The world we live in – in spite of grotesque American debates and the cult of Narendra Modi – has a profound love for ball possession: it is often the highest good in the global game, so much so, that love turns into obsession, and then, compulsion. Ask Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola or Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp. They want to master the ball, because, frankly, that allows you to master the game, and win.
At the fringes, in the netherworld of footballing glitz, there is another school of thought that tweaks and abandons the possession paradigm: winning is the ultimate goal, and any means possible are allowed. In this Machiavellian method, organisation and conservatism are preferred. Possession is not craved; the less, the better. They are the antitheses of the possession obsession and pose a simple question: do you want to have the ball?
Imagine Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho standing (though Mourinho mostly sits in the dug-out) in their technical areas, fidgeting nervously with their hands in their pockets, steering their teams, in part, away from the ball, imploring their players to keep form and composure, first and foremost. “Let the opponent have possession,” they would shout – with a hefty Italian and mild Portuguese accent – at the top of their voices.
Be prepared for the yawns
At Stamford Bridge on Sunday, Chelsea-Manchester United has the making of a classic stalemate – a sneering “undertainement” of drab, dull and tactical football. Conte is a master tactician, and so is Mourinho, but, on 14 points, five points off the top of the table, Manchester United can ill-afford a slip-up. Will the Portuguese consider possession a mere practicality or aim for a more expansive approach against Chelsea?
Manchester United’s performance last Monday against Liverpool was abysmal, a game wherein even the tactical narratives were obfuscated by all-round bad technical execution. They enjoyed just 35% of possession, the lowest figure in United’s entire Premier League history. Not that Mourinho bothered. He had set out to achieve a draw and got one. He invited Liverpool’s pressure. His favoured template may not work against Chelsea and Conte. There will simply not be any pressure to invite.
Conte has struggled at Chelsea. In the summer, he was a master of tactical ingenuity. In a 3-5-2 formation, Italy, with a Juventus rearguard, elevated defending to a fine art at Euro 2016 and hit opponents with blistering pace on the counter.
In the build up to Spain-Italy in the round of 16, Barcelona legend Xavi pointed out how hard it is to play against 3-5-2. “When Italy need to come out with the ball, having three at the back and two wide players means they have five possible people to carry it out – which makes it difficult for Spain to press as they would like,” he said.
Conte’s favourite formation is 3-5-2, but he has not succeeded in implementing it at Chelsea. A month back, Chelsea suffered an almighty implosion at Arsenal. They were ramshackle and dishevelled, brutally exposed by a rampant and irresistible home side. The 3-0 half-time score precipitated a drastic tactical alteration from Conte – he switched to a back three.
Chelsea vs Jose Mourinho
Ever since, in victories over Hull City and champions Leicester City respectively, the Italian has fielded a 3-4-3. Chelsea do not really have the personnel to play with a back three and may be exposed by the speed Manchester United can offer with Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, but, for Conte, the formation has worked.
Ironically, that 3-4-3 is also a complete breakaway from everything Chelsea have stood for since Jose Mourinho arrived in West London in the early part of the millennium. Back then, Mourinho was new and sexy, revelling in his role play as pantomime villain – his team and club versus a dark and evil world. The “Special One” had a dramatic – often melodramatic – impact and the fans “crushed” him with his love. When he left, Andre Villas-Boas and Carlo Ancelotti tried, both in vain, to play a different brand of football.
Mourinho’s second stint at Chelsea was dramatic, his aura, slowly punctured. But, again, he left the club with players that had been acquired to play to his template and philosophy, one that did not necessarily include a higher defensive line or a back three. It is a conundrum Conte must face. The match is not just about possession, but also about breaking away from Mourinho’s enduring spell over Chelsea.