marv3llous wrote:
Its as if all the years that we were crying out for a great ball winner and a DM who actually stays back have been wiped from the memory with the last 20 games and now we suddenly have to have DLP on the field again.
I think those are two different groups to be fair. And nobody wants a 'DLP', just somebody who isn't scared of receiving the ball under pressure in the buildup.
The top teams have players like Busquets, Kroos, Alonso, and Carrick at that holding midfield position. Despite the conventional British wisdom, you don't really want a holding player to be limited to performing defensive responsibilities if you want to play football at the highest level. Coquelin has an excellent skill set and can be useful in many games, but he is not a "midfielder". When he doesn't perform in the buildup, our attackers (Özil especially) have to drop deeper to receive the ball, and that makes us significantly less likely to create chances.
There's this idea that playing somebody like Coquelin is "pragmatic" because he supports our defense, when in reality he's not a top all-round footballer and therefore brings our level of play down a notch. Barca, Madrid, Bayern, and United win (or have won) with DMs who rely on positioning and passing rather than pace, power, and tough tackling. It's no coincidence...
