‘No I was shocked by what he did’: Trent Alexander-Arnold finally reveals why he was shocked by what Pochettino did in Chelsea vs Liverpool clash
Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold says his side were surprised that Chelsea used a back three in the 1-1 draw between the two teams at Stamford Bridge earlier.
The Blues had been using a back four during pre-season, but Mauricio Pochettino opted to switch to a three-man defence for the Liverpool game in a move that surprised Alexander-Arnold and his team-mates.
Speaking live on Sky Sports during their live coverage today, the right-back said: “No [we weren’t expecting Chelsea’s system]. We prepared for them to go 4-3-3. They have set up with a back three or five, whatever you want to call it, and made it hard for us to play and pressed high and tried to stop us.
“The first 25 minutes was really good, but we couldn’t keep it up for some reason, and they took control of the game.”
Chelsea got off to a slow start after going 1-0 down to Liverpool, but Pochettino’s decision to use a back three looked justified in the end, with his side managing to score an equaliser and earn a point.
We guess Chelsea should stick with a back three?
You can understand if Pochettino decided that they should. His men managed to get a positive result today in that set-up and they obviously have two really good wing-backs in Reece James and Ben Chilwell.
In certain games, like ones against tough opposition, it makes sense. Chelsea also have quite a few options in central defence, including Axel Disasi.
The Frenchman joined them from AS Monaco this summer and scored the all-important equaliser.
Ultimately, Chelsea have the players to play in a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2. However, Pochettino used a back four in pre-season, which brought them wins during their tour of America.
If he goes back to that and it works, then there is no reason to employ the tactics he used against Liverpool in the long run. But if not, then a back three is surely something the Argentine may have to consider.