Chelsea and Liverpool will square off in the International Champions Cup tonight. How will Antonio Conte line up his Chelsea side?
Chelsea take on Liverpool in the International Champions Cup where two of the brightest managers of recent times – Antonio Conte and Jurgen Klopp – will face off in a tactical battle. Antonio Conte, at last, has the whole Chelsea contingent on his hands after players returned from their post-Euro 2016 holiday and has taken a squad to the US which has a good balance of youth and experience.
A lot of debate has surrounded the type of formation Conte will be using at Chelsea. Will he try to replicate his successful formula at Juventus or will be go for a new approach with his new crop of players? A more immediate question, though, is how will he set up the team in a cup competition against Liverpool regardless of the fact that it is a friendly? Let’s get straight to it then.
Conte, in the previous two friendlies, projected an idea that he is inclined towards deploying the 4-2-4 which translates into a 4-4-2, especially when the team is on the back foot. Although he could tinker with the formation with a full deck of players at his disposal, he may be committed to the 4-2-4.
More from The Pride of London
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea player ratings: Abysmal, reckless, wasteful
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea: 3 Blues talking points
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 1 Blue Mauricio Pochettino should drop
- Bournemouth vs Chelsea: 3 Blues who must start
- Predicted Chelsea lineup vs Bournemouth: Palmer starts in 4-2-3-1
In the earlier two matches the Italian deployed many of the youth players, a sign that he is thinking of integrating them into his plans for the season.
With players like Eden Hazard, Willian and the new arrival N’Golo Kante joining the team, we can hope to see the first eleven that will be used for the majority of the season.
Sticking with the 4-2-4, one inclusion without question will be Eden Hazard on the left wing as he will be one of the pivotal players throughout the season. On the right wing, although many will be predicting Willian to fill up that role, Juan Cuadrado could be an outside choice.
Conte has been very vocal about the Colombian as he claimed that he wanted Cuadrado to come back to Chelsea. Both of the wingers should be able to provide pace and some intricacy in Chelsea’s forward play.
The midfield two is an interesting proposition, though. There can be many permutations and combinations. With the arrival of Kante, there are many possibilities. One surety is that Kante will be deployed as Conte will be ecstatic to use his prized possession as of this moment. With the Frenchman, the most likely partner is Cesc Fabregas as Conte needs Chelsea’s main playmaker on the pitch.
A Nemanja Matic-Kante combination is less likely for mainly two reasons. One: such a midfield duo will more likely be deployed if Chelsea want to play a holding game against Liverpool, which they shouldn’t. Secondly, it can only be done in a possible 4-3-3 (diamond) or maybe a five-man midfield if the Italian chooses to fiddle with the formation later in the season.
The four-man defence should be solid as Branislav Ivanovic is injured (sorry), with Cesar Azpilicueta in his natural right back position. The left back spot is up for grabs for both Baba Rahman and the youngster Ola Aina. The Chelsea academy product has shown immense potential and it won’t be a surprise if he gets a start today and competes for the role with Rahman during the season.
Next: Antonio Conte: Passion greater than “crazy” transfer fees, Matic to stay
The above picture will be showing the formation and the players in their roles. As it is a friendly Conte will have the luxury to experiment some players in certain positions, so those potential substitutes are named in brackets.