None of us should be caught up in one league defeat to Manchester City and we should never take pre-season too seriously. I think things will get better and I also think that the midfield trio of Romeo Rabia, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez will be a good option in some games. ~ can work.
But overall, I am convinced that Enzo Maresca will have to leave out one of his ‘star’ players when selecting his starting lineup going forward.
And by star players, I mean Caicedo and/or Fernandez, two of the most expensive players on our team.
Look, we have a lot of games, we play against different types of opponents, so sometimes we need Caicedo, sometimes we need Fernandes, and sometimes we need Rabia, Caicedo, and Fernandes. Rotation can be key in many games. But generally, I don’t think all three can start together because the midfield is clearly lacking in balance.
Fernandez playing as a 10 is crazy to me. He has played the best football of his career, winning the World Cup and the Copa America for Argentina, usually playing as a 6 in a double pivot. And then you take away one of our true 10s playing there and what they can bring to the position, namely Christopher Nkunku.
I also think yesterday’s full starting 11 lacked balance and lacked attacking threat in wide areas, but the key to a successful team is the midfield.
I think our midfield also lacks toughness, but I think that’s more of a personnel issue than a tactical one.
But Rabia has to start. That’s clear to me. He’s the best midfielder we have, so the balance of the midfield should be built around him. I criticized Rabia’s defensive side, but I think it might be a bit harsh from my point of view. He’s still so young, so I think he can improve and improve. Physically, he’ll join the fight, improve his tackling timing and technique, and concede less fouls.
Maresca would probably do better with a 4-3-3 rather than a 4-2-3-1, but again, that’s not ideal at all, because we’re expecting more attackers now, and a 4-3-3 leaves them out of position. But the same goes for Fernandes at No. 10.
I don’t know the solution, and that’s a big problem for Maresca to figure out. He knows how he wants to play. But as I’ve said for weeks, I’m really worried about the composition of the players we have. How do we put them all in? How do we get the best players on the pitch and play in the best positions? Because that’s what we have to do. And we have to sort out the overall balance.
I’m not going to slam Maresca here, but I’m going to point out a few points. I’m definitely going to give Maresca time. And it’s going to take time. I didn’t know he’d figure it out until Game 1. But I’m really curious to see how he handles this situation and how he sets things up.
