great piece
@catcherintherye
Not particularly disagreeing here Dave, but for me Barkley the midfielder has been found out in the past two seasons - not that I think this is particularly Barkley's 'fault' as such.
When he first burst onto the scene (after a few cameos under Moyes) in pre-season 2013 and then obviously the following season, he was a breath of fresh air. He ran from deep, produced magic moments and scared defences.
That injury at the beginning of 2014/15 seemed to knock both is confidence and I think his pace off the mark suffered slightly as well. When he came back it was into a side playing well below their capabilities and unfortunately sides figured out a way to play against our midfield - basically, double-up on Barkley and restrict the space. Yes, he could still engineer some room with a turn of pace or bit of skill, but because of Martinez's style, the passing options when he did so were usually lateral, so there would still be nowhere to go - which is why most of our joy that season came against sides we could counter.
Start of 2015/16, Barkley took a step up. He showed real signs of not just re-finding his form, but also improving as a player. The side were also playing well going forward, which obviously helped.
But then in Feb 2016, when in fairness the whole team dipped, Ross just looked devoid of confidence. Martinez's system - by the end - wasn't getting the best out of anyone, but in Ross's case I think he actually took a step back.
So, pre-season this year, he looked sharp. Same with Deulofeu.
But for whatever reason, neither clicked in the first half of the campaign, with Barkley failing to cement any authority on games when played in the middle.
Ross's first 'really good' game this season IMO was Arsenal at home. He played left central midfield in a 4-1-4-1, but when we were on the attack he almost played as an inside forward.
This is the point for me that Koeman realised that Barkley would be more effective in that role, rather than in central midfield.
When he plays centrally, if the movement ahead of him is poor (which let's face it, it often is - which is why losing Bolasie was such a shame as his movement is very good and his pace helps as well) he tends to dally in possession, and I don't think he possesses the tools that Koeman likes in a midfielder. Energy to get up and down, aggressive but smart in the tackle and in possession.
Ross is a risk taker, which is what makes him the player he is and could still become, but Koeman's system relies upon having those players operating in the final third.
For me, Ross has taken another step in the back half of the season because of that tactical switch. Maybe it was necessity, or maybe Koeman happened upon it, but either way it's improved him as a player - and Ross has obviously done well to adapt to it.
We are keen to keep Ross but, as Catcher said, he may not be the key player we all thought he was or would be. Looking at Koeman's S'ton side as an example, I can't think of one 'stand-out' player that they could not win a game without for example. Cogs in a wheel.
