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Issue is I think he does too.
His positioning is really bad at times.
But, again, a bit of a baffling decision from Carlo to play Davies right side of the three and Allan central.
Allan wants to go and press and hassle, and Davies has done well sitting, so just keep it simple. It's like Carlo's got it in his head that we signed Allan for one job (that isn't really his best role) and will insist on playing him there, when actually, we had the chance not to.
We should have played 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 today. But, whatever. Allan wasn't great. Our midfield is crap. It doesn't offer anything going forward and today it got strolled through. It's a worry.
Over to Brands. Again. If he's still here, to sort it out.
It's not even pace, it's that he just goes chasing the ball.
It's mad that we've seen Davies play well in a sitting role recently and yet Carlo's decided to play the two of them in roles that really aren't getting the best out of either of them.
Davies should be in that position today. Play Allan right and if it means Gomes left in a 3, fine, or play 4-2-3-1 if he really wanted to try Iwobi at 10.
But ffs, just never, ever play that diamond again, pls Carlo.
billyblue80
Player Valuation: £70m
Doesn't look sharp or fully fit yet was at fault for their second goal and looked slow. But understandable when he has been out so long.
Carlito
Player Valuation: £40m
Davies gets dispossessed too easily to be the one taking the ball from the defence.
But he's done it just fine for the last 2 months?
It's all about position of receiving the ball. When he received it today, he was in the right channel. He got it stuck in his feet but it was a bad pass from Keane. Davies should do better, yes, but he didn't have any other passing option on other than Holgate, and a Burnley player was pushing on him too.
He should do better, but he's not done that once when playing as the six. And it's because he has more options. He can go either side.
Burnley hassled him today in that instance, and he hesitated and we got done. It was a crap pass from Keane and dreadful defending from then on, too.
We looked better with Davies and Allan in a two and then for some reason Carlo took Davies off and left Gomes, who was hopeless again, on.
billyblue80
Player Valuation: £70m
Doucoure is a huge miss, only one with the athleticism you need to go box to box
Rooney_Tunes
Player Valuation: £40m
Looked unfit and looked lost without Doucoure which is a massive worry. Also Ancelotti insistence on substituting Davies while leaving Iwobi and Gomes on the pitch is strange. Just all round poor today
Carlito
Player Valuation: £40m
He ran around making a nuisance of himself in the United, Tottenham and Liverpool games.
If he's a regular in your team, you're going nowhere.
I mean, he played one of the most disciplined midfield roles I've seen any of our midfielders play this season in that Liverpool game.
He's better at sitting than Allan, because Allan doesn't sit. Davies does. But he doesn't - odd moment aside with his cross tonight - offer enough going forward. He is very apt at getting the ball in the middle of the park and playing it off, though. And Allan wants to get about the pitch and hassle. If you're playing a three in midfield, which we were, kind of, then you have that sitter in the middle, and the ones either side have the licence to push, press, hassle and get on the ball and get forward - with the players we currently have available, Davies is better suited to doing the one which requires less athleticism and energy, and is more about keeping things simple, and Allan is the one better off trying to get forward - look at that pass he plays for DCL, or that great run he had through the heart of Burnley's midfield in the first half.
We're wasting him playing him as the deeper one, especially when we've seen Davies do that job relatively well during a difficult period.
Carlito
Player Valuation: £40m
If Davies had a quicker feet or a decent range of passing, I'd agree with you, but even this recent spell of improved form has really just been an uptick in enthusiasm.
Judging by their attributes, Gomes should be the 'best of a bad bunch' pick in that role, but there's no point believing that he's ever going to string two decent halves together, never mind games.
A quality manager like Ancelotti will get a tune out of most of the players in this squad, but not the centre midfielders. They're truly hopeless.
But we don't need him, right now, to have an incredible passing range, because our full-backs aren't getting forward (well, one of them isn't) and we were playing a diamond, meaning there's no width. So all the 'sitter' has to do is get it, and pass it on. Nothing fancy. Just get it, give it, and have multiple options when he gets it.
That's what it's about. And Gomes isn't, because he slows everything down too much, whereas Davies, for his many faults, generally tries to play quickly - which is where our goal comes from.
Unfortunately, Carlo has to look at himself. He's making some bizarre decisions even when taking into account our injury issues.
The key to playing Burnley - and ffs, I know this - is stretching them with pace. Spurs did it last week and were 2-0 up in 15 mins. Yes, they have some world class talent, but we also have quick players up front.
Why not play 4-3-3, and get King, Richarlison and Dom turning their defence early on? Get them on the back foot and keep them pressed in. Have Allan and Gomes (because we have nobody else) pushing up and Davies sitting. Let Allan fight fires and hope Gomes can get on the ball a bit.
It's all about being pragmatic. We're better skipping out the midfield, so just do it, and get the ball into three players up top and look to build from there.
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