Chelsea: Lampard needs to be bold to work in his best attacking players

Frank Lampard has freely rotated players in his time at Chelsea, but in order to work in new recruits, he will have to be more adventurous than in the past.

When Chelsea entered the transfer market and secured the signings of Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz early, it won plaudits from fans and pundits alike. The arrivals of Ben Chilwell, Tiago Silva and Edouard Mendy, while excellent, were never going to cause the headaches the former three would.

It was obvious to even the most nonchalant fan where Chilwell, Silva and Mendy would slot in; however, there was still Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic, Tammy Abraham and Callum Hudson-Odoi in contention for the attacking roles. Adding to that lengthy list was Ross Barkley and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, both of whom Lampard had deployed on either side of the attacking trident at various times. Lampard made the first adjustment by changing from the 4-3-3 formation he preferred last season to using the 4-2-3-1 more regularly in recent games.

This has allowed Havertz to play in his favoured No. 10 role in the middle of the park and free roam. Against Barnsley and then again in the Crystal Palace game, the German was able to navigate between the lines, ask questions of the defence and link play in the manner most Chelsea fans expected when he was signed.

Abraham has played as the lone striker, but that means it has relegated Werner to left wing. Despite having played left wing for RB Leipzig, the Premier League is a whole different conundrum and it has left Werner isolated in spite of his best efforts. Mount is a stalwart in any Lampard XI, perhaps to his detriment at times. Lampard relies on—and plays—the England international, so much. Mount, like Havertz, is at his most effective in the No. 10 role and loses his usefulness when shifted wide.

All of these headaches are compounded when Pulisic and Ziyech come back into the side after their injuries. Of course, Pulisic made his return to the pitch in the Blues’ 4-0 win over Crystal Palace, so the selection struggles have already started for Lampard. Simply put, Lampard has the chance to prove Chelsea made the right choice by appointing him as manager by being bold in his selection choice and working all five of Werner, Havertz, Ziyech, Pulisic and Mount into his starting line-up.

Starting with the easiest decision, Werner has to replace Abraham and be the sole striker up front. As mentioned above, Werner has looked a bit lost on the wing. While RB Leipzig loved to play on the counter, Chelsea is a team that likes to dominate possession and opponents sit back against Lampard’s side. As a result, Werner is forced out wide more than he should be. If he were leading the line, not only is he an upgrade over Abraham, but his pace and ability to play off of the last man will be a better release for the Blues.

Next comes the wingers, and undoubtedly Pulisic should be back in the starting XI when he is fully match fit. Not only is Pulisic one of the only true out and out wingers in the Blues squad, but much like Hudson-Odoi, Pulisic is a direct runner and he is just better than his English teammate.

Pulisic is a creative force in this Chelsea team and his driving style of play is something the Blues have lacked in his absence. His crossing and creative vision should not be underestimated either, and it blows away Hudson-Odoi, who more often than not cannot find that perfect final ball.

When it comes to creativity and vision, however, there is a clear leader in the squad; that is evident, even with only seeing this player feature for 60 minutes or so in a preseason game. Hakim Ziyech has the best passing and vision in the Blues team. Chelsea fans were greeted to just some of this in the Blues’ Champions League games against Ajax last year, and Ziyech is the only man for the right wing position. With Ziyech’s ability to pick up the ball and look up to see the runs of the speedy Werner or Pulisic, it will cause serious problems for every defence in the Premier League. As the opening few match days have gone, defence has seemingly fallen off of the map, and a passer of Ziyech’s quality will scythe through defensive lines.

This is where it gets complicated for Lampard. Havertz is a phenomenal talent, and while he is improving every game, he has yet to get his footing in the Premier League. Mount is Lampard’s favourite player, a workhorse with quality that most importantly, Lampard trusts implicitly.

Bar the recent Crystal Palace game, Chelsea has looked a much easier team to play against when they are without Mount. He works his socks off for Lampard. In the West Brom game, when Chelsea was devoid of energy, Mount picked the team up and scored the vital first goal. Both Mount and Havertz play their best football in the No. 10 role, however. Perhaps Lampard should consider dropping one of them into the midfield as part of the tandem with N’Golo Kante.

Much has been made of Havertz’s ability to glide with the ball at his feet, and in Germany, he has been getting Michael Ballack comparisons since he was a teenager. The Blues very well might have the next Ballack on their hands, convenient since the ‘original’ Ballack is still closely tied with the club and could prove to be a guiding hand. If Havertz were to drop down into midfield, there is a risk of losing his delicate flicks and passes around the corner. It would also reduce his opportunities of playing between the lines.

On the other hand, if Mount was dropped back into the Kante tandem then Lampard gets to keep his most trusted player in the team, his excellent work rate and that x-factor in the line-up. Furthermore, Mount is in many ways a better runner and connecter of play than Jorginho or Mateo Kovacic. With Barkley on loan at Aston Villa and Ruben Loftus-Cheek now at Fulham, the midfield does not have a midfielder that can do it all in the same way Mount can.

He can shoot better than Jorginho, and is more dynamic than Kovacic. Mount consistently looks forward when passing while Jorginho and Kovacic usually shift the ball sideways. Kovacic may be a better defender, but Mount is no slouch, and certainly not afraid of a tackle while Havertz has shown the desire and ability to work back. A front six of Werner-Pulisic-Havertz-Ziyech-Mount-Kante is instantly one of the most ominous in the Premier League.

It is a very attacking line-up—no doubt—but compared to what was drawn up against Crystal Palace, there isn’t a lot that has been sacrificed. Instead, Chelsea fans are getting more dynamic players in Pulisic and Ziyech, a better striker in Werner playing in his true position and a higher quality Mount playing in Jorginho’s role. With how the Premier League has been shaping up this year, and how teams don’t seem to show any desire to defend, it might be the most open title race in recent memory.

No team wins the Premier League by playing the safe, status quo option. Antonio Conte’s Chelsea didn’t, neither did Leicester, Man City or Liverpool. If the play stays the same, Lampard has the chance to seriously compete for this title, he just has to be bold enough to work his best players into his starting XI.