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Fans have spotted Chelsea's 'Octagon' formation in 2-1 defeat to Southampton

Fans have spotted Chelsea's 'Octagon' formation in 2-1 defeat to Southampton

Chelsea lost for a second time this season and a screenshot of the formation has highlighted their issues.

Chelsea played with an 'Octagon' formation in the 2-1 defeat to Southampton on Tuesday night and it's fair to say it didn't quite work.

The Blues went 1-0 at St Mary's through Raheem Sterling, who scored his third goal in two games.

But former Manchester City youngster Romeo Lavia, a £10.5 million summer signing, levelled matters minutes later with a superb strike from the edge of the box.

Adam Armstrong completed the turnaround for Saints on the stroke of half-time and Ralph Hasenhuttl's side held on for a huge victory the moves them to seventh in the table.

Chelsea, meanwhile, tasted defeat for the second time this term. And a screenshot of their set-up in the 83rd minute might explain just why they fell to a second consecutive away loss.

Image: Alamy
Image: Alamy

Chelsea looked like they had an 'Octagon' system going on, with nobody occupying the No.10 position and getting between the lines.

With Chelsea lacking a focal point in attack, Southampton were pretty comfortable and allowed their opponents to have possession without threatening.


The same image was seen by Max Allegri's Juventus recently and the lack of midfield prompted a mountain of reaction:

Chelsea have spent big on a slew of new signings this summer under new owner Todd Boehly and yet still look a bit of a mess.

And Tuchel's post-match comments on the loss were a little damning.

"Obviously we are not tough enough to win these matches away. It’s the same as Leeds away,” Tuchel said in a press conference.

“It is too easy to put us off balance, to beat us, to confuse us. It is too easy. We need to understand why and find solutions.

“We lose concentration, we lose our plan and lose consistency, it is too easy to beat us.”

The two-time Champions League winners will be desperate to get bounce back against West Ham at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Featured Image Credit: Image: Alamy & Twitter

Topics: Chelsea, Premier League, Southampton, Thomas Tuchel, Todd Boehly