How will Chelsea line-up this weekend... and how should they?
- Oli Gent
- Aug 7, 2018
- 3 min read
This report was published on the Eurosport website. You can read it at: https://www.eurosport.co.uk/football/premier-league/2018-2019/how-chelsea-will-lineup-this-weekend-vs-how-they-should_sto6876776/story.shtml
There is reason for cheer at Stamford Bridge as the souring relationship with Italian Antonio Conte and the board was finally terminated.
A passionate, spectacled figure by the name of Maurizio Sarri takes the hotseat, fresh off the back of two second-placed finishes in Serie A with Napoli.
In his first job outside of his native Italy, it would only be natural for Sarri to need time to adjust to the English brand of the beautiful game, but he will be keen to put a fresher Italian stamp in west London as he guns for an instant return to the Champions League.
HOW CHELSEA WILL LINE-UP v HUDDERSFIELD
It seems only natural that in his first season, let alone his first game, that Sarri will use his 4-3-2-1 system that he excelled with at Napoli.
He recognised the abundance of pace he had at his disposal in the final third of the field and utilised it to devastating effect, with central striker Dries Martens bagging 22 goals and inside forwards Lorenzo Insigne and Jose Callejon 10 goals each.
At Chelsea, he would be aiming to revolutionise their front three, making use of the sheer speed of Eden Hazard and Willian, not to mention Alvaro Morata as a central striker.
His three in midfield would mean that through balls could be carved through the opposition’s defensive line for the Blues’ pacy forwards to chase with their runs in behind.
Brazil-born Italian Jorginho will sit deep and dictate the tempo from the safety of his own half, while the relentless N’Golo Kante will go hunting high up the pitch to pinch possession back quickly and recycle it to his more creative colleague Cesc Fabregas, who would be liberated to move further forward into more advanced and more dangerous areas.
BUT HOW SHOULD CHELSEA LINE-UP?
Sarri’s formation doesn’t need tweaking, but a couple of personnel need switching.
Cesar Azpilicueta is a tricky one as he can be a Marmite sort of player. He excelled in the back three despite his height and physical disadvantage but he was well covered by towering and strong figures of Andreas Christiansen, Gary Cahill and Antonio Rudiger.
In Sarri’s back four, Azpilicueta would have to re-adapt to being a right back again and would also face the face that, should he come up against a stronger, aerially imperious winger like Michail Antonio or Marco Arnautovic then he could be in trouble. Therefore, the quicker, stronger and all-round more athletic former winger Victor Moses would also add more of an attacking threat on the overlap, even taking into account Azpilicueta’s six assists last term.
The more composed Daniele Rugani is expected to sign from Juventus, and Sarri will be hoping to register him in time for the big kick-off after David Luiz's error-prone return in the Community Shield last Sunday.
Tiemoue Bakayoko also divides opinion, but when he did finally decide to turn up in a Blues shirt, he held the midfield strongly and ably shielded the back three with his physicality and aerial ability.
Those are two attributes he boasts over Jorginho, as well as being that bit quicker than the Italian. Sarri will pick his former Napoli colleague but he will miss that real physical presence in central midfield, which is where Bakayoko comes in handy.
That said, Chelsea will expect to have the greater share of possession in the vast majority of their games and thus may not need the physical beef in midfield when trying to win the ball back. Rodrigo would be the ideal complete forward for Sarri to replace the stuttering Alvaro Morata.
That said, Chelsea will expect to have the greater share of possession in the vast majority of their games and thus may not need the physical beef in midfield when trying to win the ball back. Rodrigo would be the ideal complete forward for Sarri to replace the stuttering Alvaro Morata.
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