Enzo Maresca has created a 'pocket problem', and now he needs to solve it

Today at 12:32 AM

Tactical revolution, evolution, resolution

Roko Škrabić, a.k.a. "TheMightyGorgon", is the Chief Editor of Chelsea Croatia, home of the official Chelsea FC supporters group for Croatia. Be sure to give them a follow on Twitter.

This article is a follow-up to his preseason feature on the tactical conundrum facing Enzo Maresca at Chelsea.

*All images were created with buildlineup.com

It has been going rather well this season so far and Maresca has been lauded for it. Distant are those summer days when we worried we were getting another dogmatic Sarri-like figure who never strays from his system and those even murkier days when the team was playing downright awful in preseason. It once again showed preseason was just preseason, while Maresca proved to be quite capable and adaptable, but still true to most of his principles. Just as he should be, right?

There's one problem, though. Multiple problems, to be fair, but that is normal as no team is perfect. You can always find bad things, even about a Liverpool side that's been unexpectedly dominant so far, and you can always find good stuff to say, even about a Southampton team which has been anything but... The problem we will try to dissect here is the pocket problem, one I believe has been holding this team back this season and one, if solved, can make everything click and propel us to greater heights.

But first, what is it and how was it created?

***

Before the season started, I discussed Enzo Maresca's Plan A from Leicester, criticized its applicability to this Chelsea team and tried to come up with all the possible alternatives (Plans B-F).

Here's a brief summary of the "plans", which are all (except F) actually in possession variants of the same structure Maresca (and most modern coaches) insists on, the 3-box-3 (or the 3-2-4-1 or the 3-2-2-3, however you like to call it):

Plan A: One FB inverted into the double pivot alongside the 6, while the 8s go forward into the pockets practically becoming 10s and the rest of the defence form a back 3. This was the one Maresca used at Leicester.

*Instead of the 4-3-3, you can have the 4-2-3-1 out of possession structure, as we have usually had this season. In possession it ends up the same anyway.

Plan B: One FB not inverted, but advanced forward to hold the attacking width, his winger tucked into the pocket alongside the 10, while the double pivot remains in place in front of a back 3.

Plan C: Called „The Tinkerman", this was not a specific plan per se, but a notion that Maresca could (and perhaps should) actually change his set up from game to game according to the opponent and the forms of his players. This actually makes it the winning plan since Maresca has indeed done that, to much delight from yours truly and many others previously sceptical of him, having heard from Leicester fans „he only ever sticks to his Plan A". Thankfully, he does not.

Plan D: One FB inverted into the attacking midfield, rather than defensive, ie. into the pocket instead of the pivot.

Plan E: Playing a natural midfielder (Caicedo) at left/right back and have him invert into the pivot while in possession, allowing us to field attacking 8s/10s like Nkunku and Palmer together while not sacrificing our double pivot.

Plan F: One FB inverted into the midfield which forms a (obsolete Cruyffian) diamond instead of a (modern and widespread) box midfield.

Maresca has truly been the Tinkerman, having already used almost all of these in the first 11 gameweeks of the Premier League season. All, except Plan E, which was aptly called the „Extreme" plan. As such, we were unlikely to ever see it and that remains so.

As you can see above, the whole point of the so called 'plans' is how to get from the starting formation to 3-box-3 in possession. As we don't defend with 3 at the back (but 4) nor have 4 starting midfielders (but 3), where does one defender* go, who exactly becomes the 4th midfielder when we win the ball and what does he become (pivot or pocket player).

*A full back in our case, as we don't have a John Stones.

As mentioned, 4/5 described plans have at least once been the starting set up* for Maresca's Chelsea this season. Let's see them, in order of appearance, analyzing only Premier League matches since in other competitions we've so far always changed to a completely different team.

*Maresca has rarely switched between options in game so let's ignore that for the sake of simplicity.

Plan B – 1 match (GW 1 Man City)

*Safe to say the 'Nkunku on the wing' experiment did not work out.

This is the only plan that does not include any inversions, which makes it the only time Maresca did not invert a full back so far in the Premier League (pretty much answering the main dilemma from the original article).

Malo Gusto was tasked to simply advance forward as to let Cole Palmer* tuck into his best position, the right half space (or the right 'pocket'), when we have the ball. At the time we thought Maresca did that to be able to start Palmer as the nominal right winger, but as it turns out that wasn't his main intention (at least for now). What he actually wanted to achieve with this was to field all 3 of our (good) midfielders at the same time. Caicedo and Lavia played deeper as the double pivot, while Enzo (F) started his sorry career as the advancing midfielder, at the same time commencing this season's grand issue – the pocket problem (scary font). More about that later.

*In July I deemed it possible for Palmer to sometimes be played as a full on winger (like he did for Maresca in Man City u21s), but it seems this time around Enzo M always wants him in the center. Probably for the better!

