I get that: but I was responding to another poster claiming the squad was really poor. Player-for-player we are as good or better than Leeds in most - if not all - positions. However, Mason and Jose rely on allowing the outstanding players to do the heavy lifting, not the whole squad working as a unit. For me, that’s where it falls apart.
I agree entirely about the ‘engine’ - it’s been the case since Dembele / Dier / Wanyama (but mainly Dembele) vacated the middle of the park. We don’t have the legs to cover it, or a player with enough technical skill to control that space.
A better system, smooth out some of the peaks and troughs in the squad and we’ll be fine.
I’m not putting down Leeds, but that was one game where a better manager would out-think them, making better use of the quality players we do have and reducing the impact of their tactics. They clearly tired second half, and - had we covered the wings with any actual effort - most of their threat would have been nullified. It’s no surprise that we beat them comfortably earlier in the season but lost yesterday.