I don't think enough people make the connection between how bad we are on the ball and how bad that can make us look off the ball.
We lose the ball in easy possession so often it's embarrassing. So often under absolutely no pressure, poor passes, sloppy touches, team mates on a completely different wavelength so player makes a run in behind and the pass goes to feet and vice versa. Every loss of possession means a potential counter attack for the opposition, an opportunity for them to play the ball forward in behind our defence or into the channels, a chance for them to get the ball into our final third, a chance for them to win free kicks around our box, a chance for them to win corners.
Now we were terrible defending counter attacks under Ole this season, and the focus was always on how bad the midfield and defence are but there was never a question of why we gift so many counter attack opportunities to the opposition by losing the ball needlessly.
Every time we find ourselves under pressure or defending a set piece I find myself thinking "this all stems from X player losing the ball in easy possession 20 seconds ago".
Now all teams are guilty of being sloppy. But by elite team standards, the frequency of our basic errors is far too high. If we cut out the losses of easy possession by 50% that's so many less set pieces we'd have to defend. Of course we need to be better off the ball so we can win it back, but if you have to win the ball back (for example) 40 times a game instead of 80 times a game you'll be surprised how much more solid the midfield and defence look even if their efficiency in winning the ball back remains the same, they're simply being left exposed less often.
