Chelsea: Managerial merry go round somehow just works

In a moment of fervent contemplation, it became clear that the Chelsea Board’s modus operandi of scrapping managers every year or two is well, worthy of reflection and deliberation. Constant managerial changes leave the Blues without a cogent ongoing strategy, team concept, or importantly, compatibility amongst players. So how did that brilliant revelation come about? It came as a result of the total upside-downing of the Chelsea roster by Thomas Tuchel after he replaced Frank Lampard as manager as explained previously. And his subsequent (to-date) stunning success.

Since he arrived in Blue, Tuchel has revamped both the formation and the players who play in it. Benching several stalwarts under Lampard and replacing them with others who were on the outside-looking-in under the former Blues legend. So it dawned on this humble observer and supporter of the Blues, that this dynamic has obviously had massive ramifications on the club over the years. Yet, in spite of this paradoxical situation, meaning all the turmoil and changes in formations and players, for the most part, it has worked. How is that?

Let’s explore this a bit. First, the Blues hire really good managers. No doubt about that. Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Luis Felipe Scolari, Antonio Conte, Maurizio Sarri, Frank Lampard (no doubt he’ll prove that in the future), and now Tuchel. And there are others of great quality, as well. Yet, their average tenure is about 18 months or so. And in that short tenure, the formations change. New players are brought in or sold presumably to suit the new gaffer’s style of play, etc. So, objectively, that quick turnover in the the Blues’ managerial situation signifies that there will likely be little stability or continuity in Chelsea’s on-field demeanor. Fine. So has that been a good thing or a bad thing?

First, one might deduce, it has to be a very big problem. How can a new manager implement his own system and acquire and introduce the new players he wants to fit his system during his tenure at the Blues which is likely to be only 18 months or so? It wouldn’t seem possible or at least probable, yet, for some unfathomable reason, it works. How does that happen in light of the monumental ramifications of managerial replacement? One reason is the support of the board to help finance the new regime most of the time. Meaning, that as new favored formations, e.g. Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3 utilizing wingbacks extensively, a player like Marcos Alonso who fits may be brought in, and a player like Victor Moses may be reenergized since they fit that particular formation like a glove.

Conte’s system was a revelation and he wins the Premier League title in his first season at Chelsea. Amazingly. Meanwhile, in a development that had little to do with system or formation, a falling out occurs with his great striker Diego Costa (a personal favorite), and the next year is a complete disaster. Out goes Conte. Time for another manager and another system perhaps.

After a year of Sarri ball and again decent success, Lampard is named the head coach of Chelsea. The 4-3-3 is now in use and wingbacks like Alonso and the loaned out Moses are completely out-of-the-picture and in Alonso’s case, are almost never seen again under Lampard. Meanwhile, in Lampard’s youth revolution, Reece James is preferred at right-back and Captain, Cesar Azpilicueta is benched. It worked. After the suspension last season, Lampard unexpectedly and implausibly led a previously languid Blues side into Champions League qualification. This took place after two transfer windows with no additions incoming. Lampard in 2021 then proceeds to lose a couple of key games and he is subsequently replaced by Tuchel.

Voila, Alonso is back at wingback, Azpilicueta is re-inserted into the starting XI as a central defender in the 3-4-2-1 after for all intents and purposes he was frozen in internal exile on Chelsea’s bench by Lampard. Meanwhile, Tuchel also inserts Callum Hudson-Odoi into the starting lineup at wingback (a completely new position for the young player). He also reinserts the formerly also internally exiled Antonio Rudiger at center half and Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic into the starting XI in midfield, both of whom were not played much at all by the aforementioned Lampard. Coincidentally, stalwarts under Lampard (when healthy) Christian Pulisic, Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz, and to some extent Reece James have now either been injured or are newly left on the bench by Tuchel. The merry-go-round continues to whirl.

This extent of change does not qualify as lineup tinkering. These are major strategic (in formation) and tactical (in personnel) changes implemented almost literally overnight. And, almost unbelievably, to-date under Tuchel, it is working marvelously. And all this is what has happened after just one turnover in managers. There have been 15 such turnovers over the past 18 years. Yet, and this is the key point, amidst all those changes, Chelsea has still managed to win more trophies than any other Premier League club (16) since 2003.

"The Blues have claimed 16 major trophies in the Abramovich era, including 5 Premier League titles and a European Cup. These years have also brought about the emergence of club legends such as Frank Lampard, John Terry, and Didier Drogba…"

Frankly, taking a look at this turnover in managers who are saddled in really all cases with some players who really don’t fit their systems at all, and seeing this tremendous record of success nonetheless is astonishing. It’s an amazing story if you ever just sit down and think of all the changes and the player ramifications that come with pretty much each and every managerial change. The new managers bring in players who fit their system, send out those players who don’t and the carousel continues, and yet, somehow, it just works.

So there you have it. The Blues, despite this history of continuous changes in managers (and their concomitant player turnover), have somehow managed to amass a plethora of silverware and experience its tremendous winning history despite (or could it actually be because of?) this extraordinary set of circumstances. It’s mind-boggling. And it’s one of the reasons Chelsea is one of, or as this author feels, the most interesting and compelling team to follow in world football. One thing is absolutely certain, it’s never dull around the Blues. Thankfully. Don’t you just love it!?