Ahead of the away leg against Tottenham, nobody doubted that New Manchester United would rely on defensive counterattacking football.
Some even predicted that, with a three-goal advantage, the Red Rebels would retreat completely and defend for their lives.
Mourinho's team instead delivered a vivid demonstration that defending did not necessarily mean parking the bus in front of goal.
A side could defend aggressively and control space much higher up the pitch.
Mourinho made few changes to his starting lineup.
Drogba remained the lone striker, with Olić and Hleb on the wings.
The greatest surprise was that Malouda had not even travelled with the squad.
Juninho, Essien, and Alou Diarra formed the midfield.
Senna was suspended for accumulated yellow cards, but few believed his absence would significantly weaken New Manchester United defensively.
Alou Diarra was also an excellent player, particularly without the ball.
The back four, from left to right, consisted of Abidal, Terry, Curtis, and Touré.
It was New Manchester United's first-choice defence that season, with Čech in goal.
As though determined to emphasise his defensive intentions, Mourinho named Bosingwa, Evra, and Hangeland among the substitutes.
Almunia was the reserve goalkeeper, while De Rossi occupied the final place on the bench.
Mourinho had not even selected a substitute striker.
One glance at the teamsheet was enough to understand that he intended to defend.
What nobody expected was how high New Manchester United would set their defensive line.
The Red Rebels sought to control the match through midfield.
Juninho, Essien, and Alou Diarra were joined by Olić and Hleb, who repeatedly dropped back and operated more like wide midfielders.
Together, those five players crowded the centre of the pitch.
Drogba remained alone up front, but covered an enormous amount of ground.
He stayed close to Tottenham's two centre-backs and prevented them from passing the ball forward comfortably.
Behind him, New Manchester United's midfielders ran relentlessly, closing passing lanes and using their numerical advantage to compress Tottenham's attacking space in selected areas.
Once Tottenham lost control in one part of the pitch, the effect spread across their entire attack.
Unable to break through New Manchester United's defensive structure during the first half, Spurs were eventually forced to play long balls over the top.
Their forwards, however, were not especially quick.
Nor did they possess an advantage in height or aerial ability.
That made the approach relatively easy for New Manchester United to defend against.
Hoddle had expected a one-sided match.
In reality, while New Manchester United showed little attacking ambition, Tottenham never truly controlled the game.
The tempo in particular was dictated by the visitors, with Spurs repeatedly dragged into playing at the Red Rebels' pace.
Hoddle found that deeply frustrating.
He knew his team's weakness.
Tottenham lacked attacking power, particularly pace and penetration in the final third.
By contrast, Drogba alone was enough to place their entire defence under considerable pressure.
Mourinho's tactics completely neutralised Hoddle's approach.
The Tottenham manager made several substitutions, but none changed the pattern of the match.
He could only watch helplessly as the minutes passed and the game ended in a dull 0-0 draw.
Tottenham had failed to win at home.
Hoddle had also failed to deliver the comeback he had promised.
After the match, the London media criticised him heavily.
They described his tactics and in-game management across both legs as extremely poor and accused him of allowing a Premier League side to be thoroughly outmanoeuvred by lower-league opposition.
Tottenham's limited attacking ability was already well known.
Their forward play had been unimpressive for the previous two seasons.
What nobody expected was for their defence to look so vulnerable.
Had New Manchester United not focused almost entirely on protecting their advantage and committed more players forward, Tottenham might easily have suffered another 3-0 defeat.
Mourinho could only sympathise with Hoddle over such criticism.
He understood perfectly well that if New Manchester United had genuinely attempted to play an expansive counterattacking game at White Hart Lane, they might have been the side to lose.
Even so, the Red Rebels' method of defending through spatial control fascinated many tactical analysts.
Tottenham had rarely been able to face New Manchester United's goal directly because the moment they crossed the halfway line, the available space around them disappeared.
Off-the-ball movement in attack was commonplace.
Using coordinated off-the-ball movement defensively, then combining it so effectively with spatial control, was far less common.
New Manchester United's defensive performance had been exceptional.
The media, however, always preferred exaggeration, particularly in London.
Several newspapers described the result as a triumph for conservative football and claimed New Manchester United's progress had been ugly.
Martin Tyler, now a devoted Red Rebels supporter, strongly rejected that argument in his column.
He wrote that a League Two club reaching the League Cup final was a magnificent achievement.
As for accusations of excessive caution, what did the critics expect?
Should New Manchester United have exchanged attacks openly with Tottenham?
