Not withstanding the fact that this might be a rs, look at the state of us (in europe) look at the state of you (poor) wind up I've been thinking some more about it, risky I know this thinking lark but hey ho.
Apart from the whole 'Everton That' nature of the footballing universe and its capricious rs gods, plus injuries and poor form.
There are other, broader factors in play; namely the Insular footballing ethos of the english game as shown by the Hungarians in 1953.
Back in the day to win the League you had to 'fight for the right to party'.
If you got relegated or had ambitions to be in the top divison you literally had to kick your was out and climb over the bodies of your rivals
60yrs on and none of this has changed much...see today Burnley Vs City, Dyche Vs Pep, chalk and cheese.
A la Rab C Nesbitt...I'll will tell you this.City are the nearest team I've seen to the 69-70 holy trinity.
Are City in still in the CL, will they win it this season? No.
Just like City, that team in only average form managed to get bundled out on away goals by team of well drilled, tactically smart ( coached by Puskas of 1953 fame mention earlier) technical competant, foreigners. Who used all the 'tricks' and stuff that were unknown in England back then but had been common in Europe, car horns all night, dodgy Reffs, diving, snidey digs and elbows.
But they also had a degree of tactical technical ball skills and formations that even if they were known would be dismissed as foreign, not british...this is how WE play the game Luigi, we invented it ffs.
The 62-63 side ( and all the others ) had only moved on from the 2:3:5 that Dixie would know, just after the war.
We still played with 3 at the back, one CH and 2 FBs Parker, Labone, Meagan, Numbered 2, 5 and 3
2 half back, who were what we would call sort of defensive MFs now, Gabriel, Harris/Kay.
Wingers were still wingers and played wide; numbered 7 & 11
Then as now the No9 was mostly the big man down the middle.
The 8s and 10s were usually ball players/attacking MFs
Where we differed was at 8, 9 and 10. Catterick, not a complete tactical dummy, saw the hole and space infront of the 4 and 6 and brought in the more pragmatic Stevens to fill it. Replacing the mor re skillful and attack minded crow darling Bobby Collins. This had 3 benefits from Cattericks pov, it filled the hole, it brought in a good amount of cash for a player he thought could, aged 30, only go one way...downhill (with hindsight a big, big mistake) and probably best of all got rid of what he saw as a loud mouth know it all who would argue with him and didn't think the sun shone out of Harrys bum.
Anyway back to the big picture.
Then as now, the League was all about going forward, scoring goals, action, it was what we wanted, we used to sing it.
Attack, attack, attackattackattack.
In Italy they had sweepers, sometimes in front of a back 4, sometimes behind, libreros, false number nines...not unknown, Don Revie was one in the late 50s, Young and Vernon sometimes took turns at it, but it was rare.
The short version was that although we had defenders, we didnt know how to defend, how to close the game down away from hope. The cliched KITAP1
So, I hear you say, how do you explain Celtic and United winning the Eupopean Cup in 67 & 68.
Foreign teams can peak and need rebuilding too, poor form and injuries, even though we might not admit it and only happens to us, it doesnt it happened
The Inter and Benfica teams had peaked
Plus it has to be said Celtic and United were good teams with some great players...5yrs later united were getting relegated stuff happens
But the main reason is. Teams learned to defend, not a lot, but some.
In 63 we played a slightly modified 2:3:5 a type of 3:3:4,
By the 66 cup final we had gone to a true back 4 of Wright, Labone, Harris, Wilson. Sheffield Wed started the 2nd half with a sweeper infront of a back 4...look and see.
Ramsey's 4:3:3 wingless wonders had beaten the ( maybe) technically superior Germans
By 1972 the technically competant but only average Poles had knocked England out of the world cup. The world game had moved on from the 1st Division game without telling us again.
The demands of the 1963 1st Division and the 2019 Premier League are still at odds with Europe and the world...just ask Harry Catterick, just ask Pep.
As always...just sayin like.
