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Arsenal vs Chelsea: Three lessons learnt in derby victory

By ROSHAAN KAPOOR

Reece James of Chelsea celebrates vs Arsenal (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Reece James of Chelsea celebrates vs Arsenal (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 22: Thomas Tuchel, Manager of Chelsea hugs Romelu Lukaku of Chelsea following victory in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium on August 22, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 22: Thomas Tuchel, Manager of Chelsea hugs Romelu Lukaku of Chelsea following victory in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium on August 22, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

2. Thomas Tuchel to adopt a new formation this season?

Since the sacking of former Chelsea manager Frank Lampard, Tuchel has played with three-at-the-back. The German coach kept making minute changes to his formation by playing shapes like 3-4-3 and 3-4-2-1 during the Blues’ run last season. One thing which was common from last season was the wastefulness of Werner while in front of goal. Needing a consistent goal scorer for the team, Chelsea bought Werner from RB Leipzig for £47.5 million, but the striker could not replicate his goal-scoring form from the Bundesliga. In his maiden campaign, the German could only manage to score 12 goals the whole season.

Having been crowned the UEFA Champions League winners by beating Manchester City 1-0 in Porto, Chelsea now had to improve its Champions League-winning squad. This could only be done by signing world class players. To get those world class players, the club had to spend a fortune. After the sales of numerous Chelsea academy graduates, the club splashed £97.5 million for Lukaku. After his debut against Arsenal, we all can expect Tuchel to now change his formation. Chelsea played a bit of the game with two strikers up front in a way, starting with Kai Havertz and Lukaku and ending with Werner and Romelu. While the German duo didn’t always play alongside the Belgian, they are certainly capable of doing so in later matches.

Chelsea now has the ability to play with an exceptional hold-up man in Lukaku, so fans can expect the German coach to be more flexible with his formations. Tuchel can now deploy formations like the 3-5-2, in which Lukaku previously played under Conte last season. The 3-5-2 formation can also be changed to 3-4-1-2 during the game with the likes of Lukaku, Werner, Havertz and Hakim Ziyech all possessing the ability to play as strikers. Also, with players like Mason Mount and Christian Pulisic having the knack of making runs inside the opponent’s penalty box, it will be difficult to mark and contain the Blues’ attackers.

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