That would not have represented tactical progress.
It would have been foolishness.
Tyler also encouraged those attacking New Manchester United to watch them in League Two and discover what relentless attacking football truly looked like.
The club's supporters had recently coined a phrase for their style.
Wave Attacks.
New Manchester United's attacks came one after another, like waves breaking against the shore.
They were powerful and intense, yet remained compact and rhythmical.
That style was built on coordinated movement.
Every player remained connected to those around him and moved as part of the same unit.
Whether advancing or retreating, the entire team operated with a clear rhythm.
New Manchester United were also highly skilled at identifying weaknesses through pre-match analysis and in-game observation.
Once they found one, they repeatedly attacked it, using wave after wave of pressure to overwhelm the opposition.
Martin Tyler's column attracted widespread attention.
Several broadcasters and newspapers invited tactical experts to discuss New Manchester United's system.
Those analysts praised the team's football highly, but, like Tyler, they also identified a weakness.
New Manchester United sometimes struggled to maintain the connection between Drogba when he dropped deep and the midfield behind him.
Several experts even offered tactical advice to Blackburn ahead of the League Cup final.
They suggested targeting the space between New Manchester United's centre-forward and midfield.
That area, they claimed, was the throat of the Red Rebels' attack.
Cut it off, and the entire team would suffocate.
...
Mourinho was deeply irritated to see his tactics dissected so thoroughly by the media.
He had already noticed that more League Two opponents were beginning to use three holding midfielders against New Manchester United.
Some even combined three defensive midfielders with three centre-backs.
He could not criticise them simply for being conservative.
Defensive football was still football, and those teams had successfully disrupted New Manchester United's attack.
Their main objective was to sever the link between Drogba and the midfield.
Once that connection disappeared, the Red Rebels were forced to rely on long passes toward Drogba or the wings, significantly reducing the efficiency of their attacking play.
New Manchester United's usual midfield consisted of Juninho alongside two defensively minded players selected from Senna, Essien, and Alou Diarra.
Besides protecting Juninho, those two midfielders formed a barrier in front of the defence and made the back line considerably more secure.
That was one of the main reasons New Manchester United had such a strong defensive record.
However, selecting two defensive midfielders also meant the team lacked a runner capable of breaking forward through the centre.
That weakness had already contributed to several draws and defeats that season.
Since the second leg against Tottenham, New Manchester United had played five league matches.
They had won 2, drawn 2, and lost 1.
For a side attempting to win the title, that was a poor return.
The League Cup final against Premier League Blackburn was also approaching.
Although Blackburn were suffering from an injury crisis and would be missing several important players, they remained a top-flight side.
They would not repeat Tottenham's mistakes.
"You were right, Boss," Mourinho said with a bitter smile.
"Nothing good comes from having every tactical detail examined by the media."
The mood around the squad had become increasingly serious.
That was partly due to New Manchester United's disappointing recent form.
Every opponent now seemed to understand their weaknesses before the match even began, making each fixture considerably more difficult.
Mourinho was under growing pressure, particularly with Brentford, Brighton, and Reading closing the gap behind them.
One wrong decision could undo an entire season's work.
"I think Martin Tyler is right," Cassell said.
"We lack a midfielder who can break forward from deep.
"If we had someone like that, our attacking play would become more varied and far more dangerous.
"But we don't currently have that kind of player."
Mourinho drew a revised formation on a sheet of paper.
Drogba remained at centre-forward.
Two wingers played either side of him, with an attacking midfielder behind.
Deeper in midfield were two players, one responsible for distribution and the other for holding his position defensively.
The back four remained unchanged.
"Neither Juninho nor Senna is suited to playing as the attacking midfielder," Cassell continued, pointing toward the diagram.
"The player in that role needs the individual ability to carry the ball through the centre.
"He must be able to retain possession under pressure and have enough pace to match the tempo of our attacks."
Perhaps I should bring Kaká back in the summer, Ethan thought.
Kaká's ability to dribble and surge through the centre seemed perfectly suited to New Manchester United's system.
He was quick, combined intelligently with his teammates, and could fill the tactical gap almost perfectly.
Drogba leading the line.
Kaká bursting forward behind him.
Cristiano Ronaldo on the left and Messi on the right.
It would be an extraordinary collection of talent.
What a sight that would be.
But Kaká was not an option yet.
That could only happen in the summer.
For now, Ethan needed to solve the immediate problem of facing Blackburn.
At that moment, a vivid example from his previous life suddenly came to mind.
(To be continued.)
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◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)