Why Marc Cucurella Has Just Fixed Chelsea
It was Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham in the London derby, with Mauricio Pochettino's side's late run for a European place showing no signs of slowing down. But despite the absence of Enzo Fernandez in the middle of the pitch, The Blues looked as comfortable and as confident through the middle as they have all season. The reason? A brand new role for Marc Cucurella, and one he could thrive in long-term.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 All right, so the billion pound bottle bank looked something like this last night and yeah, that's really good for Alfie Gilchrist
00:06 Yay, well done always like to see somebody make a debut
00:08 But other than that about as you'd expect except obviously there has been some concern at the club because Enzo
00:15 Fernandez an integral part of their season a very important player so what they spent a lot of money on
00:21 He's now out for the season. So could that derail their campaign?
00:25 Well, no as it turns out it might actually be the best thing that could have possibly
00:32 happened
00:34 And this is kind of gonna be the crux of this video by the way, because Enzo Fernandez is a wonderful
00:40 Wonderful player he could go to any manner of top European clubs and look worth every single penny
00:46 Chelsea paid for him, but
00:48 There is an opinion a thought that is brewing a seed that has been planted in this head in particular
00:54 That the way Chelsea play what Mauricio Pochettino wants him to do is not
01:00 Particularly well suited to what he does and long-term subscribers to the channel will know that we have discussed this several times this season when trying
01:08 To understand quite why this Chelsea team wasn't working
01:12 The problem basically boils down to Fernandez in this position and Connor Gallagher in this position two wonderful
01:18 Very talented very important players
01:20 But neither really where they need to be now
01:24 Chelsea when the building up from the back like to push their full backs on nice and far forward than the two center backs
01:30 They split nice and wide the goalkeeper stands between them and then Caicedo and Fernandez
01:35 Act as this double pivot to give them loads of nice little passing angles
01:39 Problem number one with this is that Enzo Fernandez really wants to be on the ball in the opposition's half rather than his own
01:46 But he's the only one in this setup
01:48 Really capable of an incisive forward pass so he needs to be here and that will isolate Connor Gallagher
01:54 He can't really be receiving it when he's marked by one or two players
01:58 That's not his game and we talked about this a lot on the channel
02:01 You will see Fernandez just instinctively moving further and further up the pitch to try and do something more
02:06 Aggressive, but that leaves Caicedo completely isolated and against teams where they've got two players in this area
02:13 Chelsea simply can't find him with the ball while they're knocking it around the back and they just horseshoe it around these five getting
02:19 Absolutely nowhere now the logical thing to do would just be swap Fernandez and Gallagher around have you a player who wants to be in
02:26 The final third there and you workhorse more in the middle
02:28 But Chelsea are a very very high pressing side for all the things that haven't really worked for them this year
02:34 They do have like the third lowest passes per defensive action
02:38 Which you've not heard that term just basically means like how much you let the opposition do
02:42 Before you'll just try and win it back like how aggressive you are when the opposition on the ball Chelsea are
02:48 Incredibly aggressive and for all he has his critics if you look at Connor Gallagher's numbers in the Premier League this season for
02:53 Harassing the opposition for winning the ball back higher for creating chances out of this level of pressure
02:59 He's arguably one of if not the best players in the whole league at doing it
03:04 He's actually had for me quietly a really good season like this
03:08 But problem number two with this and arguably the biggest one is that this works great when the opposition have the ball
03:13 But when Chelsea do when the opposition are defending it means that their number 10 the player who sort of like in the most creative
03:20 Position possible is somebody who isn't particularly creative. He's stuck all the way back here
03:26 But then last night when watching Chelsea puts Tottenham to the proverbial sword
03:30 None of these problems looked like they existed Chelsea were moving it through the thirds confidently
03:36 They were building out really well, but also looked to have more options and more creativity in the final third why?
03:44 To put it simply welcome to the very exciting world of inverted fullbacks
03:50 Mr.. Mark Kukaraya now will stress this wasn't his first time doing it
03:55 This is an experiment that has been bubbling but last night against Spurs
03:58 It looked like he'd made that inverted left-back role all his own without
04:04 Fernandez in the side Palmer then takes up the role of one of the double pivots and one of Chelsea's more attacking players
04:09 Fills in for him in the 10 position and if you sat there thinking all this better not be another one of those bloody box midfield
04:15 I've heard so much about them this season
04:17 actually
04:19 No, Pochettino put a really really interesting twist on it
04:23 Which we'll get to after the Kukaraya height when Chelsea were in possession Gallagher would then move back to his usual
04:29 Number 10 position where we can carry and press and win the ball back if they lose it and Kukaraya was coming and sitting as
04:35 The other midfielder with the defense shuffling along in behind him
04:39 But rather than using this the way like Arteta and Pep do so it gives them four players in the middle to outnumber the opposition
04:45 three
04:46 Chelsea was sort of taking advantage of the fact they had a spare body in the final third by just having Palmer and Manduike
04:52 Both play on the right-hand side, but this basically gave Chelsea this
04:56 Abnormal sort of shape right and just this is Kukaraya's heat map from the game and his pass map from the game
05:05 That is just if a space alien landed and said what does an inverted fullback do?
