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Changes to Expect Under Antonio Conte at Chelsea
- Updated: July 23, 2016
Antonio Conte kept us guessing about what changes he would be deploying at Chelsea ahead of the Italian taking official charge at Stamford Bridge this summer.
The big conversation revolved around his formation. Would it be a 3-5-2 at Chelsea? Would he keep the 4-2-3-1 that had seen the Blues win the title in 2014/15 but then fail so miserably a year later?
In his opening two pre-season matches, we’ve seen Conte answer that question. Chelsea are now playing 4-2-4, with better use of wingers and, importantly, two strikers to give them a better presence in the final third.
Working with a medley of players in his first week or so, we can expect this to evolve in the coming days. With players still on holiday after Euro 2016, Conte has been introducing his new ways of working with Chelsea’s fringe players in their week-long stay in Austria.
Now that Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas and others are back in time for the Blues’ pre-season tour of the U.S. that sees them depart London for Los Angeles on Sunday, what changes can we expect as Conte ramps up his preparations? Bleacher Report takes a closer look at some key areas.
N’Golo Kante and Cesc Fabregas to form a midfield partnership
Against Rapid Vienna and RZ Pellets, Chelsea’s midfield combination was makeshift. Conte started with Nemanja Matic and John Obi Mikel against Rapid, switching to a Matic-Oscar partnership for the midweek clash with RZ Pellets.
The latter were not as tough opponents as Rapid, although that shouldn’t disguise the fact Chelsea’s midfield partnership functioned better. Oscar is more dynamic than Mikel at getting the ball forward, which is key for whoever sits in that central area.
For the 4-2-4 to be effective, Conte needs a balance in the middle, which Matic and Oscar offered. Whoever it is playing in there must strengthen the team defensively and on the attack.
Now that Fabregas and new boy Kante will be available for action in the U.S., Conte will probably look to change things up again in midfield, with that duo becoming a partnership.
Based on last season’s form, Kante will offer a marked improvement on Matic in a defensive …
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