CHELSEA’s tactical switch to 3-4-3 in September last season was the foundation for their Premier League title success.
And as Antonio Conte trudged down the tunnel at the end of Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday, the Italian will have been wondering whether another shake-up of his team is needed to stir his players.
Some perspective is needed considering Chelsea achieved one of their best results in Europe in midweek when they beat Atletico Madrid.
But Chelsea were so far off the pace compared to the energy, dynamism and sheer class displayed by Pep Guardiola’s men.
With over 62 per cent of the possession, City looked the real deal as they swarmed around their opponents to win the ball back and launch probing attacking moves.
Even Conte’s starting line-up with seven defensively minded outfield players gave an insight into how much he feared City’s attack
And the result meant the Blues have already dropped more points (eight) at home than the whole of last season.
Which means it is reasonable to ask whether Conte had been worked out by his domestic rivals.
After the match, City’s players were quick to make clear they executed a game plan to nullify Chelsea’s best players.
Match-winner Kevin de Bruyne said: “We had a little bit of a plan not to get caught by Eden and Willian because they are dangerous, that’s why we played like a 3-4-3 and we managed to do it very well.”
While Fabian Delph, who also impressed, added: “We knew coming into the game it was our toughest of the season but we had a game plan and we stuck to it.
“The plan was to stick with them on the counter. I lost Willian a few times but I think we did the job to a tee.”
Before Arsenal played Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last month, Per Mertesacker spoke out about how they had recognised “habits” within their game which they could expose.
“They have habits in their game,” the Arsenal captain said.
“Those who watched the games closely could see they have habits, especially playing out from the back.
“We allow them a little bit, but not too much, and stand on the right side of our position.
“The key is to stick to what we have done. We have high expectations of ourselves.”
In the end, Arsenal earned a creditable 0-0 draw and probably should have won, at a place where they had suffered chastening defeats in recent years.
It was the third successive game that Chelsea had failed to beat Arsenal and when you consider that Arsene Wenger is viewed unfavourably in terms of his tactical approach compared to his managerial rivals, Conte and his coaching staff must be wondering if the Blues had become predictable.
With the upcoming international break, Conte has two weeks to lick his wounds and address the problems in Chelsea’s setup.
The former Juventus and Italy coach doesn’t make many mistakes but with the two sides in Manchester setting a relentless pace at the top, Chelsea can ill afford to slip too far behind even at this early stage.
Source:www.express.co.uk