An unorthodox 4-2-2-1(1), the one in bracket stands for a second striker role. We have Lucas Piazon upfront. The next “Kaka” has been loaned to Malaga till the end of summer, but one must keep in mind that he has been compared to Kaka mainly because he looks like him and very less for their nature of play. Piazon is more than adept at playing upfront, which he did in the absence of Feruz for the Chelsea’s reserves and U-21. He has also been the false 9 before Chelsea grabbed Islam from Celtic. In a second striker system, this could help the team beneficially if they played with wingers.

The second striker is Jhon Pirez who has been loaned to CD Leganes, in the Spanish third division. I have just watched a single game of his, due to lack of television coverage, and he doesn’t look like his future will be at Chelsea. However he has sometimes played as the second striker behind Roberto Perez which has helped Perez become their third highest scorer. Playing as a second striker gives the team the opportunity to convert into a 4-2-2-2 or a 4-2-3-1 with Piazon moving back into the No.10 role where he picked up an assist for Chelsea against Villa’s demolition.

Amin Affane has been loaned to Roda JC, in the Erdevisie. He plies his trade in the left wing and has pin point crossing ability. He is not the type of play who cuts in as his composure in front of goal is not really good. He has notched up 14 appearances this season which include 6 substitute roles. In that, he has grabbed 1 goal and 6 assists, mainly coming from accurate through balls and crosses. I fully expect Affane to breakthrough into the Chelsea first team, some day or the other. His crosses can be very dangerous for forwards and midfielders with a good height. He and Pirez could be dangerous together.

Next we have Ulises Davila. His romance with Chelsea feeder club, Arnhem Vitesse has gone on for too long in some people’s opinion and was loaned to CE Sabadell in the Segunda Division in Spain. A loan move to an EPL club next year is on the cards. His favored position is the No.10 role but on the wings he is very good at cutting in and providing width. He has featured twice in the Copa del Rey and scored once while picking up 4 goals and 5 assists in the League. He is very talented at picking up through balls and has a high work rate. This also makes him a midfielder who is willing to come back and defend.

Now we move on to the pivot role. Our attack minded pivot player is Anjur Osmanovic, currently loaned to Larje Angereds IF in the third division of Nordvästra Götaland. Both he and Affane very produced by its famed youth academy. Osmanovic is a complete midfielder, who can play as a CDM and CAM, except on the wings. Think Lampard, with more pace and spatial awareness. He can move forward and assist in counter-attacks and make his presence felt whenever needed. However, I don’t think the 18-year-old he has enough potential of breaking through into the first team.

Billy Clifford has been with Chelsea for 2 years and was loaned to Colchester this month. He has bagged 2 assists and 2 goals in the U-21 Premier League. He is more than capable of playing the anchor duty and can defend as well. He can get forward for counter-attacks and can drift wide to provide cover for full-backs who push forward for width. Chelsea at this point would be well off with having Clifford in their team with the absence of Mikel.

Back in defense, we have Todd Kane at right back who is currently loaned to Blackburn rovers, where he has 10 appearances in the U-21 and has picked up 1 assist. He loves to get forward and drill crosses in just like Azpilicueta and has a lot of pace in him. If width is to be provided than Kane is very reliable.

Tomas Kalas is another player who is in between the Chelsea -Vitesse romance, where he has even featured in the Europa League and picked up 2 goals and 1 assist out of 20 appearances in the Eredivisie. Kalas provides stability at the back with his well built body and is definitely the biggest prospect at Chelsea. His aerial ability will be a good trump card while attacking corners.

Kenneth Omeruo is a natural right-back who has been loaned to ADO Den Haag in the Eredivisie. However he is capable of playing in the middle as well as his physicality and pace is a good mixture. He could be the Luiz of the team, being the more attack minded of center-backs.

Sam Hutchinson remains the only player left and I had problems fielding him. His natural role is at center-back and he has featured for Chelsea on the right as well, a couple of times however, for Nottingham Forest (where he is currently on loan), he has played on the left sometimes and picked up a goal in 5 appearances.

To summarize, this team can end up in mid-table in the Spanish La Liga, but in the EPL you could possibly see a relegation fight. This side is comprised of players who are very talented and some who are not up to the level. A 4-4-2 can also be played with the bigger striker blowing down defenders and the quicker one finding space and using his trickery to score.

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