Maresca probably wanted as much control and technicality in midfield as possible vs a side like Man City, but interestingly, he hasn't repeated this (the trio starting together) yet, not even against other big teams like Arsenal and Liverpool. Ever since GW2, Maresca prioritized having a wide dribbling winger on both sides (which Palmer, who has to start, is not) meaning there was no place left for all 3 of Enzo, Caicedo and Lavia.

Plan A – 3 matches (GW2 Wolves, GW6 Brighton, GW7 Forest)

*Starting line up vs Wolves (GW2)

In these games Gusto was instructed to do the Leicester thing - Invert next to Caicedo, sending Enzo forward into the left pocket. Considering the results in these games, one might say it worked out well, but we didn't really see much (as an understatement) from our position shifters, Enzo and Gusto. And that trend continued...

Plan F – 2 matches (GW3 Palace, GW5 West Ham) (also preseason finale vs Inter)

*Starting line up vs Palace (GW3)

In the OG article I wasn't sure if the 3-diamond-3 would ever be useful for Maresca in this day and age, but he quickly found a purpose for it – battling 5 man defences. He literally explained so in one of his (over?)revealing interviews; the point is to have 6 players forward to be able to outnumber the opponent's backline. Usually, against standard 4 men defences, the 3-2-2-3 (box) does the job, but against 5 at the back we switch into the 3-1-3-3 (diamond). That's it, simple as that. This pretty much means we will never stop seeing Plan F (as long as anyone's playing 5 at the back), but it will also never be the go to option.

For nitpickers amongst you; note that West Ham did start in a 4 at the back which means we played a part of the game in Plan A, but for some (ill-conceived) reason Lopetegui would drop Alvarez deeper forming a 5 man backline out of possession to which Maresca responded by switching to 3-diamond-3 which we had already practiced 2 gameweeks earlier against Palace.

Plan D – 5 matches (GW4 Bournemouth, GW8-11 Liverpool, Newcastle, Man United, Arsenal)

*Starting line up vs Bournemouth (GW4)

4th gameweek, 4th different set up by Maresca. And they said „he has no Plan B"!

In this one Cucurella was the full back which inverted into attacking midfield (left pocket), much to my bemusement. I have to admit I had previously stated, in black and white, that we should never even think of doing that with the offensively limited Cucu... and to my even greater bemusement, he didn't do half bad. His underlapping runs were well timed and almost dangerous, providing Neto and later Sancho a much better outlet for their passes than the previous left pocket, Enzo. He wasn't available that game, but he returned to his much maligned role in the very next one.

We didn't see this set up until Enzo F was left out again against Liverpool, prompting me to conclude Enzo M would prefer if his full back inverted into pivot rather than pocket but feels he can only do so with Enzo F of all his midfielders*... with which I agree and disagree; he probably is the best of them in the pocket, but he isn't good there either.

*Andrey Santos might stand a really good chance next season, folks... He seems perfect for this role.

*Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall can do it, sure, but I don't really consider him a viable competitor for the first XI.

In fact, I feel like Enzo F has been dealt a tough hand by his namesake, even unfair one compared to his competitors. Whenever he played, he was put into an unfavored position to enable Enzo M's prefered set up, just because he allegedly could play there. Whenever Lavia played (also Veiga vs Bournemouth), he was put into his and Enzo's favored* deeper position as the coach knew he can't play further forward... Resulting in Lavia largely looking quite good, and Enzo F looking the opposite.

*It's not a myth, he has indeed looked significantly better playing as the DLP in the double pivot for the 'B team' but also coming on for the 'A team'. (But we do expect more from him still.)

However that Enzo-Lavia competition fares out, it's fair to say Lavia's inclusion was (probably) the main reason why Maresca switched to Plan D and kept with it ever since, and I hope Enzo F will get the same opportunity if/when reinstated in the first XI. For what it's worth, I don't think we should play in Plan A ever again, not if our trio of midfielders is fit. That inversion breaks up our double pivot which might be the strongest part of our team.

Hence it actually made sense for us to start inverting further forward, as maligned as that move already is. Unlike in GW4, where Cucurella became the left 10, in the last 4 gameweeks Gusto was the one to invert into the pockets* – normally the right one, with the exception of the Liverpool game where he played on the left. This is where we arrive at 2 other important considerations.

*It does seem Maresca prefers Gusto to invert high up rather than Cucurella, which makes sense - Gusto is generally a better attacker and Cucurella a better defender, even though the former hasn't been shown so far. At Bournemouth Gusto was injured, so Disasi played at RB and naturally remained in the back 3 in possession, hence Cucurella had to invert.

*Starting line up vs Arsenal. Later on Cucurella inverted instead of Gusto, to no effect.