05:09 This that they they do this
05:12 They don't do hardly anything here where you'd expect them to and they get all around the midfield being that extra body now
05:18 This is just like one random freeze frame
05:21 I think from like the 20th minute or something
05:22 But it does just sort of show how this enabled so many of Chelsea's players
05:26 To do things they don't normally get to do but like to do so first off
05:31 You can see that because Kukaraya isn't on this space on the left and obviously the center backs aren't gonna bomb up unnecessarily
05:36 Mudrick could then drop much deeper to receive the ball and then be able to turn and face the opposition that the guy needs
05:44 Space to run into like him going on mazes in the final third never ever works
05:49 But if you can get a gap behind the defender
05:52 He absolutely loves that and because he's pretty much got the entire left side to himself
05:56 It's very easy to make that happen
05:57 Conor Gallagher's pushed himself into the forward line and is now just sort of floating from left to right finding all the space sort of
06:03 Working the gaps pulling the opposition around that's another really good element of his game and while
06:08 Madhu Akka is getting chalk on his boots all the way over here
06:11 Palmer's not interested in coming near or forming a box
06:15 He's gonna play on that side as well, which gave Chelsea like a really just bizarre
06:20 Natural overload in that right-sided area and if you just think that's like that's a really selective image
06:26 I've picked maybe Palmer was actually playing as the 10 all along races. This is my dorky seat map from that game
06:31 yeah, absolutely you would guess that he was the right side of the attacker and
06:37 He is Cole Palmer's like it wasn't even really that they were taking turns with it or like interchanging or doing rotations
06:43 They basically just both went and stood out there and then every time they got the ball just ran into the center of the pitch
06:50 with it, it's just
06:52 It's one of those things that just seems so simple doesn't it? Like how do you create an overload in one of Tottenham's weaker areas?
06:58 Just just play two players there. Anyway, yes, so Kukurea, right?
07:01 It can obviously be a bit of a risk throwing any kind of fullback into these areas
07:06 That's why not every single team is doing it requires a very certain person
07:10 You need to still be dogged read the game very well a good pass
07:14 There's a lot of moving parts required for this not to be a disaster
07:17 But the guy has to quote the youth of the day got that dog in him
07:22 He had nine ground duels last night against much bigger players than him and he won all
07:28 Nine of them like he was not bullied in the center at all
07:31 He was seemingly never quite a position doing it either like every time Spurs won the ball back
07:36 He was moving from there back into the left back area
07:39 But dovetailing it perfectly with Gallagher getting back into the pivot like at no point
07:44 Was there ever an enormous gap from where Gallagher was caught high up and he'd already moved back. They did it perfectly
07:49 One thing it's really important to say with this is he is not suddenly a better player than Enzo Fernandez
07:55 Like if you look at his pass map, there's very few of them that are forwards when he gets into that area
08:00 He's normally just there to be an extra body to sort of provide a bounce pass for somebody
08:05 He's not getting on it turning and opening up defenses
08:08 But that's because simply he's a very very different player
08:11 To Fernandez but Fernandez wants to have control possession and pick his passes. Kukerea is not gonna do that
08:17 He's got energy and determination
08:19 He was making the kind of runs from that position last night that you would simply never ever see Fernandez do
08:25 There was two here in particular that caught my eye. First off Kukerea has moved into the middle
08:29 They've got a nice little triangle
08:31 Going on with Gallagher sort of coming across and Mudrick being deep on that left side as we have discussed
08:36 The ball is launched up the left-hand channel Nicholas Jackson runs onto it, but has virtually no support whatsoever
08:42 Now obviously the attackers on the far side they join in they want a goal
08:45 Connor Gallagher joins in because his work rate is simply beyond question, but also
08:51 Kukerea despite being one of the sitting midfielders not really his job in this scenario to provide attacking support
08:58 Recognizes the space recognizes the opportunity makes a long bursting run to get on the overlap to Jackson who now that he's dribbled into the box
09:06 Still doesn't have a pass on so Kukerea
09:10 Creates an attempt there creates a chance out of what otherwise would not have been one and this one as well
09:16 I thought was really interesting like Mudrick has the ball here
09:19 But it's not really anything going on in front of him his next pass is likely gonna be sideways or backwards
09:24 But seeing that Connor Gallagher has attracted the attention of two Tottenham defenders thus creating this little gap
09:31 Kukerea just thinks ah, do you know what I'm just I'm gonna go for it
09:35 Maybe something will happen and it does he bursts into that space Mudrick finds him with the pass and he's very unlucky not to get
09:41 a cut back and create an opportunity for Chelsea and the thing is
09:45 Neither of these two runs are brilliant or require any kind of technical excellence like Fernandez has
09:51 but also
09:53 They're not the kind of runs you'd ever be likely to see him make like just the energy and the determination
