I agree with the philosophy of not giving possession away. But that is not the same as keeping it at all costs. The trouble with these philosophies is that Enzo works on a blackboard and invents situations that his methods can solve. Out on the pitch it's different. Players are dealing with real-life situations. They are faced with 11 unpredictable human opponents who most likely will not kindly conform to Enzo's predictions. That's why players have to be able to think for themselves and react to an ever-changing scenario before them. If Mavididi, Fatawu or Vardy are in acres of space why not make one 50 yard pass while they are free rather than take 32 aimless passes because the manager has told you that that the 50 yard pass is against his philosophy.
I wonder if Enzo suffers too much from Pep emulation syndrome. When you have worked with someone like Pep who has turned a very ordinary Manchester City team into a world class outfit, it must be very easy to think that his way is the only way. But even Pep had to adapt his initial rigid approach after the first couple of years. To be honest, if I'd been a Man City fan I'm not sure I could have bothered paying to watch the dull, soulless and predictable stuff they churned out in that time. Fast forward to now and things have changed, but at a cost that Leicester City can only dream about. We don't have the same financial luxury, but we do have a team with some very talented and capable players. We have a team that is very close-knit, and that is very much down to the manager and the success he has brought after last season's debacle. These players need nurturing and encouragement as well as guidance to get them to the next level. What they don't need is over-management and a feeling of being stifled.
Hopefully we see 2 more games this season with the team approaching them in the same way as the Southampton game, and the manager being pleased with what he sees.