Thomas Tuchel still searching for solution to connect the two halves of Chelsea together

A Tuchel team can’t be disconnected but his side’s recent poor run of form has seen the defence and attack look further apart than ever

(Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

In training sessions at Cobham this week, Thomas Tuchel has been trying to work on a midfield shape that gives Chelsea more solidity in the centre. The challenge is to have “a two” that offers protection but still progresses the ball at pace.

A Tuchel team can’t be disconnected, after all. Defence and midfield aren’t separate parts but integrated elements of the whole, following on from each other and ideally flowing together. That’s been the problem for the European champions of late, though. It hasn’t flowed. There have been gaps everywhere.

Zenit St Petersburg and West Ham United repeatedly surged through them. There was one period in the first half against the Russian side when Zenit were constantly in on goal. Only Kepa Arrizabalaga’s defiance kept the score down.

So much of that marks quite a change. Before the West Ham match, Tuchel’s Chelsea had only twice conceded more than one goal in a game. They’ve now conceded three in two successive matches.

It has caused them to lose first place in the Champions League group, as well as first place in the league. A lead has been squandered, to the point that this match against Leeds United is suddenly hugely significant. There has been an increasing concern that they could slip away from Liverpool and Manchester City.

It was of course exactly this fixture, at almost exactly the same point last season, that marked a turning point for Frank Lampard. After a relatively fortuitous 3-1 win, which put Chelsea top of the table, they then lost five of the next eight. Tuchel came in after that final 2-0 defeat to Leicester City.

One big difference was of course that Lampard didn’t really know what to do with the array of talent he’d been given. His idea was unclear. That’s not the case with Tuchel, of course.

His idea couldn’t be clearer. He also knows exactly what’s wrong with the team. The absence of Ben Chilwell and – above all – N’Golo Kante has disrupted the structure. Mateo Kovacic being out meanwhile means there isn’t anyone with the same tactical understanding to fill in for Kante.

It is why Tuchel has been so set on working on that midfield. The wonder is now whether he can sort it in time, to keep pace with Liverpool and City.

There has already been the sense that they maybe don’t have the same ceiling as the two rivals, even if they do have the depth.

Due to the simple fact that Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have each been in their jobs for half a decade longer, their teams naturally understand what they want on a deeper level, allowing them to go far higher.

To put it into context, Tuchel is at the same point of his Chelsea career as Klopp was at Liverpool in the summer of 2016, and Guardiola at City at the end of 2016/17. The former saw Liverpool finish eighth. The latter saw City finish third, as Guardiola suffered the only season of his entire career where he didn’t win a trophy.

They had the principles in place, but the idea wasn’t fully formed. It is similar with Chelsea now. That can be seen in the trajectory of the team and how it has been built.

Tuchel put in the defensive principles first, since they are easier to grasp. The German believes that it can be explained in one training session. The sort of understanding required for teams to interchange instinctively takes a lot longer. There remains the feeling Chelsea aren’t there yet.

2020/21 top scorers under Tuchel in all competitions

Mount 6

Havertz 4

Pulisic 4

Ziyech 4

Jorginho 4 (all penalties)

Werner 3

Total number of scorers 15

This is another reason the configuration of that midfield is so crucial. A more open defence saps the intensity of the attack. Chelsea are much more disparate than either Liverpool or City, often seeming to go forward in bursts rather than concerted spells.

That marks another grander difference. Liverpool and City are so in tune that you know exactly what they will do to you, to the point they have signature goals. Klopp’s team overwhelm you so their forwards – and more usually Mohamed Salah – are through. Guardiola’s unravel you with passing until they’re suddenly passing across your box and you can do nothing about it.

The Catalan’s influence on Tuchel means this is close to his idea, and there are signs he is getting closer, but Chelsea still seem a team adapting and compromising rather than playing to their complete level.

2021/22 top scorers under Tuchel in all competitions

Mount 5

James 5

Lukaku 5

Werner 5

Jorginho 4 (all penalties)

Chalobah 3

Chilwell 3

Total number of scorers 17

That can be seen in the scorers, and the types of goals. Tuchel doesn’t have a Salah and Romelu Lukaku is still adapting, so their range of scorer is very wide. No player has yet scored more than six goals in either of the German’s half-seasons.

There are then the types of goals they’re scoring. Just as Chelsea have been relying on a different player depending on the game, they’ve also been depending on different moves.

Up until this season, Tuchel’s Chelsea hadn’t scored a long shot from outside the box or a header direct from a set-piece.

This season they have five of the former, to make it 11 from speculative shots in total – all this season – and five of the latter.

Although it’s quite a broad measure, taking in the primary defining feature of the move, Chelsea’s goals under Tuchel in all competitions can be divided into the following main types:

• Long shot 11
• Cut-back 10
• Rebound 10
• Set-piece 10
• Penalty 10
• Pass through centre 10
• Low cross/pass 9
• Full-back surge 8
• High cross 7

Tuchel clearly wants to get his side to the point where they cut through teams at will with passing. The stats and general play suggest that. An issue is that moves through the centre generally only work with Kai Havertz’s intelligent running and, now, Lukaku. One of them, however, has been scored by Timo Werner. It certainly hasn’t clicked for him yet, despite occasional signs of encouragement. Had he been even 50 per cent more accurate in the last few months, Chelsea’s attack might have looked rather different. Those figures might be different.

As it is, they’re all still going through a process. It is why they’ve been dependent on their defence, and sometimes defenders to score.

Leeds are going to test that intensely on Saturday. Tuchel may have to come up with another alternative solution.