Chelsea - Newcastle United short preview and simple tactical theory

Assuming Newcastle's frontline plays more conservative, they will force the Chelsea buildup wide. Chelsea's midfield is outnumbered 5v2

1st pressing trigger: When the wide CB receives the ball all his passing options are man marked

Formations are not very important. In theory, both teams have ways of cancelling out the other. Every formation can work if effective.

A team can use rotations to create overloads or create space. For example, Chelsea's RWB (Hudson-Odoi) could drop deeper to create a 2v1 and help progress the ball.

Newcastle's left back could react to this by following Hudson-Odoi. This creates space for the Chelsea inside forward to exploit.

He could also just sit back and let the #8 press Hudson Odoi.

If Newcastle press high they will probably switch to a 4-3-3 as the #10 presses high up top. They did this vs Crystal Palace

The diamond formation probably has the best natural pressing angles. But it's vulnerable to long passes in behind.

It's also easy to disrupt the shape because of the rotations in a press. One player constantly has to press wide leaving space central or in behind

I would say it's a high risk high reward system but it's not high risk if implemented well.

There is always a way for the other team to react in football so you cant create a winning formula, but the team that prepares better will have a bigger chance of success