The Blues' backline will face multiple threats from Brentford striker Ivan Tony on Saturday night.
From Stamford Bridge, a 90+ minute walk along the River Thames, you'll arrive at the Bees' sparkling new community stadium – a place that is fast becoming every club's least favorite day trip destination. When Arsenal arrived, Arsenal's centre-backs hoped the game would end quickly. On this trip west of London, they were beaten, scarred and humbled, and in the midst of an attack, they were single-handedly kicked by a joint camp.
Historically, such destruction was provided by Didier de Roba. The Ivorian developed a habit of intimidating the Gunners during his time at Chelsea and ended his career with 11 goals in 16 games against the Blues' London rivals.
However, the person who caused the damage this time was Ivan Tony, the Brentford striker.
Tony's intimidating Premier League striker relied on his superhuman speed. Two seasons ago, he scored 26 goals for Peterborough in the first division. He scored 33 goals last season to secure Brentford's promotion. Questions about whether the 25-year-old can once again gain a foothold in the senior league were answered in Brentford's game against Arsenal on the first day of the Premier League season. In the six games since, he has scored two goals and two assists.
After a brilliant performance in the win over Wolves, some people began comparing him to Drogba. No one is sure who started it, but Brentford's Christian Norgaard didn't hesitate to bring it into the public media.
"I heard someone in the dressing room compare Ivan and Didier Drogba," the midfielder told Molinex. "I think he actually looks a bit like him – the way he controls the ball, his first touch and his pass. He won every header and he was a good player. ”
Drogba is one of the most respected strikers in Premier League history. He won four titles during his Stamford Bridge career and scored more than 100 top-flight goals. He is a Chelsea legend.
If Tony can get close to these achievements, it means he will have a successful career. That's why such a comparison is still too early. However, it did give Chelsea's centre-backs a good idea of the opponents they would face at Brentford Community Stadium on Saturday night.
Like Drogba, Tony is a multi-faceted striker. He can play the role of the target person, winning 4.71 points per 90 aerial duels, but he is equally comfortable with the ball under his feet. That was highlighted by the goal he created for striker partner Brian Mbemo in Brentford's win over Wolves.
First, Tony chased the pass and managed to make MarkSkillman position better, and when Tony controlled the ball, he had a lot to do, but he purposefully entered the box and then waited for the perfect opportunity to slide the ball over the goal for Mbemo to complete the shot. This goal encapsulates organizer Tony. Sure, he also has the physical fitness needed to play against a centre-back, as well as an explosive acceleration to dodge tackles, but it's his wit and control of space that makes Tony more than just a siege hammer.
This was highlighted when he was against Aston Villa. With Brentford corner kick being picked up by Sergi Kanos, Tony quickly swept into the box and took a position away from the home defender. Canos touched the ball and fired the ball low into the box, while Tony had plenty of room to overtake Villa's defender to get the shot.
Since Tuchel took office in January, Chelsea's defence has been difficult for opponents to break. Theoretically, given the Blues' three-man backline, this shouldn't be a big deal. However, Tony's presence would force Tuchel to stop and think. He doesn't want his defenders to be bullied like Arsenal in August. He also doesn't want to repeat the problems That Tony caused virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip during his game against Liverpool.
Chelsea's 3-4-2-1 formation will rival the Bees, ensuring Mbemo and Tony don't overwhelm their centre-backs. Antonio Rudiger would have definitely been given the starting spot for that reason if he was in good health. The same goes for Andreas Christensen, who has won more aerial duels per 90 games in the Premier League this season (3) than any other Chelsea centre-back. Who was given the position on the right side of the three defenders was a huge glorious task. Maspilicueta is the third-best number of aerial duels per 90-player wins in Chelsea (2.17), which is valuable considering his height of 5 feet 10 inches. However, it is possible that he will be physically bullied by Tony.
Tuchel wouldn't want that, he might have used Trevo Chaloba, who was impressive in the first few weeks of the season, more physical than Azpilicueta and equally talented on the ball.
Both Liverpool and Arsenal have fallen into a trap when facing Frank's side. Many times, Tony can beat Matip, Van Dijk, White or Mali on his first touch. Suddenly, there was a huge hole in the core of the defense.
Tuchel has certainly seen Brighton's success against the Bees in West London, using their trusty triple backs at the back. Robert Sanchez made just one save in the entire game, three fewer than Berndelino and two less than Alisson.
Chelsea's Trevor Chaloba, Andreas Christensen and Cesar Azpilicueta all have a role to play in the bottom three, so it would be wise if Tuchel stuck with this approach. Benchwell's outstanding pace is also likely to remain in the starting lineup to help deal with Brentford's full-backs.
Continuing to use your own strongly preferred formation may seem like an easy option on the face of it, but it will prove crucial for taking all three points home.
Tony has shown how he can bully the Premier League defence like Drogba did at Stamford Bridge. The challenge for Chelsea defenders is to show that they are more determined and better prepared to fight than Arsenal and Liverpool defenders. Of course travelling Blues fans can gain confidence from this matter – Thomas Tuchel's own system.