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At the time Chelsea were looking for a replacement for Mauricio Pochettino in May 2024, multiple managers were in contention. It was an thorough process that saw the club holding talks with Thomas Frank before they ultimately selected Enzo Maresca.

The opinion was that Maresca’s structured approach and priority on possession positioned him as the best fit for Chelsea’s team of technicians. Frank, who had performed brilliantly at Brentford, had to bide his time for his big break. Overlooked by Manchester United after they let go of Erik ten Hag, his moment arrived when Tottenham hired the Dane after sacking Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Currently, Frank and Maresca meet, both occupying high-profile roles. Theirs is not yet a full-fledged rivalry, but they experienced some close matches last season. Frank’s Brentford were unfortunate to suffer a 2-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge last December and created the better chances when they tied 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two decent games, made more fascinating by the divergent approaches between the managers. Frank is considered a practical manager, more inclined to be direct, play on the break, and wait for chances to deploy an variety of deadly set-piece routines, whereas Maresca veers towards dogmatism. The Italian is a product of the Pep Guardiola philosophy; he values dominance of the ball.

Chelsea’s average of 59.7% this season is exceeded only by Liverpool in the Premier League. Frank varies his approach more. Spurs are not naturally a defensively-minded side – they are ranked seventh in the possession table, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is notable that their strongest performances have come in games where they have ceded the control. They were superb with a five-man defense in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, executed an impressive counterpress when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and dominated Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those results indicate Spurs ought to sit back when they welcome Chelsea. Tottenham, it must be noted, have one win from their last seven home league games. The statistics are awful. Spurs’ return of 13 points from their last 18 home outings is the poorest of any team to have been in the top flight during that period.

This is a difficult game to call. Spurs are five points off the summit and unbeaten in the Champions League. Chelsea are world champions and reached the last eight of the Carabao Cup this week. However, fans of both sides remain doubtful about Frank and Maresca. Spurs supporters have expressed frustration about a shortage of creativity when the responsibility is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s lament about their young side’s immaturity, indiscipline, and struggles against low blocks.

The situation is that both managers are doing fine. Chelsea could slip to 12th if they lose to Spurs, but there is context to their indifferent results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have taken a toll. A interrupted pre-season, due to the club going all the way at the Club World Cup, cannot be dismissed.

Still, there is room for progress, especially when it comes to keeping 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s ludicrous red card during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup success against Wolves was Chelsea’s sixth such red card in nine games, including Maresca’s banishment from the touchline during the win over Liverpool.

Maresca was displeased with Delap, who is suspended for the fixture to Spurs. But he is also pondering how to make his team more penetrative against defensive teams. The goals have decreased for João Pedro, and more consistency is necessary from Chelsea’s young attacking midfielders.

Irritation built during last weekend’s 2-1 home defeat by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their peak of the campaign, but their xG was 0.97. Sunderland’s switch to a five-man defense baffled Maresca. Régis Le Bris had done his homework. Numbers showing that it is one win from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its peak this season indicates that their fundamental philosophy is being used against them and turned on them.

This is not a recent issue. It was zero victories from the four league games in which Chelsea had their most possession last season, highlighting a flaw when Maresca’s quest for control is taken to the limit. The risk is drifting into ineffective control, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s phrase. José Mourinho’s remark about the team with the ball having the fear also applies here.

Maresca disagrees, but it is worth recalling that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they put in their most impressive performance under the Italian and thrashed PSG in the Club World Cup final. Adaptability is a positive attribute. Chelsea have plenty of fast attackers and are dynamic when they have room to attack.

Will Frank grant them opportunity? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s attacking tactics on their last two visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will undoubtedly be smarter. Is a switch to a back five on the cards? Chelsea have allowed goals from three long throws this season. Spurs could have Kevin Danso launching balls into the box. They will take into account that Chelsea have gotten better at offensive set pieces but are allowing too many chances.

Being so direct does not necessarily align with Spurs’ style. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski absent, there is a heavy creative load on Mohammed Kudus. Xavi Simons, pursued by Chelsea last summer, has not made an impact since joining RB Leipzig. Spurs are one-dimensional in from open situations. Their forwards remain unreliable.

But this is one game where the ends may justify the approach. Spurs fans will not mind if a pragmatic approach halts a four-game losing run against Chelsea. A win would ignite Frank’s reign. How he would love to win this battle with Maresca.