Chelsea hosts Burnley after nearly a week off between games. The team is a throwback to old English teams and is a bit of a mystery.
In a way, Sean Dyche and Eddie Howe started the current trend of young English managers in the Premier League. Though they come from opposite ends of the spectrum, they showed that England had evolved from the old days and that the managers they produced had quality.
That being said, Dyche is still an old fashioned manager. His tactics and style come straight out of the 1990s though he has a few modern tweaks on them. They currently sit in 15th in the Premier League but no one really expects them to go down.
If nothing else, Burnley has an air of mystery about them. One season they can make the Europa League and the next they are in a relegation battle with the same squad. That can also happen week to week as well which is why Frank Lampard needs to keep his side mentally sharp after the rare layoff between matches.
Dyche always puts Burnley into a 4-4-2 or a 4-4-1-1 which for all intents and purposes are the exact same formation. He lives and dies by his strike duo converting with the eight behind them serving the role of supplying them with chances.
Burnley is defensively minded in that they will get into their shape before even considering making a play to win the ball back. They do not give up a great deal of chances and this match is sure to look a great deal like the match against West Ham last month.
Offensively it is all about the front two. Burnley is unafraid to play it direct to either and hope one can flick it on to the other through on goal. While Burnley may seem defensive, they are not too bad at creating chances when they do have the ball or at least drawing a foul for a set piece.
Given this is a style Chelsea has struggled with recently, Lampard has hopefully had the side practice third man runs and moving the ball at speed. Burnley is incredibly organized but they are still limited by the quality of their players. The faster Chelsea plays, the higher the chance someone on the other team makes an error.
On the same note, Chelsea needs to be wary of the long high balls in behind. Burnley is absolutely dominant in the air and historically Chelsea is very much not. Counters and set pieces have also been a weakness for Chelsea and Dyche is sure to have his side exploit the use of both.
Lampard will be looking for passion knowing that these are the types of games that bring this side down. With the January window open, the team will not want to further solidify the notion that better attackers are needed to break down the Burnley’s of the world. This is the team’s chance to show Lampard he can have some pause over immediate transfers.