Antonio Conte turning to Cesc Fabregas to see out Chelsea’s title run

Ninety minutes of football revolved around Cesc Fabregas at Stamford Bridge last night. The Chelsea midfielder is coming through for Antonio Conte to ensure Chelsea finish the season as champions.

Cesc Fabregas or Nemanja Matic? That has been one of the few lineup choices Antonio Conte has had throughout this season. Against Middlesbrough, with Kante unavailable due to injury, Conte had no choice. Fabregas and Matic lined up in midfield and delivered one of the most complete performances of Chelsea’s season.

Matic played his usual role perfectly, capping the evening with his second goal in four games. Fabregas went beyond excelling in his usual role as playmaker. On top of two assists – bringing his recent tally to four assists in three games – Fabregas dominated the entire run of play and added the defensive component which he has long been accused of lacking.

Fabregas looks like an ink-blot on Chelsea’s pass-map. He completed 96 passes – more than any other player attempted. He exchanged the most passes (24) with Cesar Azpilicueta, but also found Eden Hazard 16 times and Diego Costa and Pedro 10 times each. He completed at least one pass to every Chelsea player except 81st-minute substitute Nathaniel Chalobah and goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

His passes to Hazard and Costa sent the forwards in behind Middlesbrough’s defence with the ball landing perfectly at their feet. He denied Middlesbrough any ability to defend his passing. If they played out, he would send a perfectly-weighted pass over their backline. If the defenders sat deep, he would slip a through-ball to bring Chelsea’s attack within 10 yards of the goal line.

Cesc Fabregas made two tackles on three attempts – the same figure as his defensively-minded partner Nemanja Matic. His movement and agility off the ball – whether on offence or defence – may have been a step behind N’Golo Kante, but were far above his reputation as a sit-back-and-wait service provider.

Antonio Conte made Fabregas a symbol of the entire club this season.

"This development of Cesc is our development. We started the season not in the right way, with a lot of problems, and only through hard work and finding the right solutions together have we found the right way. I think Cesc is showing he is a fantastic player and I’m pleased for him. I saw this season he put himself in this team in every moment if he played, or if he didn’t play. Now he is deserving this. – Chelsea FC"

Conte’s reluctance to play Fabregas earlier in the season puzzled many Chelsea watchers. Fabregas consistently made an impact, even when he came on as a late substitute. Nemanja Matic bounced between mediocre and counter-productive for much of the season, making Fabregas’ exclusion even more baffling.

Antonio Conte’s recent preference for Fabregas and Fabregas’ performance raises the possibility that Conte kept him in reserve for the final run-in. Conte would have recognized that Fabregas is not like N’Golo Kante or Cesar Azpilicueta. Fabregas cannot sustain high levels of performance for 30+ complete games per season. If Conte wanted one of his most experienced, creative and masterful players in peak condition for the final run to the title, he would need to keep him on the bench early in the season.

Fabregas had a limited but important role in Chelsea’s 13-game winning streak. He started only four of the games that gave Chelsea a comfortable margin atop the table. In Chelsea’s last 10 Premier League games Fabregas has six starts, two goals and four assists.

Next: Nemanja Matic leads Chelsea player ratings in win over Middlesbrough

Cesc Fabregas is not the player a manager brings on to see out a game with a comfortable lead. But showing his long-range vision and trust in Fabregas, Conte is now turning to him to see out their season to a Premier League title.