In the second half of the game against Aston Villa last weekend, with the Blues 2-0 down, Mauricio Pochettino made a tactical change.
It resulted in Marc Cucurella inverting – that is to say, coming inside from left back when his team had the ball, giving the Blues an extra man in midfield.
That in turn drew an extra opposition player in, leaving left winger Mykhailo Mudryk in a one on one down the left when Chelsea had the ball.
It was a switch which instantly suited both of them. The pair have been among the most disappointing signings of the Clearlake era, especially given the prices paid, but this tactical switch instantly helped them both.
Pochettino has used the same setup tonight, and once again it’s worked wonders. Cucurella has been great going forward and backward, and Chelsea have dominated the midfield with him in there. Meanwhile Mudryk is having one of his dangerous days.
The Blues only have one goal to show for it – and Mudryk perhaps should have done better with one of his chances, but it’s a good sign.
A huge 45 minutes ahead for Chelsea’s season
But there is a lot of game left to be played. And if there are two players who have let us down with individual moments in games… it’s these two. But we’re staying positive. It was a great first half from both of them and from the team as a whole. Spurs may tweak things to counter this tactical change in the second half, but that could open up other areas for us to hurt.
Let’s not forget, Cole Palmer is out there lurking, and if they step off him for a second to deal with Mudryk, you can be sure he will be ready to strike. There’s not much on the bench, so someone out there is going to have to step up…
