Chelsea have gotten back to winning ways under new boss Thomas Tuchel and it’s their defensive line that has been receiving all the plaudits.
In the six games that Chelsea have played under their new manager, the London side have conceded only one goal as Antonio Rudiger put the ball in the back of his own net against Sheffield United.
And speaking about this newfound defensive rigidity, Andreas Christensen revealed the advice that Thomas Tuchel has given to the Chelsea side.
“If you don’t need to play the ball, you don’t have to,” Christensen told Chelsea’s official website on how Tuchel has revamped the backline.
“Wait for someone to come and take the ball, don’t take last-second decisions, know what you’re going to do and make it happen.
“He just said to us to be comfortable and believe in ourselves. I have played in the middle of the three before and I’m quite comfortable there.
“At the moment, when we are playing good football and getting wins, it is helping us so we don’t have to do too much to change it.”
Frank Lampard was playing a 4-3-3 formation at Chelsea and there were numerous occasions when his playing style had been criticized by pundits and the fans. But for some odd reason, the former manager did not wish to try out any other tactics.
Thomas Tuchel though has brought in the 3-4-2-1 system at Chelsea, something which has worked for the Blues in the past and now the results are there for everyone to see.
Not only has this system added more solidity to the backline but it has also helped bring back senior pros like Rudiger and Marcos Alonso into the starting line-up – players who were almost exiled by Lampard.
Chelsea take on Southampton this week in the Premier League and then they have some really tough fixtures coming up(vs Atletico Madrid, Man United and Everton). And these matches will be the real litmus test for Chelsea’s defensive progress under Thomas Tuchel.
Data courtesy TransferMarkt.
