Comment: Why Mateo Kovacic will be integral to Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea

Chelsea’s 2019/20 player of the year Mateo Kovacic could be given a new lease of life under Thomas Tuchel after failing to find consistent form under Frank Lampard this season. 

The Croatian started in Chelsea’s midweek clash versus Wolves which ended 0-0 and gained praise from fans for his dominating performance. At 26-years-old, now is the time for the former Real Madrid midfielder to put a mark on the Premier League and Tuchel as manager will only be a catalyst for this.

Tuchel’s high intensity transitional football favours the composure and work ethic of Blues midfielder Mateo Kovacic. On Wednesday evening the Croatian made an exceptional account for himself with a complete performance in the centre of the park. Kovacic put together 148 passes over the 90 minutes which is a record in a Premier League match this season and made a further three tackles and two interceptions.

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The performance was a reminder of the untapped quality Chelsea have at their disposal and bodes the question as to whether new head coach Thomas Tuchel can unlock this going forward. At PSG Marco Verratti was an integral part of Tuchel’s system and can draw similarities to the Chelsea midfielder.

Tuchel places great emphasis on his teams ability to retain possession and for his central players to have ball at feet as often as possible. Last season Verratti per 90 had a pass accuracy of 92.4% and gave away only 7.9 passes out of the 104 attempted every game. Kovacic’s Wednesday evening pass accuracy of 97.3% highlights the similarities between the two and outlines his high calibre which will be key for Chelsea to dominate possession and create chances.

Kovacic, who joined the Blues back in 2018 possesses high levels of composure on the ball which will prove to be vital to the new style of play being integrated into the side. 

In an interview with Rio Ferdinand last season, Tuchel stated: “It is important we don’t suppress creativity, In your space when protected find your solution. I will never tell Marco Verratti what to do, he will find a solution that I could not find.”

The creative freedom of Tuchel’s tactical style plays into the hands of Chelsea’s midfield with the likes of Mason Mount being vital to Chelsea this season. The 22-year-old has created 49 chances in the league from midfield and will complement the defensive minded Kovacic nicely should their new manager select both in his starting eleven.

Chelsea resume their league campaign on Sunday as they welcome Burnley to Stamford Bridge in a must win tie for the Blues as they look to narrow the gap between themselves and top four. 

After his top performance midweek, Kovacic will look to continue his fine form against a strong Sean Dyche team who have just come off the back of two consecutive league victories versus Aston Villa and Liverpool.

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