Chelsea legend Pat Nevin gives Frank Lampard tactical tip for Tottenham visit
Chelsea legend Pat Nevin has suggested Frank Lampard should revert to a back three for the visit of Tottenham on Saturday.
Lampard surprised everyone - including Spurs boss Jose Mourinho - when he opted to switch to a back three for the reverse game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and pulled off a fantastic 2-0 win in December.
Monday night's defeat to Manchester United means there is now just a point between Spurs in fifth and Chelsea going into Saturday's game, further ramping up what will already be a heated occasion.
And Nevin has suggested that returning to the back three which worked so well last time out, as well as recalling wing-back Marcos Alonso on the left, could be key to getting one over on Mourinho once more.
"The last time Frank faced Jose he had a tactical brainwave by switching successfully and unexpectedly to a 3-4-3," Nevin wrote in his column on the Chelsea website. "There will be many ideas going through his head and trying this system again will be one of them.
"With Marcus Alonso fit, rested and a specialist in that formation it could work. He also has Reece James, whose game seems made for the same position on the right-hand side of that middle four. Considering the goal shipped from a dead ball against United, having three centre-backs on the field and the height of Marcus in there too, it will definitely be a temptation.
"Even if Andreas Christensen isn’t fit after his facial injury, there is still Rudiger, Tomori, Zouma and of course Azpilicueta available to play in a back three. There are plenty of injuries but at least we have cover back there at the moment."
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