Xabi Alonso solves major Chelsea problem with clever tweak no one's talking about

A masterstroke from Xabi Alonso helped Chelsea thrash Bournemouth 5-1 over the weekend

Xabi Alonso quietly deployed a new formation when Chelsea locked horns with Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon, and it worked an absolute treat.

On paper, the Blues remained in a back-three, comprised of Levi Colwill, Maxence Lacroix, and Josh Acheampong, with wing-backs of Pep Chavarria and Pedro Neto flanking Moises Caicedo and Jordan Henderson in the middle of the park, leaving Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers to support Joao Pedro in the frontline.

Before the international break, Chelsea rarely strayed from this general shape, in or out of possession, often leaving dead space across the pitch for the opposition to exploit when possession was turned over.

Although the Blues were able to throw bodies forward and score a hatful of goals, the distances between the midfield and the backline were too great a few too many times, making the team particularly vulnerable in transition.

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Of course, different opposition, game states, and available personnel would have been variables in the opening weeks of the season, not to mention that Alonso had only taken the reins and begun implementing his ideas in July. But the Spaniard appears to have finally closed those weak spots.

When Chelsea faced Bournemouth, they often fell into a 4-4-2 shape, with Acheampong, who's superb at defending wide spaces and, on paper, right of the back-three, essentially playing right-back, pushing Neto a little further forward. Meanwhile, Colwill and Lacroix aligned a little more centrally.

With four at the back, and the two midfielders covering so much ground in the middle of the park, the distances were a lot more manageable. Fortunately for Alonso, still being in the teething stage of his tenure, Emi Martinez was able to come to the rescue on a few occasions when the Blues were caught out.

As visualised in the graphic above, Chelsea essentially averaged a 4-2-4 formation at Stamford Bridge on Saturday afternoon. Of course, it's no surprise that the Blues suddenly looked far more secure with Caicedo in the double pivot, playing a key role in almost every phase of play, but the slight shift in shape certainly bore fruit.

The graphic visualises the roles of Chavarria (on the left, farside) and Neto (on the right, nearside). Both were instructed to bomb forward, as evidenced by each of Pedro's goals, which stemmed from a willingness to get in behind the opposition's backline.

The former, though, had more defensive responsibility than the latter, who was protected by Acheampong in a slightly wider role, as aforementioned. If Alonso can perfect the system and reach a stage where he can plug-and-play players, Chelsea will be a force to be reckoned with.

Speaking to reporters, Alonso offered a glimpse into his understanding of the game. The Blues manager said: "Today was a complete performance. We were in control for most parts of the game, so I’m happy with that.

"We had good stability. In defence, there were a couple of situations in the first half, and for eight minutes in the second, after conceding the goal, we were not in control until we made it 4-1.

"But overall, I'm happy with the control and the performance. There are many positives to take into the future and to keep going."

And, on the importance of striking a balance in the middle of the park with Caicedo and Henderson, Alonso said: "Both in terms of qualities are different, in terms of the positioning as well.

"I think that they help each other well, and they give presence, they give stability. You know that they are going to be the ones who are going to be helping the rest, not just for their qualities, because they understand the game.

"They can play in shorter spaces, but defensively they give good balance. For me, it's fundamental that we get that area strong, and for sure, with Moises, Hendo played today, it was his second game.

"Romeo [Lavia] as well, he played good minutes, Reece [James] has played there a little bit on some minutes and [Valentin] Barco so we need to keep building around that..."