The thing is Ste he had the bloody players available to play in the correct system.
Why can't we go 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1 because that's the squad of players we have capable of playing it
Lennon, Mirallas, Lookman and Vlasic all offer width, direct running, pace and/or trickery. As soon as Vlasic came on Baines'game improved massively ( I'll say this quietly but he looked as close to a Pienaar replacement as I've seen in a long time with his great close control, willingness to cut in but also double up with Baines ). Mirallas or Lookman would have helped Kennys game 10fold. Pick one if Idrissa and Morgan and one of Davies or Davy and that's the midfield 2 and then up top Gylfi or Rooney behind Lewin or Sandro right up top with Lewin or Rooney up top with Lewin
You pick a side according to what you have available, not shoehorn every player intoba system that continues to look flawed time and time again.
Awful management of this squad this season
What a good wide player does is force the opposition to double team him to shut him down, for a player like Baines that creates so much space and time that he can do serious damage, then they are left in trouble about what to do defensively - ie make them think about what they are doing, something we don't make the opposition do anywhere near enough.
I'd say you can even play Davies wide right to help Kenny, but a big caveat is that he needs to be starting from wide and then cutting in rather than what we always do lately which is playing them isndie having to go outside - it makes a massive difference both offensively and defensively to how effective they are.
The squad is far from perfect but right now we have a manager making it look much worse than the sum of its parts when his job is frankly to do the opposite.
Is it stubbornness or what i have no idea, but what it does remind me of is the last season of Martinez - when he would stubbornly stick to things that aren't working - and even when he made changes that improved us in a game, the very next game it would be back to what he set up for last game - almost a trying to force his ideas to work despite the evidence it doesn't, for certain managers yeah - they have the track record of doing that, this one doesn't - all his major turning points in a season - both at Saints and at us - actually came about with a change in system.
Was very on the fence about Rooney - but think it was a huge mistake on current evidence - the manager is playing him regardless of the effect on the shape, and seems unwilling or unable to drop him and see what happens
Be surprised if Koeman lasts out the season frankly and i would hope that behind the scenes we have already sounded out certain available managers in case this form/style continues
