The reason we got those 72 points and had such a great season was in part down to Martinez, with his injection of new players. The introduction of a new attacking mentality and style and also the emergence of young talent such as Barkley.
But at the same time this team and its new found attacking ethic was complemented by the well-drilled defensive mentality and attributes of the players. This hard-nosed defensive skill was learned the hard way on the training pitches under the Moyes regime, not pretty but effective...Lose the ball and drop back to 2 lines of four, protect the fullbacks and stop crosses into the box. Centre-backs knew their marking zones and responsibilities and the result was a wall that would do the Spartan defenders of Thermopylae proud.
Now all those defensive skills have been drilled out of them - we lose possession and the full backs still push high up the pitch - the wide midfielders do not drop in and support them, too often Barry and McCarthy get overrun in midfield and our centre back pairings have displayed an alarming lack of technique, communication and understanding.
That is why we struggle and that is why so many of us are angry - attacking flair is great to see but you have to have a defense and teamwork ethic to complement this.
Coaching (or lack of it), poor leadership and communication on the pitch and the total lack of tactical nouse to alter the shape and structure of the team in-game are the reason for our crap season.
