Marauding Chilwell is exactly what Lampard and Chelsea needed
https://theathletic.com/2184115/2020/11/08/chelsea-ben-chilwell-left-back-sheffield-united/
Chelsea’s most fortunate goal against Sheffield United also happened to be the one that highlighted most clearly how impressively this team is coming together for Frank Lampard. When he darted behind Max Lowe towards the back post in the 34th minute at Stamford Bridge, Ben Chilwell didn’t plan for Hakim Ziyech’s in-swinging cross to connect flush with his right hip and bounce beyond Aaron Ramsdale into the net. It was simply an unexpected reward for doing what he was expected to do.
“I’m getting told constantly in training by the manager and the staff to get to the back post,” Chilwell told Sky Sports after the match. “Hopefully I can get a few more goals there this season. We’ve worked on it a lot: Hakim cutting in, crossing it to the back post and me or Timo (Werner) being there. Although I didn’t know much about it at the time, I’ll take it and it’s another goal, so I’m happy.”
The goal was made possible primarily by the exquisite technique of Ziyech, whose spectacular range of dinked and whipped passes and crosses from the right flank shattered Sheffield United’s best-laid defensive plans. But it also needed the movement of Chilwell, who is playing a far more significant role in Chelsea’s attacking system than anyone outside of Lampard and his backroom team could have anticipated.
Chelsea’s first threatening move of the match was started and almost finished by their marauding left-back. Chilwell bypassed Sheffield United’s high press in the fourth minute with a precise chipped pass forward into the chest of Tammy Abraham, and surged upfield as the striker worked the ball out to the right. Reece James’s eventual low cross went through several bodies across the six-yard box until Chilwell arrived, forcing a good save from Ramsdale. It was the first of his three shot attempts in the game — the same number as Werner.
Chilwell is averaging 1.2 shot attempts per 90 minutes in the Premier League so far this season, making him the fifth-most frequent shooter in the Chelsea squad among players to have clocked at least 180 minutes on the pitch. Last season he averaged 0.6 shot attempts per 90 minutes in the Premier League for Leicester City. Little wonder, then, that he has already been directly involved in as many goals (four) in his first three home appearances for his new team as he was in 52 home games for his old one.
Chelsea's most frequent shooters 2020-21
SHOT ATTEMPTS/90
Abraham
3.3
Mount
2.7
Werner
2.6
Ziyech
1.9
Chilwell
1.2
Even more impressive is the fact that Chilwell has managed to expand his attacking contribution while playing his part in a much-improved Chelsea defence that has conceded five goals in the nine matches he has started, registering six clean sheets. Making such high-level contributions at both ends requires tremendous energy, a role well suited to a man who once represented Bedfordshire at cross-country as a teenager. Sources have told The Athletic that Chilwell’s high-intensity output for Leicester was a big reason Lampard wanted him.
Lampard always considered mobility and quality in the full-back positions as crucial to the way he wanted Chelsea to play. Chilwell was regarded as the perfect fit for the left, which is why the likes of Alex Telles, Nicolas Tagliafico and Sergio Reguilon were never more than back-up candidates. There was also an expectation that James would continue to develop and eventually usurp club captain Cesar Azpilicueta on the right, though that has happened even quicker than expected in the opening weeks of the new season.
Chilwell’s arrival and James’ lightning-quick progress have given Chelsea a dynamic full-back pairing with the potential to rival Liverpool’s brilliant double act of Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Lampard has also found a stable tactical framework to accommodate their forays forward. Chilwell has quickly developed slick on-field chemistry with Mason Mount, who frequently assumed the role of left-back in possession against Sheffield United. On the opposite flank, James smartly picked his moments to overlap Ziyech, unleashing a barrage of precision crosses from a variety of angles while Mateo Kovacic provided support and willing runs.
Chelsea’s average positions vs Sheffield United
Between them, Ziyech and James delivered 11 of Chelsea’s 16 total crosses against Sheffield United. Chilwell didn’t attempt a single one. Instead, he embraced the opportunity to be more of a finisher than an initiator and registered more touches in Sheffield United’s penalty area (five) than in his own (four). “I couldn’t ask for more,” he added afterwards. “It’s a dream at the moment. Running forward and having the likes of Hakim and Reece on the other side who want to come in and cross is perfect for me.”
Chilwell’s touch map vs Sheffield United
The seamless integration of Chilwell — or “Chilly”, as everyone at Chelsea, including Lampard, calls him — into this team is even more remarkable when you consider that he arrived at Cobham with a heel injury that delayed and disrupted his preparations for the 2020-21 season. Those who know Chilwell credit Lampard with resisting the urge to risk playing him sooner, when the team’s broader defensive structure was in disarray and both Marcos Alonso and Emerson Palmieri were struggling individually.
Chilwell made a good first impression at Cobham weeks before he made his Chelsea debut. His smiley, easy-going nature quickly allowed him to build dressing room relationships beyond the friendships he already had with the likes of Mount and Abraham from England camps, and Lampard’s backroom team immediately saw how coachable he was. He also signalled his desire to listen and improve by asking to meet Ashley Cole shortly after his move from Leicester was confirmed.
“I had a conversation with him and the first thing he asked me was, ‘What do I need to make it at Chelsea?’” Cole said of their meeting. “He was so enthusiastic, he wanted to learn and he wanted to be a fan favourite.”
Chilwell’s early performances have put him on that path. Reaching the rarefied heights of the greatest left-back of his generation in Chelsea’s pantheon of legends will require years of consistent excellence, but there is one area in which he could surpass his idol sooner rather than later: Cole never managed more than four goals in a single season. Chilwell is already halfway there and if he keeps menacing the back post, the evidence of recent weeks suggests the ball will find him.
.jpg.47393f9164ddbaa21c61eb4374d2f1bb.jpg)
.thumb.jpg.8fb88d2f3e0e6884a1aa67c4dce82986.jpg)
