Antonio Conte seems to have finally found his feet in swanky south-west London, referring back to his trademark three-man defence to put Chelsea back amongst the top title contenders.
The former Juventus and Italy manager is known for his sturdy three-man defences that have earned him success in the past. The likes of Leonardo Bonucci, Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini gave his sides a compactness and sense of stability that proved so very difficult to break down.
Image: Getty.
However, at Chelsea, Conte chose not to start his reign as the new Blues boss with his trusted trio at the back, opting for a more traditional four-man defence.
Unfortunately for Chelsea, this backline included the likes of Branislav Ivanovic, Gary Cahill and John Terry, who appear to be part of a generation of Chelsea players who have experienced glory but now must make way for the next crop of talented players to blossom.
Despite some early success this season against West Ham and Burnley, Chelsea suffered two heavy defeats to fellow title rivals, Liverpool and Arsenal, handing Conte his first real challenge as the Chelsea coach.
So, Conte did what a lot of people do when they are in trouble or out of ideas and referred back to what he knows best. The three-man defence. However, like most good managers, Conte knows it is usually beneficial to adjust the playing formation in accordance to the talent at his disposal and has gone with a 3-4-3 rather than a 3-5-2 that he used at Juventus and Italy.
With Terry out due to an ankle injury, it is David Luiz who Conte has trusted in the heart of trio of defenders to protect Thibaut Courtois in the Chelsea goal, and so far the Brazilian defender has managed to silence his critics.
Luiz has looked calm on the ball and sensible in his decision making. With the ever reliable César Azpilicueta on one side of the former Paris Saint-Germain centre-back and Cahill on the other, the three at the back has been solid for Chelsea. Conte’s side are yet to concede a goal in four Premier League games played using this system, scoring 11 goals and earning 12 points.
A key component to this success is the wing-backs who are trusted with the task of defending and attacking, seemingly always on the move up and down the flank. Chelsea’s two motors down the wings come in the form of the former Sunderland left-back, Marcos Alonso, who Conte brought in especially to do the marshalling up and down the left side of the pitch, and a reformed Victor Moses.
Moses has been at Chelsea since 2012 but until this season has struggled to make an impression with any of the Chelsea managers in that time, leading to loan spells and Liverpool, Stoke and West Ham. However, the Nigerian international seems to have been re-born this season, scoring two goals and assisting one in the Premier League so far this campaign. His bullish work rate, persistent threat going forward and his doggedness when defending have earned him a spot in Conte’s starting eleven.
Image: Reuters.
Chelsea’s solidness at the back and the extra-cover of the wing-backs, when needed, is an example of a classic Italian defence. Conte has brought this defensive foundation back to the Bridge and with Angolo Kante and Nemanja Matic screening the play in front of the Blue backline, it will prove hard for any team to break them down if they are able to keep their shape.
You may think that all this defending would reduce the creativity and dim the glow of Chelsea’s attacking threat like we have seen with some of Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea sides in the past. Yet, under Conte, using the 3-4-3, players like Eden Hazard, Diego Costa, Pedro and Willian have actually excelled because they are not required to do as much of the backtracking and can now focus on being positive and inventive in the final third in order to score goals.
Image: Getty.
Take Hazard, the nippy Belgium attacker has scored five goals so far his season and assisted one meaning he has already beaten his tally from last season. Costa too is thriving under Conte, with eight goals in 10 appearances for the Blues this season putting him at the top of the Premier League’s top scorer list.
There is no question that the Blues still have a lot of work to do if they want to compete with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham for the top spot, but with this solid foundation in place, they very well could be challenging for the trophy come May.
