New Managers - Mourinho Backs at Chelsea

7/27/2019 New Managers - Mourinho Backs at Chelsea

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New managers: Mourinho at Chelsea

September 17, 2013

Mourinho's tactics so far

Jose Mourinho isnt so much a new manager as a returning manager, following nearly six years away from

Chelsea.

The obvious advantage Mourinho has over David Moyes and Manuel Pellegrini, the other two newcomers

amongst top Premier League clubs, is that he has experience of competing (and triumphing) in a PremierLeague title fight. The downside, however, is that opposition coaches are now fully aware of his tricks, both in

terms of psychology and tactics. Whether that means theyll be able to counteract them with an intelligent

strategy of their own, however, is a different matter.Chelsea odds to win the league at freebets.org

Mourinhos background

Throughout his career Mourinho has been a ruthless, efficient tactician rather than a revolutionary one. His

strategies are taken from the textbook and are meticulously worked upon in training, rather than being

genuinely new, fresh, innovative ideas that takes the footballing world by surprise. As Xavi Hernandez oncesaid, Mourinho is a great coach, but he will not enter the history of football. To go down in history you must

do different things, and he does not bring new things to the game.
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Xavi is hardly the most impartial observer, and its extremely harsh to suggest a double European Cup winner,

and a league champion in four separate countries, will not enter the history of football. But then it depends whatthe history of football is if its about success, character and drama, Mourinho features heavily. But if the

history of football is about playing style, well, thenthe updated version of the history of football tactics

features a chapter on tiki-taka, which is the type of football Mourinho has spent the past six or seven seasons

plotting against. In all probability, Mourinhos second Chelsea reign wont provide a key tactical development.

That said, the last timeMourinho arrived in Englandhe did surprise opponents with his tactics, and helped to

move England away from 4-4-2.

Look, if I have a triangle in midfield Claude Makelele behind and two others just in frontI will alwayshave an advantage against a pure 4-4-2 where the central midfielders are side by side. Thats because I will

always have an extra man. It starts with Makelele, who is between the lines. If nobody comes to him he can see

the whole pitch and has time. If he gets closed down it means one of the two other central midfielders is open. Ifthey are closed down and the other teams wingers come inside to help, it means there is space now for us on

the flank, either for our own wingers or for our full-backs. There is nothing a pure 4-4-2 can do to stop things.

Mourinho in The Italian Job

That was only nine years ago, yet in hindsight English football seems remarkably naive tactically upon thearrival of Mourinho (and Rafael Benitez) in 2004. Playing a midfield triangle was hardly a new innovation in a

European context, but seemed to genuinely bamboozle a ludicrous number of Premier League coaches. In 2013,such a simple move is unlikely to prove so effective.

Mourinho has almost always deployed two main formations, switching between them when necessary.

Traditionally this gave him an option that dominated midfield with four central players, and an option with twogenuine wide men.

For example,at Porto he favoured 4-3-1-2but sometimes used 4-2-3-1. At Chelsea it was the opposite,favouring 4-3-3 but sometimes going with a midfield diamond.At Inter, he focused upon 4-3-1-2 throughout his

first campaign and in Serie A during his second season, but turned to 4-2-3- 1 for Inters victorious Europeanrun.

At Real Madrid, however, it was a choice between either 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3and Mourinho largely discarded the

idea of playing four central midfielders. The shift between the formations was much more subtle. That now

seems to be Mourinhos standard approach, and he explained his intentions in-depth before a couple ofChelseas pre-season matches.

We will play 4-2-3-1 in the first game, my favourite system, though sometimes I change the triangle and play

with one in front of the defenders and two players up, Mourinho said. Other times I play with double

midfielders and a number ten. This is a team where we have not one or two but three or four players who like

very much to be a number ten: [Kevin] De Bruyne likes it, Oscar likes it, [Juan] Mata likes it, [Eden] Hazardlikes it. It is a natural system for all these players to play.

But in another match I could change it. If we are losing, we might need to have two pure strikers. It issomething we will work on because I would like to have this capacity to have it ready to play, independent of

the players we have. Naturally, we will have four at the back and in my team, the attackers are attackers. Some

guys say we play 4-2-3-1, blah blah blah blah, and sometimes the attackers have a defensive job so it is morelike 4-5-1. But it is not 4-5-1, it is 4-3-3.

Mourinho in The Guardian
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The key is the first part4-2-3-1 is his favourite system. Tilting the midfield triangle, essentially creating a 4-3-

3, is the alternative. Two strikers will be used as an emergency system (something Mourinho did nicely at Real)while theres no talk of a midfield diamond (or a 4-3-1-2) a shape Mourinho seems to have discarded.

Chelseas background

Mourinho inherits a side which has been drilled excellently in a defensive sense over the past couple of years.

