Red Bull Salzburg will be a great test for Frank Lampard and Chelsea

Chelsea heads to Austria for their second to last preseason game. Red Bull Salzburg will offer a good test for Frank Lampard and his players.

The Red Bull football empire is one of the most connected tactically in the world. They press incredibly aggressively and they seek to move the ball forward as quickly as possible. It may not always be pretty but it is often effective.

Frank Lampard’s Chelsea side plays in a similar way with an aggressive press and quick play through the opponent. At various degrees, the preseason opponents have tested Chelsea on and off the ball but no side will do it better than Salzburg now.

Coached by American Jesse Marsch, Salzburg will not just host Chelsea to warm into the season. They will be going for the win. Lampard will be able to test his tactics and some of his more fringe players against the Austrian side.

When Chelsea has the ball, they will be asked questions immediately. Marsch’s side press less organized than previous Salzburg manager Marco Rose’s (who, coincidentally, manages Chelsea’s last preseason opponent Gladbach) side, but they will still cause issues. Two players with something to prove from that will be Mason Mount and Ross Barkley.

Mount and Barkley have been by and far Chelsea’s best players this preseason. Lampard has hinted he can start both but a match like Salzburg could make or break that. How do those two handle the pressure?

That goes for the pivot too which could see N’Golo Kante feature for the first time this preseason. The remaining players are playing to partner the Frenchman and they too will be facing the pressure.

That is assuming that Lampard starts in a 4-2-3-1 as he has more often than not this preseason. 4-diamond-2 is a card in his sleeve and that would handle breaking through a press better but it would expose the fullbacks to a more direct assault.

And there still remains the question of a few fringe players. Salzburg is a good side that can make it deep in the Europa League nearly every season. That should be about the upper tier of what fringe Chelsea players should be able to handle. Depending on who Lampard takes with him to Austria, a few players may have a chance to squeak into the 25 man roster.

Perhaps more than anything, Salzburg is a great introduction to the style of play Gladbach will use in the next preseason match. And both are good preparation for Liverpool in the Super Cup. Lampard can use the matches to make the final tweaks to his tactics and his squad in preparation for the season. It is hard to tell what to expect from an Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Manchester United with a full preseason, but there is silverware on the line versus Liverpool (unlike the Community Shield, the Super Cup is not recorded as a friendly, but as a competitive match).

It is probably more coincidence than anything that Chelsea’s preseason evolved this way. The squad can take advantage to prepare themselves for the season and their first chance at silverware under a man who won most everything with Chelsea.