Middlesbrough 2 - 1 Chelsea (Premiership)

Today Vs Middlesbrough Mourinho starts with a wide (as least on the left side, LOL) 4-3-3 (4-1-2-3 variant) that he usually uses to bring further speed and attacking dynamic to his team in the latter part of games and rarely to start them.

JM much prefers a contention 4-4-2 (with midfield diamond) with 3 "workhorse" units (Lampard, Essien, Makélélé) on the lower triangle of the diamond. This is a more agressive tactic to start the game but hardly abdicating from having enough steel in the midsection because Essien and Lampard create quite a bit of pressure before the counters reach Makélélé.

Why is Kalou on the left? Chelsea lines up with Wayne Bridge and Paulo Ferreira, neither one is a true attacking Full-Back but Mourinho wisely places his more aggressive Full-Back behind the flanker that gives his team less dynamic (much like Scolari places Miguel behind Figo instead of behind Ronaldo in the eternal "game of dynamic compensations") so he maintains Wayne Bridge on the left as contention FB behind the mobile Kalou (much like Nuno Valente plays contention behind the aggressive Ronaldo) and keeps the right footed Ferreira on the right today as the attacking Full-Back to compensate Drogba's lack of speed.

This also represents the 3rd different "model of game" by Chelsea in 3 official games in 06/07. Chelsea played a 4-4-2 with midfield diamond Vs Liverpool, they played a traditional attacking 4-4-2 which unfolded into a 4-2-4 Vs Manchester City and here today they are in an unsimetric attacking 4-3-3 with a pressurizing midfield.

Unsimetric because they have 2 flankers, Salomon Kalou on the left and the much heavier and less dynamic Didier Droga on the right which makes the team slightly predictable unless the flankers switch corridors during the game. One thing is for sure, whenever Shevchenko needs space he ALWAYS falls to the left flank and then goes inward outside the goal mouth and when he does Kalou repositions himself in the centre between Middlesbrough's Left-Back and left sided Centre-Back.

GOAL Chelsea at the 14th minute, Wayne Bridge assists Andryi Shevchenko.

Shevchenko should consider tattooing "honey" on his right foot because that Free-Kick was indeed sweet.

Once Mikael Ballack returns I doubt Mourinho will play much outside a 4-4-2 with a diamond, he needs the 4 men combination of Ballack, Lampard, Essien and Makélélé to make it work and without his preferred playmaker (Ballack) he has decided to test the 4-2-4 and 4-3-3 with the players available but I'm of the opinion that once he can he will return to the Diamond.

GOAL Middlesbrough at the 80th minute by Pogatetz, assist from a beautiful curling Free-Kick by Fábio Rochemback.
It's time for JM to bring Drogba out and add in Shaun Wright-Phillips to turn this into a real 4-3-3 if he wants to wins this game.
Chelsea same as last year does not have a designated marker at the 2nd post, last year they were eaten by Eto'o at the 2nd post and Carvalho cannot "eye" the centre and 2nd post at the same time.

84th minute sub, JM removes Makélélé (drops Essien to DM) to add in SWP to switch to a very risky 4-1-1-4 with Lampard as the midfield pivot between Essien and the 4 forwards.

GOAL Middlesbrough at the 89th minute by Viduka. Paulo Ferreira has to exert more pressure on Middlesbrough's ball carrier and not him allow crosses like that. Where's John Terry tonigth, anybody seen him? Chelsea' defensive axis seems sapped of it's aerial prowess without Terry. And Carvalho seems awfully alone zonal marking the box during set-pieces all by himself.

It's Mourinho's 3rd year at Stamford Bridge and I still do not see a viable option to Claude Makélélé who I maintain has been Chelsea's best player of the last 2 years despite the love affair the media has with Terry and Lampard or how enamored they get over big names like Shevchenko and b. For me, Makélélé is still "Da Man" and Essien has never proven to me that he can fulfill that role (in a single DM system he's awfull but he's okay in the middle of a 4-2-4 or as right-sided CM in a 4-1-2-3) and neither has Diarra.

Chelsea IMO was unquestionably weaker in 05/06 than 04/05 and they are clearly weaker now than last year, whether it will be enough to make a difference as to allow Liverpool and Man Utd to get close enough I don't know but I can't see this Chelsea making as much as 90 points this year.



André