09:59 he's brought to that position is
10:01 game-changing and
10:03 Quite conveniently for anyone who I don't know may or may not be making a YouTube video about it today. This did also literally
10:11 Change the game. In fact, it won it 70 minutes have elapsed Tottenham have been much better in the second half
10:17 It probably feels like a goal is coming for them sooner rather than later and Kukerea is still inverting into the middle here
10:24 He receives the ball actually closer to the right hand channel than anywhere else now
10:29 We could keep that ball moving from left to right
10:31 He could do several very safe things with it
10:33 But he just sees that Gallagher's got a little bit more room than Tottenham should really be affording him and he tries to make the line
10:39 Breaking killer forward pass now Gallagher's touch is bad
10:43 But I just want to make sure this doesn't go unnoticed
10:45 Kukerea has not stood there and merely admired his work because oh my position. I don't really know what to do
10:51 He has followed that pass in which just leaves him a couple of yards
10:56 closer to that loose ball
10:58 Then he would otherwise have been and because a he is those couple of yards closer and be as mentioned dog within him
11:04 It is he beats Kulishevsky to that ball and he wins a foul in like position a one and the thing is
11:11 Right, I think if I was a Chelsea fan, this would be the bit
11:14 I was most pleased with right those off the ball runs and just that sort of tidy play
11:18 That's not really very Fernandez like you are definitely losing something by not having him in the team
11:24 But this bit here the forward pass and the position he takes up and the determination to just get on that loose ball
11:30 That is quite Fernandez like so maybe you're not losing as much as you might think
11:36 But yes from there Chelsea score they go on and win the game
11:39 they'd look really comfortable Tottenham barely threatening what's left of the match and I
11:43 Think Pochettino may really have stumbled across something great with this
11:49 But what is and I'm just gonna say this is weird as possible
11:52 I don't know why the really interesting thing for me personally
11:56 Right is that unlike the situation you've got an arsenal where a tether has to decide?
12:00 between putting some chenko in there because he's good on the ball, but he's also a bit like
12:04 Week in the tackle or putting here we are in there because he's a big boy and isn't gonna get bullied
12:09 But won't do anything with it when he actually gets the ball
12:11 kukure kind of offers you
12:14 More than a little bit of both like these passes are very good and show ambition and bravery as well
12:21 But if we just get rid of these and show you his defensive contribution against Spurs as well
12:25 Like he's not getting caught here like when they need him to be in this correct position
12:30 He's contributing and I don't really remember Spurs having anything down that side last night
12:36 Given that they should have because the left back wasn't there now. We'll just say this is not like
12:41 Unreserved praise everything is not magical and wonderful and fixed forever next season
12:46 You can't just bin Fernandez out of that position because suddenly your left back is
12:50 Pretty good in there and there will be games where he's in that midfield area up against far more
12:56 Experienced players who just like figure him out and completely pull his pants down
13:01 But for now last night, especially I thought he was excellent excellent in that role
13:07 So yes, mark kukure. You've got a cool name. You've got a cool song
13:12 You've got the exact same hair as my friend Florence just well done mate
13:16 Here are your flowers, but wait very very important to the subscribe button
13:21 It is not just something youtubers reference because we're on some kind of demented
13:25 Autopilot is genuinely massively important to channels. It tells the algorithm that we're worth watching
13:31 It tells my bosses that people don't want them to kill me
13:34 So if you could press that you will get loads more of these videos pretty much every single day
13:39 We've got think of all the tactical breakdowns
13:41 We're gonna have during the euro sing all the times you're gonna be in the pub and you might have something
13:46 Interesting to say that you've just lifted wholesale from me. It will pay for itself even though it's free
13:52 So yes do hit that
13:53 But also we would love to know your thoughts on the mark kukure as a system Chelsea can
13:58 Persist with and bigger question if you are a Chelsea fan or even if you're not
14:01 Yeah, but it's Pochettino next year. You're happy about that. You're confident about that. He has turned it around for you
14:07 Yes
14:08 No discussions thoughts feelings or welcome in the comments below you can grab me on the socials to tell me there
14:13 I've been cleary to see oh there it is Adam Cleary CL
14:16 Er wife or for two soldiers in the corner the video. Oh, it's the old mark
14:20 I need to go the new ones out. I need to go and get that for you
14:23 It's the euros preview edition, but this may still be somewhere go anyway go buy either of them
14:27 It doesn't matter which all good bookstores retailers newsagents paper shops, etc
14:31 Anyway, yes, that's it go go enjoy your weekend now
14:34 There's absolutely loads of football on so you'll be able to watch some of that and I will see you back here on
14:40 Monday because to quote the cock destroyers it may be a bank holiday, but not for me
14:46 I can't believe I said that there's a metal image
14:50 Need a pint