Chelsea kicked off preseason with a draw to Brighton. What lessons can be learned from the match that previews the season opener?
It was honors even as Chelsea’s trip to Brighton resulted in a 1-1 draw. Preseason is never about the result however and the Blues performed (mostly) well in a preview to their first match of the season. Several players got “debuts”, most notably new signings Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech. What lessons can be taken going into preseason?
1. A throwback to older tactics
Frank Lampard’s Derby County was fairly consistent tactically. A 4-2-3-1 focused on playing down the flanks with the player in the 10 role given a great deal of freedom on the pitch. The pivot had to react by seesawing back and forth in response to the 10 to keep the team solid. This was all behind an intense press and counter press and the ball was moved quickly but with control.
Lampard started his Chelsea manager career with the same tactics, but quickly found that the Blues were not quite suited. He played around with a few variations both in response to the players he had available and the opponent.
The original plan returned, meaning it is likely one Lampard is hoping to revive with his new additions. It and the 4-3-3 with dual eights are probably the plan for next season.
Everything about the shape moved around Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The English midfielder moved seamlessly from the eight to the 10 and even into the nine. This did not just happen with Chelsea in possession either; the Blues often changed the shape of their press around the midfielder too.
This meant that the pivot of N’Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic had to be hyper aware of themselves and others and adjust accordingly. As stated, they seesawed with one another and the play as the ball moved around the pitch. It was highly involved and outside of that pairing, the Blues might not yet have a duo as capable.
Things came off the boil after the second half substitutes began and the shape become more of a 4-3-2-1/4-diamond-2. Lewis Baker and Ethan Ampadu replaced Kovacic and Kante in the pivot but neither was able to flow as well as the two experienced players. Chelsea has the ability to play these kind of tactics now, but they may still lack the depth to do it consistently if this is the plan going forward.
2. Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner did well, but also raised some questions
This is not to criticize either player because both of them did very well as individuals. Werner was all over the pitch and was a constant outlet for his teammates. Ziyech was calmness and coolness personified on the ball as he pulled the strings during his time on the field.
Instead, this is more about how their teammates reacted around the pair. These are not necessarily issues per se, but they are things to consider when the two are playing.
First Werner. Werner has traditionally played with a striker partner and he has usually been the more fluid of the pair. As a striker stayed central, he would roam to the flanks or deep to find space to spring attacks.
At Chelsea, he will not have that partner, though it is too soon to really guarantee that. In this match, Ruben Loftus-Cheek was nominally that partner. As Werner went wide, Loftus-Cheek would often push forward into the striker spots. But this would also be a task for Callum Hudson-Odoi or Hakim Ziyech as well depending on who else is playing.
Basically, as Werner roams to get involved in plays, someone has to be willing to step up and fill the gap. Without a true strike partner, that could realistically be anyone. If no one steps up, the Blues will have an empty box and it will be very difficult to score without an opponent’s defense pinned back.
Ziyech, meanwhile was playing wide with Reece James behind him. As the two built their way into the final third, it became pretty clear early on what would happen. Ziyech would cut in and James would overlap. Ziyech would then either pass into the center or thread a ball into James for a cross.
There is nothing wrong with that on paper, but it does become a circuit that the opponent can read and adapt to quite quickly. Ziyech’s secondary assist came from deep before this circuit began so it is not like he is a one trick pony. But it is something to consider especially when Ben Chilwell and Christian Pulisic start doing something on the other side.
Eventually, it might suit Ziyech better to be more central where his next move is not as obvious. That may depend on who else Chelsea brings in or keeps but it is worth consideration just to give him more variance.
3. Most of the cameos were just cameos, but some spoke volumes
In a match where 23 players saw the field, it would be difficult to make too many sweeping conclusions. Most of those appearances were cameos but cameos can say a lot in many ways.
Nearly every starter was solid enough with three exceptions. Marcos Alonso, Andreas Christensen, and Kepa Arrizabalaga all had nervy moments as well as just silly decisions at times. Given all three are closer to the fringe than the starting XI, that should be a concern.
The first round of subs featured a change out of both centerbacks and the keeper. Willy Caballero made a good penalty save and had little to do otherwise. Cesar Azpilicueta did well for the most part in a back four, though he did seem a little lost when Brighton came at Chelsea directly. Antonio Rudiger has to add himself to the list of players with something to prove but failing to do so. If he is supposed to be fighting to start next season, his half really did not show a good reason as to why.
Hakim Ziyech came off with a knock for Conor Gallagher and that is when things started to slip for Chelsea. Not because of Gallagher, who had a fantastic time in his role as “counter pressing monster”, but more because of the adjustments it forced Chelsea into. The Blues went into a sort of 4-diamond-2/4-3-2-1 shape after Ziyech came off and it ceded too much space to Brighton. The Blues got put on the back foot as their press became a one man effort by Gallagher.
The final round of subs failed to reignite Chelsea’s control of the match. Olivier Giroud found himself on an island up top. Lewis Baker and Ethan Ampadu could not replace the pivot of Kovacic and Kante, though Ampadu did look ready for more cameos this preseason.
By the time youngsters Ian Maatsen and Henry Lawrence came on to replace the fullbacks, Chelsea had settled into a sort of pendulum 3-4-3 in possession. If one full back went up to join the attack, the other would always stay deep to form a back three. This is another tactic to keep an eye on going deeper into preseason and the season proper and both the youngsters held their own in the back and forth roles.
Luke McCormick and 16(!) year old Harvey Vale came on next but neither was able to influence the match in their 20 or so minutes. Juan Familo-Castillo came on last, though his appearance probably was not planned as it was for a head injury to Giroud.
Overall, Frank Lampard will have learned a few things from every player he saw though most did not really give him enough to ponder. Preseason will continue in some form or fashion as internationals kick off as Lampard looks to get ready for the new season.