The thing is that we have to look not just at this campaign but next year's and maybe the year after. Right now Marotta is cleaning up a mess. What if he's eyeing someone else in next year's market that plays the same spot as Diego?
Diego plays a prime position on the field and he's not a superstar. If we build the team around him then we are only going to go as far as he takes us. He can only play in one formation right? A 4-2-3-1. He tries in the 4-4-1-1 but I don't see him having success against teams that are better than Shamrock and Sturm Graz.
So if we have a player that can only play 4-2-3-1 and he is not a superstar then what do we really have?
This is a major point and I think this is getting overlooked. If we want to play 4-2-3-1 then we cannot buy a trequartista because Diego is there. If we want to play 4-4-2 then we can't buy a SS because Diego is there.
Basically, we have to play those formations with Diego there and we can't bring anyone else in. Now you have to ask yourselves is he good enough to prevent us from buying other players in those positions?
I hate to be negative toward a poster buddy, but there are several pretty big leaps you've taken above. Right now, we're about to sell Diego WELL below what we paid for him; even if we got 20M, we're still out 5M. That alone is poor business.
Beyond that, where did you get the idea that Diego can only play in one formation? That's simply not true.
Then you start talking about how the one position he can play is a 4-2-3-1, and say that if we want to buy a treq for that formation, then we can't because Diego is there... but you just said that's the position he can play. What?
Anyway, we're not going to be playing those formations... not with this coach.
Finally, I have no idea how you can say that you "don't see him having success against teams that are better than Shamrock and Sturm Graz" when it's the beginning of the year, he has a ton of new teammates, and he's adjusting to a new position. That's the very definition of a knee jerk reaction.
Edit: I edited this because I misinterpreted one of your points, but I still largely disagree with what you've said.
Edit#2: Mr. Beck, Bjerknes makes an excellent point about the 4-2-3-1 and the 4-4-1-1 being very similar formations, with some minor differences, such as the responsibilities for the wingers...