It was desperation that drove Chelsea manager Antonio Conte to switch to his favoured 3-4-3 system last September. The change, instigated at the interval at the Emirates Stadium when his men had been torn to shreds by Arsenal, has not only allayed any initial doubts about Conte but also restored belief and unity at the club.
The Blues have won a whopping 50 points from 19 games since, leaving the next challenger eight points behind. With the Premier League taking a breather, now is as good a time as any to analyse Chelsea’s surge.
SYSTEM REBOOT
Conte was initially sceptical about using 3-4-3. “I had players who had only played with four [in defence]. In the [recent] history of Chelsea, they had never played with three central defenders. To change that, you have to go slowly, slowly, to put the idea across.”
Conte looked around his squad for those who best fit the new shape, and found men he could work with. His ploy has remained simple. He wants his players to make the pitch as big as possible, with not only the wing-backs but also sometimes midfielders Eden Hazard and Pedro Rodriguez or Willian getting chalk on their boots.
The result: plenty of space and options whenever the team has the ball. But when it does not, the players have to be quick to close down the opponents.
MARAUDER ON THE WING
The biggest beneficiary of the transition is Victor Moses, brought back from the wilderness after being shunted out on loan during previous regimes. The Nigerian looks as if he has been a marauding right wing-back all career. The drive and stamina of Moses and Marcos Alonso, the left wing-back, help the system tick.
Stats
Victor Moses: Defensive actions/game 4; Total defensive errors 0; Goals 3; Assists 2
CONNECTING AGENTS
N’Golo Kante (right) and Nemanja Matic (left) stay close to the wing-backs to create a stable structure and connect possession from the flanks.
The defensive midfielders offer the ball-carrying wing-backs a diagonal forward and backward pass, as well as a simple sideways pass back infield.
This helps Chelsea keep the ball in rival areas for long periods, allowing the attacking midfielders to work out a move. They also make sure there’s seldom an unguarded zone for opponents to break into.
THE BACK-THREE CHALLENGE
Except Mauricio Pochettino, the other managers who tried to mirror Conte’s three-man defence to nullify Chelsea’s wing-back system have been forced to abandon the shape midway, unable to keep up. Despite using five midfielders, those sides struggled to work the ball into key attacking zones, a credit to Conte’s organisation.
BREAKER OF LINES
Hazard, the chief conductor in Conte’s orchestra, has played up front for the Blues before, though without nearly as much impact. Positioned on the left, free to roam and do damage, the Belgian’s fantastic nose for space helps him ghost into dangerous areas; with his confidence back, his one-on-one ability makes him incredibly difficult to defend against.
ATHLETIC EDGE
Chelsea’s system demands discipline and high-energy levels. “In this league it’s important to have intensity and strength as well as good technique. I trust in my conditioning work and now I’m seeing what I wanted to see at the start,” said Conte.
The manager sets the bar, relentlessly patrolling the touchline. “Our fitness coach did suggest hooking me up to a GPS system to see how many kilometres I cover, and at what intensity level,” he joked.
The adaptation has appeared astonishingly smooth from the outside, but the instant success is a tribute to Conte’s vision, attention to detail, and his tactical work in training.
BOX STORY:
Possible roadblocks
Though Manchester City (April 5) and Manchester United (April 15) could pose problems, Conte will expect much bigger threats from defence-minded teams — Crystal Palace (April 1), Middlesbrough (May 6), West Brom (May 13), and Sunderland (May 21).
The coaches of these clubs, in an effort to stay afloat, will have a close look at the Burnley model to trouble the Blues.
The Burnley blueprint: Target the space behind Alonso and Hazard on the left as both will be high up the pitch. Defensively this flank is weaker than the right. The system needs two strikers with one in the centre and the other on the right. Playing long balls behind Alonso will drag one of the central defenders to the left and open up space for the other forward. The long-ball tactic not only helps bypass Chelsea’s midfield but also prevents the Blues from winning back possession in midfield and launching attacks from there.
