Chelsea got back to winning ways at Hull, expunging their well-documented barren spell of three games in the Premier League without a victory. An impressive strike from Willian put the Blues ahead, whilst an emphatic finish from Diego Costa capped off what was yet another fine display from the Spanish international. Here’s three takeaways from the game…
3-4-3 only offers glimpses of its potential
Tested for the first time by Antonio Conte as Chelsea head coach in the second half at Arsenal last Saturday evening, it was a 3-4-3 for Chelsea from the off seven days later, with César Azpilicueta, Gary Cahill and David Luiz in a back three, four flat across the midfield—Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses as wing-backs, the latter who finally got his first start under Conte in England’s top-tier competition after a string of effective substitute cameos—and a trio of Eden Hazard, Willian and Costa spearheading the attack.
A change in shape is certainly welcome. The implementation of the 4-1-4-1 felt like an injection of fresh air at the start of the season, both in terms of the brand new shape adopted at Stamford Bridge and the more attractive playing style that came with it, but in recent games it has proven to be pretty unexceptional, its weaknesses brutally laid bare for all to see by Liverpool and Arsenal.
Whilst there were some encouraging signs regarding the 3-4-3 at Hull, especially in the second half of the game—there was a marginal improvement from the Blues after the interval—it was clear that it needs some patching around the edges. The Chelsea play looked disconnected on many occasions, as certain players struggled to adapt to the new system being implemented. As I said, though, there were some positive signs, such as the first Chelsea clean sheet since April, the wing-backs thriving in their roles.
Hull only offered glimpses of its potential. “I hope there is a small flame flickering here that can turn into a blazing inferno,” said the Italian at his unveiling back in mid-July. That phrase is certainly applicable to the 3-4-3 at the moment. With the right work, it can become that inferno. After all, Chelsea have the right man in charge to do that.
N’Golo Kanté shows why he should play as a box-to-box midfielder
It’s been widely acknowledged that N’Golo Kanté has been Leicester City’s loss and Chelsea’s considerable gain since his arrival at Stamford Bridge, and whilst the 25-year-old has put in a couple of solid, grade-B performances, he hasn’t quite hit the heights of his days in a Leicester shirt. It feels like we aren’t getting the whole package. That’s mainly due to the fact Antonio Conte has deployed him as the lone defensive midfielder in a 4-1-4-1.
Clearly, that is not Kanté’s best role. “When I play as a box-to-box midfielder, that suits me well. It is the position that I play in at Leicester City and the one that I played in at Caen. It suits me,” he said in March, and it’s almost impossible to disagree. His most distinguishable characteristics—the incredible amount of stamina he has, his Rottweiler-like ferocity—are mentioned in any box-to-box midfielder description you can find.
So it wasn’t exactly surprising that Kanté thrived in this role in the second half of the game at the home of the Tigers, and nor was it surprising that this change coincided with an improved Chelsea display after the interval. It should be noted that Nemanja Matić, who has been subject to much criticism over the past 12 months, did excellent in dropping deep to free up Kanté.
It’s not like he was only good in the second half, but his overall game was solid, too. Kanté made more passes than any other player—68 out of 77 successful, 30 in the attacking third, joint-top with Eden Hazard—13 ball recoveries and four interceptions, both the most of anybody in Chelsea blue.
A box-to-box midfielder role suits him best, and it’s not exactly rocket science. With many options in central midfield who will allow Kanté to play as something he truly thrives at, it gives Antonio Conte food for thought.
No place for Ivanović
I, for one, like Branislav Ivanović. I am really grateful for all he has done in his many years here; but the fact that he still starts for us on a regular basis in 2016 is truly mind-boggling. That all changed against Hull, where Antonio Conte became the first Chelsea manager since André Villas-Boas in 2011 to drop the Serbian in a Premier League game.
No Ivanović meant the first clean sheet since April, and it’s not exactly a coincidence. With a new 3-4-3 system adopted at Stamford Bridge, there is no place for the full-back. He does not have the dynamism or the energy to play as a wing-back. A centre-back role could make sense. That would mean pushing Cesar Azpilicueta further forward to play as a wing-back, but he doesn’t have the attributes to play there, just like Ivanović.
People will immediately suggest taking out Gary Cahill and slotting Ivanović in instead, but with John Terry back for Leicester and Kurt Zouma returning soon—both surely guaranteed a starting spot to fix our profuse defensive problems—that would mean dropping one of David Luiz or Azpilicueta. You could push the latter out to wing-back but I have already explained why that wouldn’t be exactly ideal.
So if Chelsea do continue to play the 3-4-3, then we should get used to Ivanović on the bench, unless Conte has a significant change in heart and chooses to revert to a back-four. It’s about time, as he has repeatedly showed signs of rapid decline in the past 18 months, costing the Blues points on many occasions. There’s no place for the 32-year-old in this system.
