The Dossier: Can Fabregas and Costa-inspired Chelsea repeat Etihad Stadium masterclass?

Posted Saturday, September 20, 2014 by Goal.com

The west Londoners secured a stunning victory over Manchester City earlier this year but do their more adventurous new style and personnel hamper their trademark solidity?

On Chelsea's last visit to the Etihad Stadium, they achieved what no Premier League side had previously done since November 2010: stop the Manchester City juggernaut from scoring on their home patch. In a display of fierce defensive solidity and electric, if slightly profligate, counterattacking, the Blues ended City's 100 per cent home record and, albeit briefly, blew the title race wide open.

Until that point, Jose Mourinho's Stamford Bridge homecoming had yet to yield the return to dominance that many had predicted, while his attempts at re-branding his 'Special One' status had seen his claims of happiness revert back to characteristically spikey victimisation as his side struggled to click.

That 1-0 victory back in February, though, marked Chelsea out as genuine challengers once more, with Mourinho's big-game nous and strategy yet again setting him apart. The Portuguese's master-plan was build on his trademark pragmatism, with a vow never to field David Luiz in midfield broken as the Brazilian lined up alongside the imperious Nemanja Matic at the base of a sturdy, pressure-absorbing 4-2-3-1.

Days earlier Mourinho had attacked West Ham's "football from the 19th century" as Sam Allardyce's side frustrated Chelsea in a goalless draw but the reactive football that he took to the Etihad was entirely more positive, if no less defensively robust.

City's attacks were repelled by a disciplined and organised back line, playmaker David Silva was caged and constricted by the Matic-Luiz barrier and a spring-loaded Chelsea attack ought to have put the game beyond their opponents before the half-time break with Eden Hazard a devilish, pulsating presence.

The Dossier: Can Fabregas and Costa-inspired Chelsea repeat Etihad Stadium masterclass?
Nemanja Matic has yet to be on the losing side against the Premier League's 'big seven'

It was the perfect away performance, dominant and assured defensively and punishing on the break, and one which would be repeated again at Anfield despite a weakened starting XI – in no small part thanks to the presence of January recruit and towering midfield destructor Matic, with the west Londoners undefeated against the traditional 'big seven' when the Serbian has played.

Ultimately it was Chelsea's borderline-masochistic implosions against relative minnows that were their undoing last season, not their form against the top sides. The Blues actually averaged 2.35 points against the top eight compared to 2.04 against the rest of the division, only losing once in 14 top-of-the-table clashes, a narrow defeat at Goodison Park at the start of the campaign.

But the dynamic of the Chelsea machine has altered significantly to counter those shortcomings. A blunt spearhead has been given a new, razor-sharp edge following the arrival of Diego Costa – only three other Premier League clubs have scored more goals that the Spain international – and in turn Mourinho feels wholly more accommodating of a more attacking brand of football now he has a striker of such outstanding calibre upon whom to call.

Fellow summer recruit Cesc Fabregas, initially intended to be used as a No.10 when signed, has predominantly been deployed in a deep-lying, possession-dictating capacity – after just four games he is already halfway towards the figure posted by last season's leading assister. Suddenly the sides who caused Chelsea problems are being steamrollered.

The Dossier: Can Fabregas and Costa-inspired Chelsea repeat Etihad Stadium masterclass?
Cesc Fabregas (six) leads the Premier League assist charts, while Diego Costa (seven) is the current top scorer

But that transformation brings fresh problems and the team are looking increasingly vulnerable at the back – a problem that Costa's stunning form has so far mitigated. The defence is largely unchanged, with Filipe Luis yet to oust Cesar Azpilicueta, and a more expansive brand of football has piled extra pressure onto a back four who were blasted by their manager at times last season, with Mourinho suggesting that even the training-ground dummies could score against his side.

With Fabregas now partnering Matic and with a greater emphasis on attack typified by the higher positions and greater adventure of Chelsea's full-backs, the Serbian can quickly become a lone and isolated figure patrolling the midfield. At times he has been overawed, scrambling to fight fires but hamstrung by a lack of mobility. City will have taken notice of how easily Julian Draxler circumvented him on Wednesday night.

Even Mourinho's attempts to revert to his usual big-game blueprint against Everton did not go entirely to plan, with the introduction of Willian and Ramires unable to stop this more open and exposed Chelsea from conceding three times. In fact, only six teams, all currently in the bottom half of the table, have let in more goals than the Blues.

Though Mourinho is not as inherently reticent towards attacking football as is often made out – he did, after all, coach a Real Madrid side who scored 121 goals in the 2011-12 Primera Division season – he has always reverted to that preconceived negative type in the most challenging fixtures. But how easily can this Chelsea side, so gung-ho now, switch between such differing mindsets?

Fabregas, for example, is a forward-thinking, offensive player but not disciplined or tough-tackling enough to sit deep against the best sides and unaccustomed throughout his career to being asked to rein in that instinct and play a more reactive role instead – unlike Costa, who led the line so powerfully for a counter-punching Atletico Madrid side. If the Catalan is pushed further forward, Chelsea risk losing their supply from deep and the high-energy pressing that they displayed in the previous fixture could be disrupted.

The opposition on Sunday will have key differences too. Martin Demichelis was a shambles in midfield back in February and his partnership with Yaya Toure, whose lethargy and lack of defensive discipline at the base of midfield were once against highlighted against Bayern Munich in midweek, lacked the energy and tenacity to match Chelsea's.

With Fernandinho back in the side and the option to use Fernando or James Milner, there is more work-rate and resolve in City's engine room, while Demichelis has excelled on his return to centre-back. Manuel Pellegrini has also moved away from using two strikers, a tactic which often left his team outnumbered in midfield, and the pace of Sergio Aguero will test a slow Chelsea back line deprived of the shield that sat ahead of them last season.

Sunday's encounter is likely to reveal plenty about how Mourinho intends to play his hand, whether he will fully commit to the attacking style that has taken Chelsea to the top of the table or park his fabled bus. If this new-look side are adaptable enough to do the latter then the Blues could be a fearsome proposition, able to both rampage through minnows and stifle title rivals. Alternatively, Mourinho may wish to prove that he can thrill, not bore, en route to Premier League glory.