Did it? I think the pragmatic approach lead to a result that we all enjoyed and celebrated, but there wasn't really anything about it as an approach that hinted at more. It was a one shot deal, playing compact defensive football and countering at speed, but nothing about it was sustainable, and nor should it be for what the club aspires to be.
The only thing that was encouraging about the approach was Ten Hag finally showing some nous in how he countered his opponent and getting such a disciplined defensive performance out of everyone. He does deserve credit for that.
But as I say, it was a one off performance in circumstances where you could understand why he took that approach. His job this season is to start building an identifiable way of playing that utilises the strengths of his players and creates a cohesive approach across the team.
For me, I was quite strongly ETH out by the end of last season, but after the decision was made to keep him I put that aside and wished for it to start coming together. As with last season I understand some of the mitigating factors coming into this season. But everything is still so chaotic and fragmented. As abject as that last game was, I'd still have not felt too negative towards him had I not seen that response to the journo in the post-match presser. A laundry list of complaints we all have, and his response isn't to try and explain what he's trying to achieve or explain how the team are working to improve, it's to act like a condescending prick. If that's his response to valid concerns about what we see on the pitch, it shatters any belief I have that he can be self-critical and question his own approach.