How the 3-5-2 could work for Chelsea and Antonio Conte
As Chelsea look for solutions to their problems, a change in formation could be key. Here is how the 3-5-2 system could work for Antonio Conte and the Blues.
Chelsea do not have enough good defenders to play this season out with the 4-2-4 or the 4-1-4-1. With John Terry injured, the Blues’ lack of depth has been exposed. Meanwhile, given that David Luiz, Branislav Ivanovic and Gary Cahill are more concerned with imitations of the three stooges than playing football, Chelsea have a legitimate issue at the back.
3-5-2 is one of the systems Antonio Conte is famous for. 3-5-2 is a very advanced formation that a team needs to be disciplined and well-practiced in for it to work. It requires incredible effort levels from the wide men and communication amongst the back three (one of the reasons the Luiz, Ivanovic and Cahill horror show must end).
Chelsea will have to take the battle to Hull in their upcoming match. Keep Hull on the back foot. Play pressed-up against them and stay in their half for the majority of the game. This will be hard will take a huge amount of industry from the Blues.
However, the old method of soaking up the opposing attacks and then countering only works if your defense is good enough to withstand the pressure. This Chelsea team is terrible at defending but not exactly bereft of talent up front or in the middle of the park.
Conte should pick Michy Batshuayi and Diego Costa up front in a 3-5-2. It is criminal that he has not done so yet. Batshuayi has done nothing but be a hard-working team member since he showed up. That is one of the qualities this current Chelsea squad lack – simple team spirit.
Costa, unlike most of his teammates, cares. Can anybody say the same about Thibaut Courtois or Eden Hazard? Sure, Costa loses his mind now and then, but he’s a definitive talisman and Chelsea are lucky to have him on their side every time they go into battle.
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Now for the five. The only way this works is if the two wing players are incredibly hard working. They will need to get back in defense and be effective. Simply tracking back is no good if you don’t make a tackle every once in a while.
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Other teams scoring and defeating Chelsea is evil. Only Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi are spared defensive duty. Every other player on the pitch must shoulder his fair share. It is not necessarily the best 11 single players that make the best team. A great team is made up of 11 players who play as one.
Victor Moses should start on the right. He plays with fire and effort and is a better option that Willian. Willian’s delivery has been poor so far this season and he needs to have a good hard think about it. Moses makes things happen with sheer effort while also being decent on the ball and in tracking back.
Inside, the trident is Oscar, N’Golo Kante and Cesar Azpilicueta. Oscar should replace Cesc Fabregas in the side and remain for the rest of the season. We have now seen the difference between the two. Oscar stays. Kante is playing at a near un-droppable level right now but appeared tired against Arsenal. He needs an industrious, disciplined, intelligent and team-oriented player playing beside him. He needs Cesar Azpilicueta.
Azpilicueta is the heir apparent to Javier Zanetti’s defensive utility man throne. He’s Chelsea’s version of “The Tractor” and Chelsea need to embrace it. No, he will not be playing beautiful 50-yard long balls over the top. No, he will not be glamorous in any way. But what he will do is help his team with every single step that he takes. He and Kante would provide a base that would be hard for anybody to defeat.
This is important because Chelsea should aim to stop the ball even making it to the defense. 3-5-2 is about quickly regaining possession. Kante and Azpilicueta in the middle would be the sort of twin dynamos this formation needs. They represent the Vidal and Marchisio to Oscar’s Pirlo in the middle.
If the Azpilicueta experiment is faltering, Nathaniel Chalobah could enter the fray. You don’t get to pick your opportunities in life. He has the quality to grab whatever chance he gets and be the man the team needs.
Finally, on the left is Eden Hazard. The little Belgian is capable of magic. However, he is too inconsistent and when he is not playing up to his potential he is a liability. He does not defend or tackle and on set-pieces he is a free header for whomever he is marking. Stick with Hazard for now. If not then it looks like Pedro or Marcos Alonso will be getting more game time.
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As for the back three… it’s a mess. Have you ever seen Master and Commander: Far Side of the World? Think of John Terry as the mast that breaks during the storm off the coast of Brazil. It is a dire situation without him and a terrible one when he is there.
Gary Cahill simply should not play anymore. He costs the team goals and victories with every breath he takes on the pitch. Ivanovic is nowhere near the player he was three years ago. This is the here and now and Ivanovic is a shell of his former self. Drop him.
David Luiz alongside Terry are two of the three defenders, this season. As soon as there is a chance to replace Luiz, Conte should take it. The third has to be Alonso. In Italy he played as a centre-back in some games, and his free-kick deliveries can be useful during set pieces. If not, Chalobah or Loftus-Cheek should play there. Hold your tongue for a second.
Chalobah is a capable defender. He plays as a center back for the England Under-21’s regularly. This would not be much of a jump for him. As for Ruben Loftus-Cheek, it is a weird scenario. He simply has not taken to playing as a striker and never really looked like he was going to. He is a defensive midfielder by trade and is a dominant physical force.
At 6’3’’, he is a tall player who can aid the team in the air and he is better with the ball at his feet than Gary Cahill. He adds a bit of class, physicality and sheer athleticism to the back three that Chelsea are dearly lacking. The Englishman can become a magnificent center-half.
What do you think of this set-up? Would you tinker with it? Let us know in the comments below!
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