Chelsea’s 3-4-3 alternatives: Is 3-1-4-2 the future for Antonio Conte’s Blues?

LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 20: Antonio Conte, Manager of Chelsea gives his team instructions during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on August 20, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)

Chelsea dominated the Premier League with their 3-4-3 last season, but what happens if they get found out? Let’s analyse how Antonio Conte could employ the 3-1-4-2 set-up.

This variation of 3-5-2 mirrors to an extent the formation Antonio Conte used at Juventus. Cesc Fabregas takes on Andrea Pirlo’s role, sitting deep and dictating play. He did this in our title winning season of 2014/15 under Jose Mourinho and to great effect.

In the first half of that season, Chelsea experienced unparalleled creativity from deep. It didn’t work defensively, however, as Fabregas didn’t get enough protection from Nemanja Matic and Oscar ahead of him.

With the 3-5-2, or specifically the 3-1-4-2, Fabregas would be much better protected by N’Golo Kante and Tiemoue Bakayoko. This, in theory, would offer Chelsea the creative merits of his deep-lying playmaking with none of the drawbacks.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The change in the system would rely on the strengths of the old Juventus squad and the current Chelsea squad. Despite its recent additions, Conte’s current midfield does not have the same quality as the one he had in Turin.

The trio of Vidal, Marchisio and Pogba offered much more of a goal threat than Kante and Bakayoko. Bakayoko brings a much-needed dynamism over Matic (no regrets), but he hasn’t consistently scored goals in his career to date. The other problem is that Chelsea’s current target man options do not hold up to Juventus’ squad, which included the likes of Matri, Vucinic and (ironically) Llorente.

What Chelsea have over Juventus is the attacking strength of their fullbacks and the genius of Eden Hazard at second striker. Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses offer more in the final third than Asamoah and Lichtenstein. Their creativity and drive adds a different dimension to the attacking play of the 3-5-2.

Davide Zappacosta, too, could prove instrumental in this, as he created 41 chances last season for Torino. Statistics suggest that he could do more than challenge Moses for a starting berth. Alvaro Morata is a big presence in the box, and offers a much greater aerial threat than the departing Costa.

A greater emphasis on the attacking threat from wide should work well with playing him up top. What’s more, Hazard (playing through the middle) should be able to strike up a lethal partnership with Morata. Morata is more technically gifted than Costa and a better dribbler of the ball. The two of them dovetailing and linking up with the midfield runners and wing-backs is a mouth-watering prospect.

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When to Use

These strengths and weaknesses should work well with Conte’s old system, when tailored to his current squad. This is a system Conte could use in the Champions League, or in the bigger games in the Premier League.

In general, Conte could turn to this formation when Chelsea come up against teams that are hard to breakdown. Using Hazard in a free role through the middle and Fabregas pulling the strings from deep, protected by two destroyers, could prove the perfect blend of attacking potency and defensive stability.

What do you think of this 3-1-4-2? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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