The failed test of 4-2-3-1. Although he had used it on occasion in his experiences in Dortmund and in Paristhe three-central system was not for Thomas Tuchel your header schema. It was upon arrival at Chelsea fifteen months ago when he implanted it to fortify a vulnerable defensive line and that had become the great problem of the team under the command of Frank Lampard. With that 3-4-2-1, the German coach gave the London squad a new security, and he has not changed it. With him he won Champions League and prepared to face a new season that seemed promising after the arrival of Romelu Lukaku. However, during the current exercise, and perhaps pushed by a qualifying situation that allows them to experiment -Chelsea knows that, with almost total certainty, they will finish third in the Premier—, Tuchel has tried in some games a drawing with four behind. It happened often in January, and it did it again this Saturday against the Brentford in a derby in the west of the capital that ended with a surprising 1-4 in Stamford Bridge. He formed, in fact, with a 4-2-3-1 in which Azpilicueta and Mark Alonso were the sides, and in which Ziyech and werner they played up front as wingers. He was not obliged to vary the drawing, since on the bench he had Christensen already Malang Sarr. It was a purely tactical choice. It is clear that it did not go well, so the most logical thing would be for him to return to formation against the Real Madrid with the scheme with which he was proclaimed champion of Europe.
Against Lille he armored himself up more. The tactical variations possible at Chelsea do not end with the configuration of the defensive line. In fact, in the round of 16 against the French champion they surprised with a 3-5-2 in which they added one more midfielder and sacrificed a playmaker. Or put another way: they played together Kovacic, Jorginho and Kante, when normally one of the three is left out. It is true that it was the second leg and that Chelsea faced it with a two-goal advantage, but it is an option that we cannot rule out. It would make a lot of sense to try to stifle a white midfield that is normally made up of three men and that could bring in a fourth element if he starts Valverde.
Havertz is Tuchel’s nine. It is difficult to determine why Lukaku is not working at Chelsea. The team had gotten used to playing without a fixed nine, and perhaps that was the origin of the problem. The Belgian attacker also had a double added pressure: he had already been at Stamford Bridge when he was very young and in the Man Utd did not succeed. She had many pending accounts with the public and the critics in England, which required a lot of input. And then, of course, his statements to the Italian press insinuating that he wanted to return to Inter ended up breaking the harmony. Actually, the numbers of Havertz they are not better. The German only surpasses Lukaku in the Premier (six goals one for five the other). In the aggregate of all competitions, the Belgian has scored more (twelve against eleven). But Tuchel appreciates the surprise factor provided by the former Bayer Leverkusenwho starts as the favorite to be the false center forward against Real Madrid.