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At the time Chelsea were searching for a replacement for Mauricio Pochettino in May 2024, several managers were considered. This was an thorough process that involved the club holding talks with Thomas Frank before they ultimately selected Enzo Maresca.

The belief was that Maresca’s structured approach and emphasis on possession made him the best fit for Chelsea’s roster of skilled players. Frank, who had achieved great success at Brentford, had to remain patient for his next chance. Not chosen by Manchester United after they let go of Erik ten Hag, his moment arrived when Tottenham brought in the Danish manager after sacking Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Currently, Frank and Maresca face each other, both occupying high-profile roles. Their relationship is not currently a full-blown rivalry, but they experienced some hard-fought duels last season. Frank’s Brentford were unfortunate to endure a 2-1 loss at Stamford Bridge last December and created the more clear-cut chances when they drew 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two competitive games, made more fascinating by the tactical differences between the managers. Frank is considered a pragmatist, more willing to be direct, play on the break, and wait for chances to unveil an array of deadly set-piece plays, whereas Maresca tends towards a strict philosophy. The Italian comes from the Pep Guardiola school; he values dominance of the ball.

Chelsea’s average of 59.7% so far this campaign is bettered only by Liverpool in the Premier League. Frank adapts his tactics more. Spurs are not inherently a defensively-minded side – they are seventh in the possession table, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is significant that their best displays have come in games where they have surrendered the initiative. They were superb with a back five in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, executed an outstanding counterpress when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and overwhelmed Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those experiences indicate Spurs ought to adopt a defensive approach when they face Chelsea. Tottenham, after all, have one win from their past seven home league games. The statistics are concerning. Spurs’ return of 13 points from their past 18 home fixtures is the lowest of any team to have been in the top flight during that period.

This is a hard game to call. Spurs are five points off the summit and unbeaten in the Champions League. Chelsea are world champions and advanced to 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 onus is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s complain about their young side’s immaturity, indiscipline, and struggles against low blocks.

The reality is that both managers are managing reasonably well. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they are defeated to Spurs, but there is context to their indifferent results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have been costly. A disrupted pre-season, due to the club competing deep at the Club World Cup, cannot be overlooked.

Yet, there is scope for improvement, especially when it comes to maintaining 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s unnecessary 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 technical area during the win over Liverpool.

Maresca was displeased with Delap, who is suspended for the visit to Spurs. But he is also thinking about how to make his team more incisive against low blocks. The goals have dried up for João Pedro, and more consistency is needed from Chelsea’s young attacking midfielders.

Irritation mounted during last weekend’s 2-1 home loss by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their highest of the season, but their xG was 0.97. Sunderland’s change to a back five confused Maresca. Régis Le Bris had prepared well. Numbers indicating that it is only one victory from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its maximum this season implies that their key approach is being weaponised and turned on them.

This is not a recent issue. It was no wins from the four league games in which Chelsea had their highest possession stats last season, underscoring a weakness when Maresca’s drive for control is taken to the limit. The threat is slipping into sterile domination, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s phrase. José Mourinho’s line about the team with the ball having the fear also applies here.

Maresca disagrees, but it is worth remembering that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they put in their finest performance under the Italian and thrashed PSG in the Club World Cup final. Flexibility is a advantage. Chelsea have several fast attackers and are dynamic when they have space to attack.

Will Frank give them freedom? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s gung-ho tactics on their past two trips to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will surely be more strategic. Is a shift to a back five 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 gotten better at offensive set pieces but are allowing too many chances.

Being so straightforward does not necessarily align with Spurs’ style. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski unavailable, there is a significant creative burden on Mohammed Kudus. Xavi Simons, pursued by Chelsea last summer, has not made an impact since joining RB Leipzig. Spurs are lacking variety in from open situations. Their forwards remain unreliable.

But this is one game where the ends may validate the method. Spurs fans will not complain if a cautious approach ends a four-game sequence of defeats against Chelsea. A win would ignite Frank’s tenure. How he would relish to win this battle with Maresca.