Chelsea: Frank Lampard should forego style to finish the season pragmatically

Although the loss against Manchester United was hardly the fault of Frank Lampard or his players, the Chelsea boss should be more pragmatic from this point on.

The game against Manchester United was a complete disaster. Not because Chelsea played poorly, but because everything that could have gone wrong, did. It all started with N’Golo Kante’s injury, followed by the absence of common sense by VAR during Harry Maguire’s challenge on Michy Batshuayi’s future kids. Then a disallowed goal, which should have been understood and awarded for what it was: a push on Cesar Azpilicueta.

Nevertheless, a loss is a loss regardless of the circumstances, and Frank Lampard knows that. He should take this turning point to abandon some of his expansive and forward-thinking tactics, and implement a more pragmatic approach to win more games until the end of the season.

Being more defensive and pragmatic could help the team in two different areas: preventing goals and forcing the strikers to be more efficient.

Chelsea have been conceding goals far too easily this campaign. With hardly any clean sheets and a lot of games lost due to lack of organization in the back, everyone is to blame. The center-backs, the fullbacks, the goalkeeper… everyone.

Applying a more pragmatic system that doesn’t involve playing out from the back, but rather attracting the opposition and hitting back on the counter, could be the perfect solution for the team.

And it would be something the team would be capable of implementing well. With Mason Mount pushing forward at all times and Tammy Abraham running at defenders or holding them back so the wingers could join, the Blues would find themselves with the advantage when they were on the attack, instead of doing everything to bog themselves down.

More importantly, this system will bring confidence to the defense. As it stands, Chelsea look shaky when any ball comes inside the box. There is always a mistake. Players forget who covers who and, if they do end up avoiding the defensive mistake by clearing the threat, it’s only to play out from the back, which risks a transitional mistake that an lead right to another defensive danger.

The current scheme puts all the responsibility on Antonio Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta to direct and cover for everyone. While the captain is very reliable on organization, Rudiger is not, as he often gets his positioning mixed up with someone else’s.

When it comes to playing a more counter-attacking game, Chelsea could prevent useless possession and put pressure on the strikers to score more goals.

Although the Blues have a different outlook on how to play the game this season, there are still some lingering tactics from last year. The Blues often find themselves passing the ball from side to side, or making five-yard passes, rather than just pushing forward quickly when the chance presents itself. This, of course, allows fr the opposition to regroup and stop most attacks.

Referring to the effectiveness, or lack thereof, in front of goal this season, the strikers need pressure, not more opportunities to fail. Tammy Abraham is the perfect example.

Although he has been absolutely amazing this season and has proven everyone wrong, he is still young and rough around the edges. With the current style of play, Abraham has received plenty of opportunities to score goals, but when it comes down to hitting those one-time shots from crosses, he has failed to deliver the final product. If Lampard implements a more counter attacking game, Abraham will be forced to be more clinical and not expect many more chances to come around. If Abraham wants the goal, he will need to bury his fewer, better shots.

That said, Lampard should play Olivier Giroud more often. He is the perfect player for a pragmatic system, as he is the one player who finishes the impossible chances.

Abraham is Lampard’s go-to striker in the big picture, but until the end of the season, he needs to learn, and there is no better teacher than a Premier League veteran.

Chelsea cannot afford to lose any more games anymore. It sounds like a broken record, but it is true, especially if the team wants to play in the Champions League next season.

More importantly, the Blues need to return Frank Lampard the vote of confidence he has bestowed upon every single player. He deserves another season, but he needs to do better as a manager and force his players to be better themselves.