Chelsea’s lacklustre attacking performance against Manchester City brought to a new volume the growing chorus of displeasure about Thomas Tuchel’s attacking setup.
The accusations, from some Chelsea fans and some neutral pundits alike, point to the fact that he has yet to settle on a consistent front three, and that his offensive players are playing in a way that indicates a lack of coaching in terms of getting them into dangerous positions.
The counter-arguments are pretty straightforward – to have a regular front 3 would require 3 of his options to play significantly better than their competition (which has yet to happen), and also ignores the fact that this team have been stretched to the limit physically, and team selections for months have prioritised availability and fitness over tactical thinking.
Against Manchester City it was Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic who started the game, and in a move that runs counter to his supposed failings, Tuchel has kept faith with two of those players tonight.
If the critics are right, Ziyech and Lukaku getting to line up together for a second game in a row should help the connection between them, which was utterly non-existent at the weekend.
The formation tonight appears different too, with Chelsea continuing to trend towards using a back 4 in possession. Eventually, you feel that Tuchel’s tinkering is going to find a winning formula, and once the punishing fixture list eases off (don’t hold your breath), the manager might finally have the chance to use his players in the way his critics think he should.
