I almost would've been tempted (just for this game) to suggest they played a system that THEY felt comfortable with...
Just to get them through the match...
Rather than asking them to play some tippy tappy nonsense on the 6 yard line that NONE of them were capable of, or comfortable with!
Dier and Davies playing their preferred football would be like watching the 3 stooges. Neither of them are good enough for a top half premier league team. I don't think either ever have been.
They're both far too reactive in matches. Actually, it's worse than that, as they don't even react in most cases. Back off, stand up, hope for the best.
They'll get blocks and deflections in, but they don't hunt the ball and they don't move to make tackles. They let opposition players come at them and even then it's probably less than 50/50 they'll try to make a tackle rather than just hope that being in the way is enough.