Andre Villas-Boas was the first Chelsea coach who tried to take the club in a different direction from the

Mourinho blueprint (odd, considering he was one of Mourinhos assistants) but since then the club has beenformatted ideally for Mourinhos style of play.

Roberto Di Matteos first half-season as manager set the tone. Not only did Chelseatriumph in the European

Cupthanks to some excellent defensive playsacrificing possession and concentrating on dealing with

pressurehis formation choices were also similar to what Mourinho would have done. Chelsea werereasonably adventurous in a 4-2-3-1 system in the league, then switched to a more defensive 4-3-3 for big

European games. That might be exactly what Mourinho does this season.

Then Di Matteo (perhaps because of instructions from upstairs) moved to a much more fluid 4-2-3-1 system this

time last year, that had Hazard, Mata and Oscar rotating in the three attacking midfield positions. Chelsea were

exciting but lacked structure, and Rafael Benitezs first task as Chelsea coach was to concentrate upondefensive positioning and protecting the back four, especially with the wide midfielders.

Di Matteos side looked defensively solid in a 4-3-3/4-5-1, but not in a 4-2-3-1 with two banks of four and anumber ten. Benitez is unlikely to receive much credit from either Chelsea fans or Mourinho himself for his

performance at the club, and his achievements were decent rather than excellent, but it means Chelsea are

already suited to Mourinhos defensive style.

Oddly, thats crucial in making Chelsea a more attack-minded side. If Chelsea were a shambles defensively,

Mourinho would use his attackers conservatively and focus upon overall structure in the opening weeks.Instead, he has slightly more license to be creative and adventurous further forward.

Defence

The left side of Chelseas defence has survived from Mourinhos first spell. John Terry and Ashley Cole are

hardly likely to win any popularity contests, but theyve been a consistently dependable unit for the last sevenyears. Partnerships between centre-back and full-back often arent considered as important as that between the

two centre-backs, or between the full-back and his wide midfielder, but very few mistakes come from that part

of Chelseas defence.

Terrys future seemed uncertain when Andre Villas-Boas was demanding a high defensive linemost

obviously exposed in Arsenals 5-3 win at Stamford Bridgebut Terry is both (a) extremely comfortable in a

deep defence and (b) better at covering for his lack of pace with good positional play than many would like toadmit.

Alongside Terry, Mourinho has decent options, and David Luiz and Gary Cahill are both more comfortable than

Terry high up the pitch. Cahill is the superior of the two when defending inside the penalty box, something

particularly obvious over the past week given Cahills fine display for England away in Ukraine, and Luizs

positional error in the defeat at Everton, but Luiz is more capable of bringing the ball out of defence. Mourinhoisnt regarded as a coach who insists upon ball-playing centre-backs, but the likes of Ricardo Carvalho and

Lucio have often brought the ball forward effectively under his coaching.
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Chelseas defensive performance against Manchester United was interesting because both centre-backs had

such simple jobs. Cahill made no tackles, made no interceptions and conceded no fouls. Terry made no tackles,made one interception, and conceded one foul. Their game was almost entirely about clearing the ball in the air

demonstrated by the green circles below.

Clearly, the centre-backs were so well protected that they didnt really need to do anything. Compare that to theperformance of Liverpools centre-backs in their clean sheet against Manchester United.


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There are more interceptions (diamonds), tackles (crosses) and blocks (grey lines). The positions of Daniel

Agger and Martin Skrtels defensive contributions are much more haphazard they still kept a clean sheet, andSkrtel in particular was excellent. But Chelseas defensive organisation so far has been extremely impressive.

Right-back is an interesting area, because Mourinho has a choice between Branislav Ivanovic and Cesar

Azpilicueta, two completely contrasting players. Ivanovic is a centre-back by trade but has grown accustomedto full-back since his move to Chelsea, while Azpilicueta is smaller, quicker and more technical. Ivanovic has

been preferred so far, and while Azpilicueta will surely get gametime soon because of rotation, hes only playedone Premier League minute in Chelseas four league games so far.

The Spaniard enjoyed a good first season at the club, so this seems a simple case of Mourinho preferring abulkier, more physical player at full-back. He does like height in the full-back positionshe supposedly had

initial concerns about signing Cole in 2006 because of his lack of height, and while he clearly felt Cole was

good enough to get past that problem, perhaps hes reluctant to play two (relatively) short full-backs regularly inthe back four.

Its also worth considering Petr Cechs role in the side. An excellent pure keeper but not particularly adept atsweeping off his line or distributing the ball (Chelseas passing from the back under Villas-Boas was poorbecause Cech looked so uncomfortable with the ball at his feet), Mourinhos return has been good for the Czech

international.


