Chelsea vs Atletico Madrid tactical preview - David Luiz the key

Average player positions of Atletico players in the first leg. Koke and Garcia play centrally, allowing fullbacks to attack

The general tendency of the wide players of both teams is to cut inside and overload the opposition midfield. This naturally forces the defending fullbacks to tuck in and cram the central zones, making it very narrow. Once the flanks become free, the attacking fullbacks have the license to get forward, forcing the defending wingers to follow them. This applies to both teams as they have very similar styles. So, out wide, it is pretty much a 2 v 2 on either flank, and the number get cancelled.

In the midfield though, the initial positions taken up by the deep midfielders will open up spaces for others to operate in. This is where inteligence in movement and individual skill come into play.

The midfield is somewhat a stretched 3 v 3 battle. Luiz and Tiago will most certainly be instructed to sit deep by their respective managers, and break down attacks, both aerially and on the ground. This leaves a lot of space ahead of them, which allows the likes of Ramires and Mario to run into. While Willian is energetic and has a very high defensive contribution, the dominance in midfield will be down to one man, David Villa. Villa’s choice of dropping deep and help his team make up numbers in midfield will be crucial.

If the Spaniard opts to stay high up and trouble the Chelsea defenders, then either of Turan or Koke will be forced to come central, thereby leaving their fullbacks in a 2 v 1 disadvantage. Elsewhere in defence, Chelsea will have to cope with a 2 v 2 situation, with help coming from David Luiz to make it a 3 v 2 against Villa and Costa. For Atletico, Godin and Miranda will be up against Samuel Eto’o. It looks favorable to the CB pairing on paper, but the skill of Eto’o to drag players out of position will be a trait to watch for.

Player Roles

David Luiz holds the key for Chelsea

David Luiz will have to sit tight in front of his defence and mark Villa/Ribas out of the game. If Terry and Azpilicueta start at CB and LB respectively, Luiz will have relatively less defencive responsibilities than usual, as the former pair tend to track and cover their regions with ease. So Luiz’s job will be to occupy passing lanes of Villa and Costa and cut out the through balls from midfield.

The Brazilian also might get dragged out of position to compete with Raul Garcia(if he starts) for aerial balls. In that case, Chelsea might get opened up a bit, leaving David Villa free. Either of Willian or Ramires will have to step up and mark the Villa on that occasion.

Ramires needs to emulate the role of a complete midfielder, winning the ball in midfield, offering an option on the counter with his pace, and guarding his defence when defending deep. The lanky Brazillian has come under a lot of scrutiny from fans lately, for his wayward passing and lack of influence in games.

While Mourinho will try to take advantage of his prime qualities, Ramires must step his game up and form a formidable partnership with Luiz. Completing the midfield trio will be another Brazilian, Willian. Highly energetic and intelligent, Willian will provide the legs to chase Atleti players, and also run at the opposition during counters. Simeone will be wary of this threat and will prepare accordingly.

The presence of Eden Hazard will attract more attention from Atleti to that flank. Juanfran will be automatically sucked on to the Belgian opening space behind him. Azpilicueta will try to get forward into that space, so will the likes of Willian and Eto’o. Also, the movement of Eto’o will open up channels for Hazard to operate in.

On the other flank, Andre Schurrle will instructed to be cautious with his positioning. The quality of Koke and attacking nature of Filipe will again restrict Schurrle to the Shadow-fullback role he has been playing in recent weeks.

Ateltico were forced to play attacking football in the first leg, and were frustrated with Chelsea’s defencive shape. They will find a relatively weaker Chelsea midfield for the 2nd leg a welcome development. Simeone chose to start Mario Suarez instead of Tiago to partner Gabi in the first leg. Suarez was impressive with his all-round display, and he will surely start at Stamford Bridge. Tiago will come in to replace the suspended Gabi.

Tiago, who played for Chelsea in Mourinho’s first spell, is a composed midfielder who likes to tackle and disrupt opposition’s play. His reading of the game is quick and has decent positional sense. He will be crucial for Atletico in breaking down Chelsea’s counters. With Ivanovic at RB, it is imperative that he will the focal point of Chelsea’s goalkicks. Tiago might move out onto that flank to compete with the Serbian, leaving behind space for Ramires to run into. Koke will have to cover for Tiago in that respect.

Turan and Koke will again be the invention engines for Simeone, their drifts into central zones and quickness on the flanks will put the Chelsea players on their toes. As for the main man Diego Costa, he will have to turn up for his side, and win aerial battles against Cahill and Terry. The first leg saw an insane amount of crosses into the box, but Atleti players could get their head to them on only 3 occasions.