Valencia hosted Chelsea at the Mestalla for matchday five of the UEFA Champions League group stage. Both Albert Celades and Frank Lampard were hoping their team could secure qualification into the round of 16.
In an open, attacking and exciting match, the score ended 2-2. This tactical analysis will investigate how Valencia and Chelsea played out the draw via an analysis of match tactics. Specifically, the analysis will include information on offensive, defensive and transitional components of play from each team, as well as other key match events.
Line-ups
As you can see from the line-ups image, Valencia set up in a balanced 4-4-2 formation whereas Chelsea adopted for a 4-3-3. Chelsea opted for three natural central midfield players, rather than playing a more attacking option in the form of Mason Mount within the midfield triangle.
Michy Batshuayi was brought on at half time to replace the injured Tammy Abraham, otherwise, the substitutions from both teams were natural and due to the need for fresher legs or tactical tweaks later on in the match.
Average positions and formation changes
Both teams utilised their full-backs in order to obtain width, with wide players moving inside to support central midfielders and forwards for both teams. The full-backs were an important aspect of this match which will be discussed when investigating both teams in and out of possession later in the piece.
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