Tactics and Transfers: Chelsea congratulations and future plans
Chelsea is now two time European Champions, matching the records of Juventus, Benfica, Porto and Nottingham Forrest in the competition. Congratulations all around but it’s time to make plans for the third.
From the off, Chelsea looked like the team who were actually trying to win the Champions League final in their match against Manchester City. Who knows if City were overwhelmed by the gravity of the moment of if their managers proclivity for over-complication took the wind out of their sails but the mighty Premier League version of the Manchester side never really showed up.
In preventing that from happening, Chelsea put together one of the most consistent, thorough and dominating performances of a top side that the final of Europe’s greatest competition has likely ever seen. The defense both with Thiago Silva and after the Brazilian titan’s departure looked strong and resolute and the midfield in front of them marshaled by the perfect, literally, N’Golo Kante never put a foot wrong.
Despite the fact that Tuchel’s formation and style of play often results in Chelsea attacking on the counter with only three genuinely attacking players at times even the forwards looked excellent. Timo Werner put in perhaps the most “Turbo Timo” performance of all time. He worked like a dog as Tuchel likes to say and made runs and put himself in positions that made it impossible for Manchester City’s defense to get comfortable all while managing to be called offside and miss at least two easy chances and yet still contributed to the victory without a doubt. Mason Mount and Kai Havertz combined for the winning goal then in a way that will give a huge boost in confidence going forward.
Ultimately the only truly worrying moment was City’s hitting of the post with a wayward shot near the end of the game. Tuchel nailed every single decision and the men on the pitch carried out their duties like the Pensioners they are named after. It was a proud moment for the stubborn London club who collected yet another big European scalp with their backs against the wall.
That said the future begins every day when you open your eyes and the final is in the past. Planning for the third starts now. Time to move on.