Ironically, Mourinho's attempt to deny Vilanova's rightful place as one of the architects of what is clearly one of the most dominant teams in football and sports history in some ways placed Vilanova on the scene and got all sorts of people talking about the then relatively unknown assitant in Pep Guardiola's shadow. Yet several months into Vilanova's tenure as head coach, Mourinho's comments in some ways ring truer than ever. That is, it is still not entirely clear where Guardiola's team ends and where Vilanova's begins or ends. On some level this season's Barça seems to be an uninterrupted continuation of the team that had coalesced around Guardiola's leadership. The names are certainly very similar and, although it may be too short of a time frame to establish a pattern, the outcome of play would also appear to continue to follow the same overarching themes that so clearly mark a before and after for world football. While it is definitely too soon to tell, the results (i.e. the actual wins and losses, not to to be confused with the outcome of play) would also appear to be headed in a similar direction. In short, the team appears faithful to it's recent past.
The short exposure time aside, I would argue that thus far there is at least one clear and definite sign of Vilanova's vision. The incorporation of Alex Song into the defensive line takes the adaptation of Javier Mascherano from defensive midfield into the back four out of the 'emergency measures' camp and stakes a clear claim to a strategic innovation. Transforming defensive midfielders into defenders is not something that comes without important risks and Barça have suffered on counter attacks because of Mascherano's lack of certain 'craftsmanship' skills inherent in playing defensive back (timing, closing down attackers at speed, etc.). The positions are completely different not only in terms of the responsibilities associated with each but also with the technique that is necessary to play one or the other spot. While many teams in the past have made similar moves out of necessity, it is another thing altogether to consciously go out and hire a player that at Arsenal lived to make runs from the center of the field forward to effectively anchor the defense. Playing with two mids-come-defenders is an important strategic innovation because it places the opposing teams' forwards up against the center line and further reduces the space available to a team looking to counter against Barcelona. That is, playing without traditional defenders has the effect of eliminating the back line (in the sense of a traditional 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3) and transforming the posture of Barça's strategy into something that looks more like a 0-5-5. While on some level these formation numbers are just that, mere numbers, and on the field Song and Mascherano 'play' as defenders, my argument is that systematizing the mentality and play of a central midfielder (a number 5 in the traditional sense) completely transforms the role of the defensive backs and has the intended of effect of pushing the team further up the field and continually placing the offside line at the half field line. Again, this in and of itself is not new, many teams in the past have used the offside trap as a system. The difference here, however, is what happens with errant or captured passes and how those balls are then transformed into genuine attacking opportunities for Barcelona.
It may be too soon to tell and things are likely to become clearer as the injured players make their return to the starting lineup. Either way, with every game that goes by we learn a little more about Vilanova.