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Midfield

The solid back four means Mourinho canwhen he wantsdemand fluidity from his midfield duo.On the

opening day against Hull, the freedom afforded to Ramires and Frank Lampard was amazing for a Mourinho

side. Usually he demands strict positional discipline from that zone, and the likes of Claude Makelele, EstebanCambiasso and Xabi Alonso have rarely strayed from their position, even if Makelele (a pure holder) is a very

different type of player to Alonso (a deep-lying playmaker).

Against Hull, there was one incident that summed it upLampard nearly found Ramires breaking through ongoal, with a lofted through-ball. The pass was overhit, but it was significant that these two found themselves in

advance of Chelseas attacking midfield trio, and theyd also briefly swapped sides. Thats considerably morefreedom that weve become accustomed to for a Mourinho midfield.

This will be an area Mourinho changes from game to game. In games against weak opposition, both midfielderswill have license to go forward. In normal games, hell probably ask one player to sit deep and another to

shuttle forwardin the weekend defeat to Everton, Ramires was the shuttler, and John Obi Mikel came into the

side to protect the defence.

In particularly difficult games, both midfielders will stay tight to the defencethat was the situation against

both Bayern in the Supercup, and the 0-0 draw against Manchester United in the league. Overall, Ramiresseems to play the more defensive role.

What Chelsea may lack, however, is a true deep-lying playmaker, a long-standing problem that became

particularly obvious last yearwhen sides could concentrate on minimising the space between the lines for

Chelseas three attackers, and be relatively relaxed about the threat upfront, or from deep in midfield. NeitherRamires nor Lampard provide particularly incisive passing from that zone, and Chelsea may find themselves

increasingly presented with the ball in deep midfield positions, unable to thread an initial pass into the final

third.
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Attackers

This is Mourinhos real area of strength, with Hazard, Oscar, Mata, Kevin De Bruyne, Willian and Andre

Schurrle all competing for three places. In fact, Demba Ba, Samuel Etoo, Ramires and Frank Lampard could

all conceivably play in those positions toobut because of Mourinhos options in those roles, their appearancethere seems unlikely.

Perhaps the most interesting role is the number ten position. Oscar started the season there, and Mourinho will

be particularly keen on his discipline and tactical intelligence.Against Hull he was fantastic because of hisability to drag opposition holding midfielder Robbie Brady out of position, creating gaps for other midfielders

to charge into.

His ability to help defend will also be seen as important, considering Mourinho will often play without any

naturally defensive central midfielders.

Crucially, Oscar is equally capable of playing against deep defences, or playing on the counter-attack.Mourinhos curious distrust of Juan Mata was somewhat justified by the Spaniards ineffective performance

against Everton at the weekend, where he seemed unable to carry the ball forward at transitions from central

positions.

Although likely to be more proactive this season, counter-attacking will still be a key part of Mourinhos

strategy. Mata might be suited to games where Chelsea have possession and are playing against a deep defence,

trying to find angles to penetrate. As it happens, this means Mata was used in the exact wrong way at Evertonon the pitch when Chelsea were countering, withdrawn when they dominated against two deep banks of four.

Out wide, the real key is whether Schurrle adjusts adequately to his right-sided role.At Leverkusen last seasonhe was devastating when running powerfully towards goal from the left, moving inside onto his right foot

before firing at goal.Hes a perfect Mourinho player, a kind of Cristiano Ronaldo-Arjen Robben clone, but hes

logically more comfortable on the left. So far this season his performances on the right have been encouraging,but not yet quite at the level Mourinho would expect. In truth, it probably makes more sense on paper to play

Hazard from the righthis game simply seems less dependent upon what side of the pitch he playsbut

Mourinho hasnt explored this option so far.
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De Bruyne is a different type of playercapable of playing in a deeper role, and therefore might be crucial

when Mourinho wants balance between the two flanks. At Real, Angel Di Maria provided an excellentcounterweight to the the outright attacking of Ronaldo in a narrower, deeper role. Like Di Maria, De Bruyne

isnt a pure winger and is a more selfless player than Hazard or Schurrle.

Willian seems an unnecessary signing despite his obvious talent. Its difficult, at this stage, to see what role hewould play better than one of Chelseas other five attacking midfielders although hes arguably capable of

providing more natural width if Chelsea need to stretch the play.

Upfront

The decision to loan out Romelu Lukaku was extremely strangethe Belgian scored at a better rate than any

other Premier League player last season, and while one could argue its a decent decision in the long-term,

because Lukaku will get playing time at Everton and come back even more ready for Chelsea, he surely couldhave played a valuable role this season. His intelligent runs, as well as his finishing quality and sheer power,

make him an excellent all-round striker.

Instead, Mourinho is left with question marks about all three strikers. Fernando Torres form has improved,

especially in Europe, but hes scored one league goal in 2013. Torres was a world class player when he worked

the channels with tremendous pace, but having lost that speed he now concentrates upon battling aerially and

linking play, neither of which he does with any great certainty.


