I have the feeling he deployed a back-3 because of the personnel. Kounde was out, Sergi Gomez transferred, while Fernando was injured. That left us with only Rekik & Gudelj, who weren’t gonna play the full 90min. But it also gave a chance to Lope to see how well Jose Angel & Pablo Perez were on the defensive side of the game. I know how much Pablo has been itching to bomb forward, but these games has seen other aspects of his game tested.
But despite all that, I think Lope just wanted the W.
Yeah I also think it was imposed because of the circumstances, but Ocampos was always left alone to do the grunt work on defense.
How about this for a 3-4-2-1:
Zouma - Boateng - Carlos
Navas Fernando Rakitic/Oscar Acuna
Suso Papu/Ocampos
YEN
It would be a pity to have Ocampos on a similar role like last night vs. PSG as that would hinder his attacking capabilities - he’d have to cover back and spend a lot of energy on the defense especially against stronger teams, which we are aspiring to beat this time around.
It’s not only Hakimi, he is definitely one of the best, but any decent modern full back would cause issues on the wing if you don’t have a proper full back like Acuna to match them - and there are many of those both in La Liga and CL.
I’m sure Lope will play a back-3 at some point this season, but not enough. I don’t typically like back-3s cause sometimes i want more men forward then just staying back in defense.
I think Ocampos is 1 bad scoring season away from being converted into a modern wing-back.
Why not… if he doesn’t score and doesn’t show much productivity as a winger then he better get used to it. He was quite unhappy marking Hakimi there as it was shown last night he was shouting for cover on defense… a bit spoiled character to be honest, but as long as he’s productive it’s ok.
That is exactly what I had in mind if the squad is at full strength. Tried it in Football Manager with Carlos flanked by Sergi Gomez and Kounde on the sides to decent effect, also tried playing Fernando with Carlos and Kounde if I wanted to control possession like Chelsea. Acuna and Navas on the flanks coupled with Rakitic and a baller winner in the middle of the park. The two spots behind the striker would allow the stable of attacking midfielders to actually see the pitch once in a while, Papu Suso Lamela Torres Ocampos and Oscar can all play there. The striker needs to be fast and mobile, perfect for YEN and Ocampos in stretches. Hope there is a plan for that along the road.
Productive as in 19/20 or 20/21?
19/20 !