier into some good positions, two resulted in goals, but Wolves also exploited the vulnerabilities of both Aurier and Davies - and the novelty of our system to us - to score three.
As I said, I'd have preferred that to be a 433 - as
GDG
said above and I have said previously several times - both Poch and Mourinho kept/keep playing CM2 midfields, when none of the CM's we have are rounded enough to play as double pivots - and this does none of them any favours. But if we are going to play the 343, then I actually don't have too many problems with the side picked and set up. I liked the front three (based on who was available) especially Alli as that flash 9 focal point - which some omni present bumbling aside - worked really well I thought, he's got through a shit load of ball (60 touches, 42 passes) was heavily involved in both goals, and was unlucky with a header.
I also liked the back 3, get the logic, Dier the ballast (pun intended) with the quick and aggressive Sanchez and Tanganga either side to help cover the WB areas.
Although I wish dearly we'd just play a fucking 433/CM3 system and I'd even tolerate Dier as the 6 if we could try it with Lo Celso and Ndombele either side, I think both Winks and Lo Celso did decent enough jobs today, they both got through an absolute fuck ton of ball, (Winks 81/86, GLC 66/76 passes) and both completed the most final third passes in the game ( Winks 21, GLC 22) and Winks was involved in the build up of both our goals with forward passes. But both struggled to wade through the quagmire once Wolves got their ultra well drilled shit together. Winks was particularly wasteful around the box a couple of times.
Every week we are changing shape, changing players, changing how we approach games, but regardless of what we do, we are still allowing teams to get into too many decent attacking situations, something I'd really hoped Mourinho would have got to grips with by now. Giving him the benefit of some doubt, I'm wondering if he's looked at this squad, seen it's not been assembled with "defending" in mind, and is just trying to get results the best way he can, and to be fair, until the last couple of weeks his PPG was kind of validating that.
Once again we've let in some really pathetic goals. Two of which could and should have been prevented way before they got to the box, and then when they got to the box more shambolic defending ensued. The first one Dier inexplicably just misses a simple clearance and air kicks, which throws Tanganga who just takes the sting off their cross for their guy to bury. The second one Tanganga needs to stop Traore with that challenge, fair or foul, and most players his challenge might of, but Traore bounces off him, then feeds Doherty while Dier is left flat footed. The third Moura first, then particularly Aurier have to fucking stop Jota, fair or foul, but both are just too fucking flimsy, mentally and physically. I think this is what Mourinho was, rightly referring to post match. But it's this kind of fucking wet naivety that I thought he'd have squared off by now if nothing else.
I'm so internally conflicted on Mourinho. I know we can't make a full and fair judgement until he's had a pre season and time to mould this team into what he wants it to be. My issue, even if we are prepared to buy him who he wants to succeed, and sell who he doesn't, and he turns us into some pragmatically efficient winning machine is, will I be able to love that team? what will that look like? Will it look like a deluxe Wolves? or his ManU team ? I'm not sure I can love that. Will it look more like his Real Madrid, Inter or even his Chelsea MK1 phase? Maybe I could....maybe...
There's still a bit of me that remembers that all to fleeting heyday of Poch, when we didn't just win, but we won with panache, that watched (Herr Flick's) Bayern Munich's proactive flowing football in midweek, Ajax's youthful exuberance, the vibrant press-tactic energy of the likes of RB Leipzig, BM(eh)Gladbach, Schalke, Getafe and the positive attacking brand of Dortmund and Leverkusen and just thinks no matter how close Mourinho gets to making us in his image, will he get it so right that I won't always be looking over my shoulder wishing and wondering what else we could be...?
