Breaking Down West Ham
Chelsea’s primary focus was to break down West Ham’s compact defense. The Blues struggled to create space against their well-organized backline but did try to create pockets of space through quick rotations and off-the-ball movement, particularly in the central areas. There were rotations between Cucurella, Palmer, and Fernandez to unlock West Ham’s defense, though this route to goal was more difficult as it required Chelsea to string together intricate, well-constructed moves.
Other simpler methods to cutting West Ham open were direct channel balls of Jackson in-behind against the relatively higher defensive line. It wasn't too high. I'd say they maintained a healthy line height. Still, it was an avenue to goal Chelsea tried to explore a few times.… pic.twitter.com/UXJ74iRdWP
— Fahd (@fahdahmed987) February 4, 2025
Another way Chelsea looked to break West Ham open was by playing direct channel balls into Jackson, exploiting the relatively high defensive line. While the visitor's line wasn’t too high, Chelsea tried to use it as an avenue to goal. When the wingers found themselves isolated against West Ham's wingbacks, they looked to either dribble past them or deliver crosses into the box.
Without a box-dominant striker, Chelsea wasn't always in the best position to convert these chances. Instead, Maresca encouraged his attackers to flood the box with four to five players to increase the chances of a successful finish.