I know this is a contentious issue as there's always plenty of debate in our own player threads and matchday threads but as I don't particularly follow other leagues and therefore players outside of the PL are all fbs either good defensively or good going forward or are there some that can do both.
I'm referring to our lfbs in particular. They, either Moreno or Smith, are nearly always the furthest forward even without the ball but I see people constantly going on about not getting back or being out of position when the opposition attack but isn't it down to the other players to cover?
I don't recall Barca constantly leaking goals when Dani Alves was in the oppositions half. Or isn't that why people complain about ours?
Fishn is real right regarding Barca being technically able to keep possession but there is also slightly more to it.
In Barca's example the teams they play also have an inferiority complex to them and look to defend in numbers against their attacking threat and therefore don't look for the immediate 'Spring' in behind by keeping say 3-4 up the field or having the thought of quickly hitting them on the counter, their first thought is to always look behind them and be wary of what Barca could potentially do to them, their tactical set up wouldn't be to counter that as the immediate thought but to make sure they don't have gaps to attack if they(Barca) win it back early.
Over here one of the supposed selling points of the league is that anyone can beat anyone and that supporters expect that their team has a go. But if you watch most games then the 'smaller' sides tend to focus on one area to counter and if that be behind the full back or set piece, it is there.. There is less of an inferiority complex towards the top sides.
That's more of a recent thing, if you use Utd as an example at their pomp, Gary Neville was first and foremost a defender who developed an attacking side as he went through his career because teams did have an inferiority complex towards that Utd side and he knew he could go without the real worry of the opposition hitting behind him.
Now if you consider a lot of modern full backs, like ours in Moreno and Smith they tend to be converted wingers rather than out and out defenders like Carra or Neville, it literally takes a split second to switch off in turning round and getting back or being in the wrong position to defend (like Moreno in the penalty at Norwich) and they look daft. Pure defenders insitinctivly have that knowledge and judgement where unnatural converted full backs have learnt it later in life.
There is also a lack of top quality holding midfielders around currently in the Macherano style who have the legs to cover there and the brain to see it. Lucas has the brain but not the legs, Can has the legs but not the brain.
I saw Saturday actually though against Sunderland that our full backs had slightly different starting positions than in recent weeks, Clyne was a good 20 yards higher than Moreno on the other side, the idea that Moreno hit the overlap at pace making it even harder to defend against, the shame being his final ball needs a lot of work as he gets in the position but often doesn't pick the right ball out and we are being countered on.
It's a valid tactical approach but if as fishn said you lack the technical ability in the final third, whether that's in keeping the ball for long periods or in Moreno's case a really erratic final ball you leave yourself open to a counter especially when the opposition mindset is to take advantage of that like over here.
We just have to improve what we are doing and then that stops them turning us over, if the ball is in their net they can't counter us