Posted by Even a brilliant tactician like Thomas Tuchel requires assistance from time to time. He may not have the answer to every structural problem, but it helped that he was willing to listen when his assistant, Arno Michels, laid out the strategy that helped Chelsea turn around a stuttering performance. Chelsea were far more incisive after moving Hakim Ziyech to the left and sending Callum Hudson-Odoi to the right with instructions to break Malmo’s stubborn resistance by using his quick dribbling.
Michel’s ruse soon paid off. Hudson-Odoi, who is right-footed, had struggled on the left flank in the first half, slowing Chelsea’s tempo by cutting inside too much, but he was freed after switching to the other flank. On the left side of Malmö’s defense, the winger was far too quick for Sren Rieks and Franz Brorsson, and he played a key role when the breakthrough came early in the second half, flying down the right wing and crossing for Ziyech to calm Chelsea’s nerves on a night when they were regularly pushed out of their comfort zone by limited but spirited opposition.
“We got the job done,” Tuchel said. “I think maybe now we get judged by results, but who doesn’t? We needed the result, we expected the result, and we delivered. We had a lot of shots in the first half but it was not clinical enough. We wanted to increase the intensity level in the second half to force a goal. In the moment of the highest pressure we were able to use this moment with precision. It was a deserved win.”
“All credit to my assistant,” Tuchel said. “He had the idea. We liked it. Malmö were defending in a low block. We lost some moments if Callum or Hakim had to switch back.”
source : guardian sport