Chelsea looked impressively solid at the back against Manchester United at the weekend, using a 343 formation to snuff out the Red Devils’ threat.
Sadly this came at the cost of a lot of attacking fluency, and the front 3 of Christian Pulisic, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz weren’t able to perform as they had in a 433.
In fact, according to FBRef, the trio managed just 7 touches in the opposition box between them, after a dull game where neither team was able to generate much attacking momentum.
Pulisic got 5 touches and Werner just 2, while Havertz didn’t get a touch at all in the United box – although he was just inches away from connecting on multiple crosses which could easily have lead to goals.
It’s still early days, and in a counter attacking system like this, touches in the opposition box aren’t everything – but it’s still a clear area that must be improved if we’re to continue using this setup.
