Tactical overview
Vieira has experimented with a five-man defence against Liverpool and Manchester City this season, and although this has been away from home it offers him the tactical flexibility to deploy the same approach against Chelsea.
The Newcastle meeting saw an interesting tactical tweak, as Jordan Ayew played in the centre of midfield for a spell – and Vieira was impressed. “Jordan played that role when we went on tour so knows the responsibility of the position, and that gives me good options,” he said.
“There’s an option on the table to play him there. He was fantastic when he played there, is an intelligent player and is prepared to sacrifice himself for the team. When he went centrally that gave us really good balance.”
Potter’s first game saw Chelsea set up with a familiar three-man back line – a tactic that was a mainstay at Brighton too. César Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Marc Cucurella were the three central defenders, with Reece James and – surprisingly – Sterling as wing-backs.
After stamping his authority with that first selection, there could be returns for Fofana, Koulibaly and Ben Chilwell, as well as a potential Premier League debut for on-loan central midfielder Denis Zakaria.
