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#3 The Kante dilemma
In Jorginho and Kante, Chelsea have two world-class central midfielders. Add Fabregas and Kovacic to the mix and you have a midfield that every great team dreams of. Kante is the best defensive midfielder in Europe.
However, Sarri operates in a 4-3-3 formation that requires the deep-lying midfielder to be a playmaker. This has seen Jorginho and Fabregas operate in that role this season. The problem then occurs whenever Chelsea loses the ball in midfield. For all their playmaking attributes, Jorginho and Fabregas do not have the ability to cope with the speedsters in the Premier League.
Kante has the pace and will to keep up with these players but he operates at the right side of the midfield three in Sarri's 4-3-3. This means that he is often too far ahead when the ball is lost in midfield and cannot recover in time to stop the danger. This weakness in Chelsea's play has been exploited to devastating effect by Wolves and Tottenham.
Sarri has to address the Kante conundrum, the form of Hazard and the goalscoring woes ahead of the festive period. If their declining form carries over into Christmas, it may be too late and their top four hopes may be up in flames.
