Sorta true though in the sense that I believe the 2014-15 squad was better than the 2015-16 squad. Tevez and Vidal were phenomenal, Morata was blooming, still had Pirlo too... the 4-3-1-2 and the 3-5-2 we played didn't really have a single weak spot, aside from maybe Evra and Pirlo who were still both fantastic players. Last year we signed a bunch of great young players, but the lack of Vidal, Tevez, Pirlo etc. really showed at the start of the season and a bit in the CL. But then again, who knows what would have happened with Marchisio, Dybala and Chiellini fit.....
We certainly didn't go backwards though, as Rugani, Dybala, Zaza and Sandro are all signing for the future with great upsides. I'd do with these transfers decisions any day though, as you need to transform the squad with a big hand time to time to keep up.