According to the Daily Mail, Enzo Maresca's Chelsea averaged just 32% possession in their first two Premier League matches but won both games.

A team can win the Premier League title with lower possession. However, this has happened only once in the 34 seasons of the Premier League, creating one of the most spectacular title-winning stories.

Leicester City under Claudio Ranieri won the title in the 2015-16 season at 5000-1 odds with an average possession of just 42.4%. It was the era of Jamie Vardy's parties and pizza nights.

For those obsessed with possession, good luck next season. That was a remarkable exception, the last time a team finished in the Premier League's top five with less than 50% possession.

Last season, Sunderland finished 7th as the highest-placed team with less than 50% possession. In the previous two seasons, Nottingham Forest finished 7th and West Ham 9th. Going further back, you can find Leicester City in 1st place. Apart from this fairy tale, elite teams typically achieve top finishes by controlling possession.

Chelsea visit Arsenal today, and some have already begun discussing whether the two teams will battle for first place come May. Enzo Maresca's side, following victories over Fulham and Brighton, has averaged just 32% possession.

This is more than 10 percentage points lower than Leicester City in 2015-16, and only Hull City has recorded lower possession than Chelsea this season.

Of course, a sample size of two matches is small, and the relevant statistics have their own nuances, but the changes at Chelsea are still evident. The team has shifted from "respecting the ball" under Enzo Maresca's predecessor to "surrendering possession" under Maresca while continuing to win.

Chelsea will likely have more possession later in the season, though not necessarily against Arsenal today. Given how Maresca made history with Bayer Leverkusen, Chelsea's current style of play was unexpected.

Maresca favoured a training drill called "possession game" at Leverkusen. Two teams of eight players competed in a confined space, with three neutral players in bibs serving both teams. There were no goals, and one point was awarded for completing ten consecutive passes.

If the tempo was too slow, Maresca would intervene and personally demonstrate the desired pace by making passes. The drill was designed to help players maintain possession, find space, exploit numerical advantages, adapt to possession situations, and establish control in chaos.

By the end of the 2023-24 season, Maresca led Leverkusen to their first-ever Bundesliga title. The team averaged 62.1% possession, ranking first among all Bundesliga teams that season.

Chelsea's start to this season is therefore particularly intriguing. If Maresca continues with this style, Chelsea fans may not mind.

Chelsea fans never fully embraced Enzo Maresca's predecessor. As a Guardiola disciple, his football emphasized patient passing, but the abundance of sideways passes didn't align with Chelsea fans' preferences. They once identified with José Mourinho's pragmatic philosophy and witnessed the team win the Premier League and Champions League under Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel respectively, using three-at-the-back formations.

Here are the highest-placed Premier League teams with less than 50% possession over the last 11 seasons:

2024-25: Sunderland, 7th place, 44.8%

2023-24: Nottingham Forest, 7th place, 40.7%

2022-23: West Ham, 9th place, 40.5%

2021-22: Aston Villa, 7th place, 49.2%

2020-21: West Ham, 7th place, 47.4%

2019-20: West Ham, 6th place, 42.5%

2018-19: Wolverhampton Wanderers, 7th place, 48%

2017-18: Wolverhampton Wanderers, 7th place, 46.3%

2016-17: Burnley, 7th place, 42.9%

2015-16: West Bromwich Albion, 10th place, 36.7%

2014-15: Leicester City, 1st place, 42.4%

Chelsea's possession against Fulham this season was 38.1%, and against Brighton 25.9%. Arsenal's possession against Coventry was 64.1%, and against Aston Villa 60.8%.

When Conte won the title with Chelsea in 2016-17, the team's average possession was 54.8%, which was higher only than Leicester City among English league champions.

Maresca may be employing a style more suited to Chelsea's tradition, but this statistic also has context.

Chelsea's opponents in the first two matches prioritized possession heavily. In the first match against Fulham, Chelsea went ahead through Álvaro Arboleda after 31 seconds and ultimately won 3-2.

They then faced Brighton under Fabian Hürzeler, winning 4-3. According to Opta, Chelsea's possession in that match was just 25.9%, a new Premier League low for the club since records began.

However, Chelsea led 1-0 after 4 minutes and 3-0 after 32 minutes, so there was no need to rush to regain possession. Moisés Caicedo suffered an injury and has not featured in the starting lineup in either match this season.

With Caicedo absent, Chelsea played Rice James and Romeo Lavia in midfield against Fulham, and Malo Gusto and Lavia against Brighton. Lavia is working on his fitness and hopes to soon play his first full 90 minutes for Chelsea in an official match. Caicedo's absence has also exposed Chelsea's defensive weaknesses: the team conceded 5 goals across the two matches.

Chelsea has defensive shortcomings, but their attacking performance has compensated. The direct style suits the attacking trio of Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, and João Félix, a combination particularly effective at creating threats through transitions. Rogers will be the player to watch in this match.

For most of the summer, Arsenal believed Rogers would join them. Chelsea also wanted to sign Rogers, but club representatives admitted they weren't confident at the time, as Mikel Arteta's side was considered favourites.

Chelsea monitored Arsenal's negotiations closely and acted when they hesitated, quickly expressing willingness to pay Aston Villa £117 million. Arsenal later stated they were only willing to pay up to £80 million, though other sources suggested Arsenal was initially prepared to offer over £100 million. After joining Chelsea, Rogers stated he had joined "London's biggest club."

Now Rogers will feature in this clash between the Premier League's strongest attack and defence and attempt to show Arsenal what they missed, provided Chelsea can gain possession.

Переведено ИИ.

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