Chelsea vs. Liverpool: Tactical Preview of Capital One Cup Game
Chelsea host Liverpool in part two of a thrilling Capital One Cup semi-final on Tuesday evening, with a 1-1 first-leg scoreline meaning all is to play for at Stamford Bridge.
Both sides struggled in The FA Cup this weekend—the Blues lost at home to League One Bradford City, while the Reds drew a blank versus Championship strugglers Bolton Wanderers—so both will be hoping for a much-improved display.
Chelsea Setup
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Jose Mourinho will feel he is within touching distance of a cup final, and therefore a first trophy since returning to Chelsea, so he'll go full tilt here. Andreas Christensen, Kurt Zouma, John Obi Mikel, Mohamed Salah, Loic Remy, Didier Drogba and Ramires all started against Bradford City, and all will likely drop out.
Diego Costa, Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas and Willian will return to spearhead a vaunted attacking setup, while John Terry will plug back in at the heart of defence and lead an excellent line.
Cesar Azpilicueta vs. Filipe Luis will, of course, be a dilemma Mourinho tackles once again, while Thibaut Courtois should return between the sticks after playing the Anfield leg.
It'll be 4-2-3-1 from Chelsea, and the fans will demand an improved effort up front compared to the paltry first-leg effort.
Liverpool Setup
The 3-4-2-1 is clicking superbly for Liverpool, and Brendan Rodgers will not nudge in terms of formations despite failing to beat a Bolton team far, far beneath them in terms of overall talent this weekend.
The Reds remain unbeaten since December 14 and have soared upward since switching shapes. A back line of Emre Can, Martin Skrtel and Mamadou Sakho has brought increased defensive stability, while wing-backs Alberto Moreno and Lazar Markovic have settled and begun to find success.
Raheem Sterling will likely carry the torch up front, with Steven Gerrard battling Adam Lallana for a spot alongside Philippe Coutinho in the dual No. 10 system. Lucas Leiva and Jordan Henderson have impressed in a systematic holding role, protecting the defence and mediating the central zones.
Key Point 1: Be Bold!
One major teething issue with any formation is how it changes your basic passing angles and methods of pushing the ball forward. If the team don't adjust and understand, or the manager doesn't outline, exactly how those routes differ, the players can run into a bit of a brick wall.
Take Manchester United early in the season, for example: They lost 4-0 at MK Dons in one of the most embarrassing results in world footballing history. The 3-4-1-2 formation Louis van Gaal had asked his players to use clearly had not been explained properly, with basic pass options and movement expectation not outlined.
The Reds are far removed from this, with several players embracing their responsibility in full—Markovic retains width as an out-ball, while Sakho pushes quick passes into the path of Moreno's runs—but two still look hesitant, and those two are Lucas and Henderson.
Both players' confidence is beginning to grow once again, but we've seen some hesitancy in passing forward between the lines. They must understand that the best way of moving their side into an attacking position is to feed Coutinho, to his feet, with a pass into dangerous territory. They must trust the little Brazilian to control, turn and go.
Key Point 2: Use Your Built-In Advantage
Chelsea's attacking failure at Anfield in the first leg was truly something of an anomaly. Bar a couple of runs and the Eden Hazard penalty, and the Blues barely had a sniff.
They called eight back to defend and placed Hazard centrally at times as a quick counter-attacking outlet due to the sheer amount of pressure they were under; Liverpool's dominant, possession-based game plan limited the Blues to genuine scraps.
They never worked the obvious, on-paper advantages such as Hazard vs. Markovic, Willian vs. Moreno and attacking Can in space. These are the options they have to utilise in the second leg if they wish to avoid an upset.
The Reds have done a brilliant job of covering their wing-backs defensively to ensure they are not the targets of incessant pressure, but they haven't come up against an Eden Hazard just yet. Getting the ball into the Belgian's feet and having him take on Markovic and Can (both out of their natural positions) should be Plan A.
Willian, who was dreadful from an attacking perspective in the first leg, must drive Moreno back with far more pressure on the other side—especially if the Reds commit resources to help Can and the middle is clogged due to the cautious nature of Lucas and Henderson.
This has the potential to be a very open game despite the tantalising position of the tie. It's up to one of these two teams to use that in their favour.
