The Chelsea fans in the Transfer Tavern aren’t sure what to expect from Chelsea this season…
Last year was a very succesful one for the Blues, with Antonio Conte winning the league against all odds. The side were fantastic from start to finish, with a particularly impressive spell around Christmas essentially winning the title for Antonio Conte.
It’s strange, then, that there is so much uncertainty ahead of the next campaign, with nobody in the Transfer Tavern touting the Blues for a title win.
Of course, it was the same situation last year, but this term feels slightly different. Chelsea have struggled to recruit this summer, and their squad is looking in poor shape with the season getting underway on Saturday against Burnley.
Antonio Conte, though, is always a man with a plan, and so our landlord is backing him to get a performance out of his team when it really matters. In order to achieve that, though, he needs to make sure that he picks the right side – and there are a number of options for the Italian.
With that said, here are 3 potential Chelsea starting XI’s for Saturday’s match with Burnley…
3-4-3
Conte’s tried and tested formation.
It worked perfectly for him last season, offering a perfect balance of attack and defence.
All the regular team members will be included here, with Thibaut Courtois likely to be joined by Gary Cahill, Cesar Azpilicueta and David Luiz at the back.
Ahead of them, Cesc Fabregas and N’Golo Kante will lead the midfield, flanked by both Victor Moses and Marcos Alonso.
Leading the line is likely to be Pedro and Willian, whilst Michy Batshuayi could be given another chance by Antonio Conte.
3-5-2
He could also opt for a slight shift in the attack, with an attack made up of two strikers instead of the usual one and two wingers.
In this case, Conte may choose to start with both Michy Batshuayi and Alvaro Morata – with the pair both likely keen to get on the scoresheet as soon as possible.
This may mean that Pedro loses out, but given the facial injuries that the Spaniard is suffering from at present, that may not be such a bad thing.
This would only be a minor tweak, but it’s a pretty major tactical shift – with more of a focus on working the ball through the middle.
4-2-3-1
This formation has seen its day in the Premier League, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t useful. After all, Chelsea looked good at the start of last season using it.
Their lack of midfield depth may make it difficult, but it would certainly be a surprise for Burnley were they to come up against the Blues in this formation.
Perhaps David Luiz could move into midfield – where he excelled in his last spell at Chelsea – allowing Andreas Christensen to come in and for Cesc Fabregas to move forward into the number 10 role.
It’s an unlikely system, but it might make sense.