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Demba Ba seemed stopgap signing and probably isnt quite at the level Mourinho would require. Hes simply

not involved in play enough.


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Meanwhile, Samuel Etoo physical status and mental state must be questioned after two gentle years in Russian

football. That said, there were promising signs from Etoo at Everton on Saturday. The sharpness and first touchwasnt there yet, but that will come with time. The major question is whether hell also find an extra yard of

pace, or whether thats been lost at the age of 32.

However, the intelligence of his movement was still obviouswhether peeling to the far post or sprinting to the

near post, Etoo remains an extremely lively centre-forward, and Mourinhos surprising decision to thrust him

straight into the action at Goodison Park means hell probably be Chelseas first-choice striker this season.

Mourinho likes players he can trust, and after their successful year together at Inter, where Etoo often playedwide, the two have a good relationship.

Mourinho clearly wants someone mobile that can work the channels, which is why he started Schurrle upfront

against Manchester United. Having used four different forwards in four Premier League games, however, its

clear he hasnt found the solution yet.

Possession and overall approach

Chelseas average share of possession since Mourinhos return has been extremely inconsistent, ranging

between 26% and 69%, which is partly a consequence of the wildly different opposition theyve faced so far

this season.

However, what is particularly obvious is Chelseas tendency to completely alter their style of play according to

the game state. Theres no surprise in Chelsea having 69% of possession at home to Aston Villa, or completelyconceding possession against Bayern, a regular Mourinho tactic against a Pep Guardiola side. The real interest

has been how Chelsea have completely altered their approach within games.


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Against Hull they dominated in the early stagesin the first quarter (when they scored both their goals, and

also missed a penalty in an eventual 2-0 victory), Chelsea had 71% possession. However, at 2-0 up theyimmediately switched off and sat back, recording just 43% of possession in the second quarter, and just 47% in

the second half. With such variation, the final possession count of 51% becomes somewhat meaningless.

Some took Hulls late surge as evidence Chelsea were tiring, but they seemed entirely happy to soak up

pressure by sitting deep (which suits their defence) and then countering (which suits their wingers).

Against Everton it was the opposite situation. Chelsea had 48% of possession in the opening quarter, butthroughout the second half this figure jumped to 62%. Even more interesting was the position of the passes

before and after half-timeChelsea were playing a completely different style of football.

Its natural for playing style to change when the game state changes, but Chelseas approach was markedly

different.

It is more the first switch, the defensive shift, which will be a key part of Chelseas approach this season.

StatsBomb believe the Hull game was a perfect example ofshelling.

Also in that Hull game (which has been used frequently as an example here, mainly because Mourinhos home

record is frequently immaculate, and Chelsea will dominate games at Stamford Bridge in this mannerthroughout the campaign) was the interesting development that the two most frequent passing combinations in

the game were Hull players combining down the flanks.
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This has been replicated (to a lesserdegree) in some of Chelseas subsequent games, and suggests Mourinhos

side will have a relatively narrow defensive shape, allowing the opposition time on the ball close to the

touchlines when theyre in a defensive mindset.

Maybe the most surprising thing about Mourinhos Chelsea so far has been their inefficiency on the counter-

attack. Against Everton on Saturday, Chelsea were up against a side that wanted to dominate possession andpush their full-backs forward, and while Roberto Martinez was reasonably cautious with the positioning of his

players, it was still surprising that Chelsea seemed so incapable of transferring the ball into attack quickly and

striking on the break. Swift counter-attacks are a fundamental part of Mourinhos approach, and something

Chelsea cant afford to be weak at.

Another interesting feature of the defeat to Everton at the weekend was Mourinhos switch to a back three as he

chased the game. Torres replaced Cole, with a back three of Ivanovic, Terry and Luiz, with Ramires and Mikeldropping in to help out. Its something Mourinho often did at Real, and hes said he will use two pure strikers

only in an emergency.

Conclusion

From a tactical point of view, its relatively difficult to get excited about this Chelsea side. Their last two

seasons started with grand new projects: Villas-Boas unsuccessfully trying to make Chelsea playing high-tempo

football with pressing and a high line, and Di Matteo integrating three rotating playmakers into the same side

following a remarkable European Cup win with the most defensive football imaginable.

This seems like more of a template job. Mourinho is bringing old ideas and using them with different players,and with Chelseas capacity to sign any player they need (and some they dont) its not about how Mourinhowill construct a side around his players, but about how his players will adjust to his system. His apparent lack of

regard for Mata underlines the problemit would be much more interesting to see how Mourinho went about

including him, rather than being free to exclude him because he has countless other options in those threeattacking positions.

Still, Mourinhos tendency to use vastly different strategies at different times has been fascinating, and that willbe the most interesting thing about Chelsea this seasonhow they play in individual matches, rather than how

they play overall.

Documents

New Managers - Mourinho Backs at Chelsea