Chelsea have been hit with huge injury blow as according to The Telegraph, Alvaro Morata will be sidelined for much longer than first anticipated. The Blues’ star striker could miss up to three Premier League games, a League Cup tie versus Everton and both Champions League fixtures against AS Roma this month.
Should the reports turn out to be correct, Morata’s six-week absence will be causing huge headache for the Blues boss Antonio Conte. The Italian will have a big decision to make with his new line-up once the players return from international duty next weekend.
Here’s two ways how Chelsea could line up without their record signing:
Does Conte have enough faith in Batshuayi?
Conte is still known to be slightly dubious of Michy Batshuayi’s quality as the team’s leading attacker. The former Juventus manager even replaced Morata with Willian instead of with Batshuayi when the Spaniard originally injured himself against Manchester City last Saturday.
The 24-year-old had to wait until the opening goal to get onto the pitch, and it would be fair to say his display was unlikely to give Conte more reasons to start Batshuayi next weekend. Luckily the Belgian will now have a chance to make an impression with his national side, as Conte will surely be watching should he play in either one of Belgium’s two games this break.
It would be wise to give Batshuayi starts during Morata’s spell on the sidelines, especially against the likes of Crystal Palace and Bournemouth who we should win without a question. But starting him against AS Roma – especially away – would be a whole other story.
Could Conte opt to go completely without a striker?
Last season Conte was lucky to have Diego Costa fit all season long. The Spaniard avoided all possible injuries and suspesions as well, making Conte’s job to name the attacking line very, very easy. However, when Costa eventually missed a few games due to the infamous bust-up at the training ground, Conte decided to go for a front-three of Eden Hazard, Pedro and Willian. The three wingers were phenomenal together and caused huge havoc to the opposition defence throughout the whole 90 minutes.
Going for the same option would surely work again, but along with returning to the 3-4-3 system, Conte would have to change his playing style radically. Morata’s best strength this season has been his ability to score with his head. Quality crosses from Hazard and Cesar Azpilicueta have been the main source for the former Real Madrid striker’s goals this term, but what do we do with such assists if our front-three consists of the team’s three shortest players?
Also, using Hazard, Pedro and Willian upfront last season was only a quick fix to Diego Costa’s sudden situation. This time it would be exactly the same, and with so little into the season Conte should really just try and make Batshuayi the second-choice striker he wants him to become. Because honestly, there’s unlikely to be a better chance to do that than now, don’t you think?
So, will Conte opt to use the good old 3-4-3 formation with no real striker in the side, or hand Batshuayi a huge chance to shine in a 3-5-2 system with Hazard alongside him? It’s all to be seen after the international break, when we travel to Crystal Palace.
