Former Premier League star Stan Collymore is a big fan of Enzo Maresca, and in his column for CaughtOffside this week he explained exactly what it is that he likes about how the Chelsea coach has set up his team, especially compared to some of their league rivals.
Compared to Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham, Collymore says that Chelsea have found a much better balance of pressing and defending:
“Maresca has got them playing with freedom and a shape that you can see what he’s trying to do,” Collymore wrote.
“They do like to go and press, but they’re not obsessed with pressing so much that they’re defending at the halfway line every two minutes – like Spurs.”
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Enzo Maresca with Cole Palmer and Joao Felix. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
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The team’s versatility and ability change up their style in-game was another thing that’s impressed Collymore. It’s a sure sign of a well coached team:
“They can sit with a mid block, they can sit and defend when under the cosh if necessary and, though I don’t think they’ve quite got it completely right yet, in Cole Palmer they’ve got one of the players of the season so far,”
Cole Palmer scores for Chelsea against Spurs. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Cole Palmer scores for Chelsea against Spurs. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Palmer the centre piece of tactically smart new team
Palmer is the highlight of this team, and the highlight of Collymore’s piece. With the team set up nicely in their mid block, they can then rely on the attacker’s magic to get them goals:
“Palmer is now really starting to understand the role of a No.10 in that he’s not just looking to drive at people and take people on, he’s looking to pass it and just stay where he is, or to make his runs at clever times.”
We see that all the time – often he does very little for 89 minutes, but in that one minute he’s active he’s won the game for his team.