I've always like McT, even when he was not used in his favored role (which is most of the time). I don't think anyone could ever doubt his commitment and his grit. Even when morale was low he showed he was playing for the shirt, having come through the academy he knows the history he represents. I think what's happening now is RR is coaching McT to do specific things, or more likely, to leave certain things for other players. McT's liability has been playing him as a 6, or pairing him with someone else who is also not a DM, and expecting the two of them to come up with a 6 and an 8 performance magically. In the 4231 system he was encouraged to not make vertical passes, and that was a frequent criticism of him on the Cafe. Under RR, vertical is being drilled as the first option and it's making all the difference.
First half Brentford were good, it wasn't just us being disorganized. Brentford has given a lot of top teams a proper game, and we just weren't at the races in the first half. 2nd half, McTominay was a thoroughbred out there. People have written off his first touch and his passing, and yet 2nd half he's nipping through players with the ball and releasing attackers with precise long passes. He's got the stuff, it's the system that has been holding him back. Which is not to say he's Iniesta, but he's a good player and we might be getting to see him hit a higher gear than he has so far, with RR's coaching.