***

Consideration no. 1 - center backs. When shifted in possession, one of them will become the central center back (CCB), while the other one, who saw his full back abandon the backline, will become one of the lateral defenders in the newly formed back 3.

Colwill can play both of those options, but prefers the central one. Fofana can too, but prefers the lateral one*. Tosin, who had to step in for the suspended Fofana vs Liverpool, can only really play as the central one. Thus we were forced to invert from the left in that game, which saw Gusto start as a left back due to Cucurella's suspension and invert into the left pocket.

*This means we'd generally prefer to invert from the right, but I don't think the other way around is a problem like some do. Colwill and Fofana are both quite versatile, enabling us to invert from either side when they're playing.

Gusto inverting from the left enabled Palmer to stay on his prefered right side/pocket (consideration no. 2). However, he was man marked out of the game and Maresca reacted. The very next game he switched Gusto and James, which meant Gusto inverted from right back to right pocket, confusing the visitors who too planned to man mark Palmer on the right and enabling our league's best player to wreak havoc once again. Unfortunately, the surprise factor had faded and Palmer could not reproduce that Newcastle performance in the next two games. As versatile as he is, his best position is undoubtably the RHS (right half space / right pocket) and that is where he should play the most of his matches. The left pocket can be good sometimes, but it shouldn't be the default.

This means, if we're inverting into the pockets (rather than into the pivot), we'd prefer to do it from the left, which goes against the above conclusion in regards to the previous consideration. Basically, when we do Plan D and invert a FB into the pocket, we either push Palmer to his less ideal side OR the center backs to their less ideal positions*. Neither option is terrible, but they're both... well, less than ideal.

*Is there a solution which combines the best of both worlds? Read on...

***

Now, to the dreaded pocket problem (scary font).

Have you noticed that, in all of these matches, we haven't once had two good pocket players, or in other words, another true attacking midfielder next to Palmer? It's either been Enzo, Cucurella, or Gusto. Good players in their own, but not good pocket players. And this is not a random, less important position, if there is one in football. The half spaces (pockets) are perhaps the most dangerous, creative positions on the pitch!

I'd go as far as to say the 2nd pocket (the one that is not Palmer) has been our worst position this season. Yes, even worse than GK where Sanchez has admittedly had more good games than bad ones (which people tend to forget), while all 3 of Cucu, Gusto and Enzo together have maybe got a single good performance in that position out of 11 attempts.

It's gotten to the point that the opponents purposefully target that area of our team. In recent matches Gusto was often left unmarked by the opposition, able to receive the ball, turn around and... squander a potentially dangerous opportunity. Here's a short and brilliant explanation of that:

EMBEDDED: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7-6EHDODs04

I actually believe Gusto has got all the tools to eventually become a very good FB for inverting into attacking midfield (much more so than Cucurella who's a finished product, and that product is not attacking). He's very technical and talented, and we have to reminded ourselves, still very young (21!). He's only been playing in this role for several games and is still learning, so he will surely improve. However, we don't know how long that will take, and there's still the question of – is there a better option? And not to re-mention Palmer is always playing on his worse side if this does become continue to be the go to strategy.

What's left is the obvious solution – why not play with two actual pocket players?

We do have those. In fact, Félix and Nkunku have been the biggest victims of Maresca's system(s) so far. Félix is stuck in the pecking order behind Palmer, which is an impossible situation (we didn't pay 60 mil for that, did we?), and Nkunku is acting as a back up for Jackson up forward, which seems just as impossible considering Nkunku is not really a striker (we didn't pay 60 mil for that, did we? vol. 2). Neither of them deserve this and they won't get out if it unless Maresca moves on from Plan B and D...

One solution that we can eliminate is starting Palmer+Nkunku/Félix as 8s and moving them into pockets once a FB inverts into the pivot. That would mean 2 out of Caicedo, Enzo F and Lavia are benched, and simply put, that is not gonna happen*. And we're not doing the Plan E (extreme solution with Caicedo inverting from FB) either*.

*I mean, it's possible we do these once or twice, but they will never become the main option.

The only other solution is Plan B. Start Félix/Nkunku at 10. Don't invert. In possession push Gusto/James high wide instead of inside, have Palmer move into the pocket from the nominal RW and have 2 actual attacking midfielders in the half spaces.

To those who need it repeated – Palmer would not actually become a right winger, he would only play there out of possession, which is practically irrelevant to him as a player that he is. In possession, ie. when it matters, he'd still play in his best position – the right pocket.

