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When Chelsea were seeking for a successor for Mauricio Pochettino in May 2024, a number of managers were considered. It was an thorough process that saw the club engaging with Thomas Frank before they finally chose Enzo Maresca.

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

Now, Frank and Maresca meet, both occupying prestigious roles. Theirs is not yet a established rivalry, but they experienced some hard-fought matches last season. Frank’s Brentford were unlucky to suffer a 2-1 loss at Stamford Bridge last December and created the more clear-cut chances when they tied 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two engaging games, made more intriguing by the tactical differences between the managers. Frank is considered a adaptable coach, more willing to be direct, play on the break, and wait for opportunities to deploy an range of clinical set-piece routines, whereas Maresca veers towards ideological rigidity. The Italian hails from the Pep Guardiola coaching tree; he prizes dominance of the ball.

Chelsea’s possession average of 59.7% this season is exceeded only by Liverpool in the Premier League. Frank mixes it up more. Spurs are not inherently a defensively-minded side – they are ranked seventh in the possession rankings, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is significant that their most impressive displays have come in games where they have ceded the initiative. They were outstanding with a defensive setup in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, executed an impressive counterpress when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and destroyed Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those results point to Spurs ought to play on the counter when they host Chelsea. Tottenham, after all, have only one victory from their past seven home league games. The figures are concerning. Spurs’ record of 13 points from their past 18 home outings is the worst of any team to have been in the top flight throughout that period.

This is a difficult game to predict. Spurs are five points off first place and undefeated in the Champions League. Chelsea are world champions and advanced to the last eight of the Carabao Cup this week. Nevertheless, fans of both sides remain skeptical about Frank and Maresca. Spurs supporters have complained about a absence of creativity when the responsibility is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s moan about their young side’s inexperience, lack of discipline, and difficulties against defensive setups.

The truth is that both managers are performing adequately. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they are defeated to Spurs, but there is mitigating circumstances to their mixed results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have had an impact. A disrupted pre-season, due to the club reaching the final at the Club World Cup, cannot be ignored.

Still, there is scope for progress, especially when it comes to maintaining 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s rash red card during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win against Wolves was Chelsea’s sixth red card in nine games, including Maresca’s banishment from the technical area during the win over Liverpool.

Maresca was furious with Delap, who is banned for the trip to Spurs. But he is also considering how to make his team more effective against defensive teams. The goals have slowed down for João Pedro, and more reliability is required from Chelsea’s young wingers.

Irritation built during last weekend’s 2-1 home defeat by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their peak of the season, but their xG was 0.97. Sunderland’s change to a five-man defense confused Maresca. Régis Le Bris had done his homework. Numbers revealing that it is one win from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its peak this season suggests 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, underscoring a weakness when Maresca’s pursuit for control is taken to extremes. The threat is falling into ineffective control, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s term. José Mourinho’s line about the team with the ball having the fear also is relevant.

Maresca contests this view, but it is worth recalling that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they put in their best performance under the Italian and thrashed PSG in the Club World Cup final. Variety is a advantage. Chelsea have a number of fast attackers and are dynamic when they have room to attack.

Will Frank allow them opportunity? Chelsea took advantage of Postecoglou’s gung-ho tactics on their past two visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will surely be smarter. Is a change to a five-man defense likely? Chelsea have allowed goals from three long throws this season. Spurs could have Kevin Danso throwing balls into the box. They will observe that Chelsea have improved at attacking set pieces but are conceding too many chances.

Being so long-ball oriented does not necessarily align with Spurs’ traditions. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski missing, there is a significant creative responsibility on Mohammed Kudus. Xavi Simons, targeted by Chelsea last summer, has not made an impact since arriving from RB Leipzig. Spurs are lacking variety in open play. Their forwards remain unreliable.

But this is one game where the outcome may excuse the method. Spurs fans will not mind if a defensive approach breaks a four-game sequence of defeats against Chelsea. A win would boost Frank’s reign. How he would love to win this battle with Maresca.