It’s not ineffective. It’s just as effective as possession based or tiki-taka if not more. Plenty of teams still utilise route one. When a team needs a goal with little time left they still usually go back to the long ball, because it is effective.

The problem lies in that it is more risky as well. While you get the ball in dangerous areas faster, your chance of giving it to the other team drastically increases also.

Possession based takes longer and produces less chances but if you are good at it you can minimise completely your opponents chance to score