Three key tactical points from Chelsea 1 Liverpool 1

Chelsea and Liverpool began their 2023/24 seasons with a tactically intriguing 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge. It was a chance to see the early impact of Mauricio Pochettino on Chelsea, with the Argentine starting new signings Robert Sánchez in goal, Axel Disasi on the right side of what mostly resembled a back three, and Nicolas Jackson up front. 

For the visitors, Jürgen Klopp had a midfield conundrum to solve following the departures of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson, and the absence through injury of number-six options Thiago and Stefan Bajcetic. The Liverpool manager chose to play new signing Alexis Mac Allister as a makeshift single pivot, with fellow new arrival Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo – usually a forward – as number eights.

How it played out

An 18th-minute Luis Díaz goal, assisted by an excellent Mo Salah pass, was reward for a bright start from the away team. Salah appeared to have doubled the lead on 29 minutes, only for the Egyptian to be ruled narrowly offside by VAR. Reprieved, Chelsea almost turned the tables shortly after. Disasi equalised from six yards and in the 39th minute Ben Chilwell had a goal ruled out by VAR, for another narrow offside.

Chelsea had control for much of the second half, while both teams had chances they couldn't take. “We feel pleased but at the same time disappointed because we wanted to win and we deserved to win,” said Pochettino. “But it is only the beginning.” 

Klopp was happy with his team's start to the game, but felt they “opened the door” to Chelsea. He admitted his team struggled at times, with “a lot of spaces to cover, gaps to close and that was actually our problem in the game. We tried to close the gaps [in the second half] by dropping instead of stepping in.” 

Here, we have picked out the main tactical points to come from the game…

A midfield battle without defensive midfielders

Pochettino insisted after the game that his team had started with a back four, but for much of the first half Chelsea appeared in more of a 3-4-3 shape. Within that, Conor Gallagher surprisingly featured almost as a single pivot ahead of the three centre-backs (below).

Operating just behind Liverpool’s three-man front line, Gallagher attempted to connect with the fluid central movements ahead of him. That included those of his nominal midfield partner, Enzo Fernández, who made a number of early forward runs. This movement created more room for Gallagher to receive between the lines and tested the defensive relationship between Liverpool’s single pivot, Mac Allister, and his back line. With Fernández pushing forward in central areas, Raheem Sterling was able to drift wider on the right than Carney Chukwuemeka did on the left. Here, the England attacker often proved Chelsea's brightest attacking threat.

Liverpool were happy for the hosts to take control of possession, which involved Gallagher receiving frequently from the back line. The visitors pressed aggressively when the time was right – passes into the Chelsea pivot proved a key pressing trigger for them throughout the first half.

This was especially true in the opening 25 minutes, when Liverpool’s transitional threat was at its peak. Centre-forward Diogo Jota back-pressed (below), with at least one of the visitors’ central midfielders also jumping out. Although this gave Klopp's team some high regains, Fernández’s higher positioning and the inside-channel roles of Sterling and Chukwuemeka helped Chelsea avoid this aggressive press.

Fernández dropped more as the game progressed. This also helped combat the press on Gallagher, as the Chelsea midfielders formed a more familiar double pivot (below). This helped Sterling to access the right inside channel earlier, causing Virgil van Dijk significant problems at the end of the first half. If Jackson moved across as well, left-back Andy Robertson was unable to jump out to right wing-back Reece James. This helped Chelsea progress around the Liverpool defensive line on a number of occasions.

Neither Gakpo – playing as the left-sided Liverpool number eight – nor Mac Allister covered across sufficiently well to track Sterling’s movements to receive. On the left flank, Chilwell and Chukwuemeka were always ready to exploit the increasing space between Ibrahima Konaté and Trent Alexander-Arnold (below).

Using the threat of Salah

Klopp set Liverpool up in their familiar 4-3-3 formation, and they found early success in transition. Jota and Gakpo rotated in the central spaces when needed, while Díaz held the width on the left. But it was Salah who caused the most issues, especially with Chelsea’s back three unable to cover the width of the pitch quick enough when Liverpool moved the ball at pace.

Even when one of the hosts' wing-backs was within the defensive line, Liverpool were able to isolate Salah against Levi Colwill in significant space on the visitors’ right. The opening goal of the game offered a great example of Liverpool’s ability to move the ball quickly up the pitch and into Salah (below).

As Liverpool repeatedly looked for Salah and tried to pull Colwill away from the rest of the back line, his teammates looked to make supporting movements. Alexander-Arnold began to move inside, with Szoboszlai widening to support underneath the ball (below). These two movements made it very difficult for Chelsea to double up on Salah. As a result, Liverpool were able to progress at pace and give Colwill a challenging opening 30 minutes.

With Liverpool’s right side rotating consistently and a Chelsea defensive line of five dropping into a deeper block, Salah looked to exploit the spaces behind Colwill. The Egyptian's penetrative movements, coupled with Alexander-Arnold's quality from a more central position (below), led to a Liverpool second that was disallowed for a narrow offside. That proved a key moment in the game, as Chelsea equalised only moments later. 

Chelsea’s wing-backs

Liverpool’s out-of-possession strategy changed significantly in the second half. The visitors sat off in a mid-block before eventually dropping well into their own half. They rarely looked to regain high or jump on to Gallagher, which limited their attacking output. That was especially the case with Salah, who looked less than happy to be substituted on 77 minutes.

As Liverpool retreated, the Chelsea wing-backs were central to their team dominating the ball. Repeated switches of play across the pitch worked to exploit the wide areas well. When Van Dijk was tempted to jump out to the dangerous Sterling, Chelsea simply switched the play to the far side (below). Here, Chilwell forced Alisson into one of a number of key saves across the 90 minutes.  

From that point on, Liverpool’s back line stayed narrow. This allowed Chelsea’s wing-backs to stay high and connect with their attacking teammates. James' departure through injury after 76 minutes – Chilwell followed in added time – served to nullify Chelsea’s wide threats, however, and neither side could create a match-winning moment to secure three points.

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