3. FALSE NINES AND INEPT FORWARDS
Mourinho’s tinkering with false nines have had mixed results; the latest setback being the 3-1 reverse at the Parc des Princes to PSG. The thing with false nines is that you always have an extra man to form passing triangles and one-twos, but the downside here is that as the intricacies go on, the man in the box goes missing. The opposition defense has a lot of head-scratching to do, but still they enjoy the comfort of not having to mark anyone specific.
One reason for Mourinho’s use of Schurrle as a false nine in big away games is the mysterious inability of his forwards to score. Fernando Torres and Samuel Eto’o would have cost a combined 100 million in their halcyon days, but their advancing years mean that they no longer remain potent as before. But results have shown why Mourinho shouldn’t prefer the false nine, even if it gives him an extra man in between the lines.