Football isn't, and never has been, completely to do with what you do when in possession. This has become more of a feature since the game has increased in pace: as a result of better pitches and an increasing emphasis on sports science.. The game's increasingly to do with what you do when you haven't got the ball, which is why the best footballing side of the generation (Barcelona) worked tirelessly on winning the ball back within three seconds - notwithstanding the peerless technical ability of their players.All the modernists have followed suit, including Klopp in spells at Dortmund and Liverpool. If you replace Matt Done, you have to replace him with someone who gives us what he does out of possession - he is absolutely integral to what we do out of possession.Clarke and Lavery don't have the fitness nor, in Clarke's case, the athleticism to replace these qualities. You are therefore altering the very nature of our team when out of possession. Unless, of course, you replace like for like and find a player who does what he does without the ball and offers much more with the ball (more goals, better technical ability). A great recent example, is Liverpool under Rodgers. They had Suarez and Sterling, who they replaced with the vastly different Benteke and Balotelli. Their pressing game evaporated the following season, they weren't the same side who were winning the ball back high up the pitch. Klopp, in contrast, gives a bit part role to arguably his best goalscorer, Sturridge, because of his lack of appetite for the pressing game He has also jettisoned Benteke and Balotelli for similar reasons.The team is fundamental - if it is functioning pretty effectively you have to be careful when altering the balance. This includes personnel changes.
There are times when this approach is not the best one to take. The Chesterfield game is a really good example. They defended deep and packed the centre of the pitch with a narrow midfield - forcing us wide. They often went long, negating our pressing somewhat. They believed that counterattack was the way to go - passing out from the back was suicide against our pressing. They were determined not to let our technicians influence the game through the centre of the pitch, and were resolved to let us cross the ball to Sharp and Done. They fancied bigger lads would beat in the air (they were proved right for a while). Leon Clarke would surely have been more impactful than Done in this game - his aerial threat would have posed more problems than our high pressing game? Well played Wilder, who consistently sees problems and adapts when necessary.