There's one issue, though. The elephant in the room – James' fitness. Many now believe he should never play further forward again to limit his running and reduce the chance of re-injury. It might be true, and it might not. Personally, I can see him get injured when running after a opponent deeper down the pitch, too. Do we tell him not to do that? At what point does he become over-protected and no longer an asset to the team, but a burden? We can now see he's behind Cucurella and Gusto in the pecking order, which is baffling and pointless for a player like him... I believe he should, as soon as the fitness team clears him, be back doing what he does best*, and most importantly, playing wherever the team needs him to play. Right now that might just be – advanced full back. A good, intelligent rotation with Gusto (60/30 minutes every other game?) should do the trick.

*Imagine a right side with James overlapping Palmer... That should be illegal!

Of course, there are other downsides to Plan B, as there are with any system. It's been touched upon in the original piece, but in short the two most relevant downsides are the following; Only one of the two wide attacking positions are held by true dribbling wingers; Neither of the pocket players is a more conservative one, which in theory makes the box less compact. Both of these points are clearly very important to Maresca, otherwise he would have moved on to Plan B a long time ago.

Personally, I don't mind not having two wide wingers since many teams and coaches successfully play with at least one full back wide, and my god does he know how dangerous James is out wide? (Gusto to some extent too, as shown last season.) Better than any winger! Also, if his teacher Pep Guardiola has been playing with the combination of KDB, Foden and both Silvas as the advanced 8s/10s all these years in the Premier League... I see no reason why Palmer+Nkunku/Félix couldn't work. It might be time for Maresca to compromise a bit more on some of his principles...

Imagine how much more dangerous Palmer would become if the opponents had to tightly mark another creative threat in the other pocket. Imagine if it was Félix or Nkunku in all those opportunities that Gusto got lately... Of course, in that case the opponent wouldn't leave as much space to our 2nd pocket, but that means more space would open up for others, including Palmer and our wingers (ie. winger and advanced FB). You could say the opponents would again find a way to mark everyone else except Gusto, but I'm not sure that'd be a good idea, because then he would be getting space wide on the right – exactly where he's most dangerous. Win-win for us.

Straying from Gusto, there's the James conundrum again. If he's deemed fit enough to play wide on the right, he's fit enough to play inverted into the pocket, right? - True. No one would be happier than us! That would just mean him and Palmer are nailed on up front and where exactly they play depends on whether we want to play with another pocket (Plan B) or another winger (Plan D), or in other words, who of them deserves to start more.

Currently, it's definitely Félix and Nkunku (as Neto can play on the left too, and is just as good there). What's even better, the left pocket is the position of their dreams. It's exactly where Nkunku has dominated the Bundesliga playing as a secondary striker coming in from the left. Similarly, if Félix is ever going to fullfil his potential, that will be playing as a left 10 in an attacking, technical, possession based team like ours. Both coud really flourish here and it would be such a waste not to even give them a proper chance...

In my mind, this is the best possible Chelsea line up at the moment, considering form and system:

*Plan B with 4 tightly contested positions.

As we can see, there would be no place for Madueke anymore. I don't dislike him, but I'd be fine with that, for multiple reasons. Firstly, his future is probably sealed with Estêvão's arrival anyway. Secondly, Newcastle would in January probably give us about two times as much as we paid for him and we probably wouldn't regret it (too much). Thirdly, I rate his ceiling well below our other attacking players. He's a specialist, player of only two distinct abilities - dribbling and shooting - neither of which is elite, making him somewhat of a poor man's Arjen Robben. There's always a chance he could improve and get closer to a Robben, but that's a risk I'm willing to take. After all, with the sheer number of top talent we've been bringing in, some will inevitably be pushed away by others and another Salah/KDB is unfortunately bound to happen. I doubt it's going to be Madueke, though.

Plan B would be a system inclined towards our pivot and pocket players while the wingers pay the price*, just as the pocket players Félix and Nkunku have been paying it so far this season. All in all, judging by the performances of all included, I believe it's time Félix and Nkunku get their chance and Madueke rides the bench a little.

*Mostly Madueke, but also Mudryk who's ripe for a loan anyway. Neto and Sancho would be alright on the left.

But it's not just about them, or about meritocracy (which should absolutely be a factor). It's about the team as well. As shown in this piece, simply advancing the right back forward, instead of inverting him anywhere, would create the best possible scenario for almost all our players.

• Palmer would still get to play where he's best (right pocket).
• Gusto and James would get to play where they're best (wide right).
• Enzo F and Lavia would get to play where they're best (DLP).
• Colwill and Fofana would get to play where they're best (CCB and RCB respectively).
• Félix and Nkunku would get to play where they're best (left pocket).

It's a no brainer for Maresca, this. Thankfully, judging by his recent interviews, he's been thinking of doing it for some time now... and I hope Saturday is go time.

I'm gonna do a wild prediction now. If he does it vs Leicester and we move to Plan B from then onwards - everything will click and we will go into a huge winning run. Like 30+ points in the next 11 rounds until City away.

I said it. Now let's see it.