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When Chelsea were seeking for a replacement for Mauricio Pochettino in May 2024, a number of managers were in contention. It was an comprehensive process that saw the club holding talks with Thomas Frank before they eventually chose Enzo Maresca.

The opinion was that Maresca’s positional game and focus on possession rendered him the best fit for Chelsea’s squad of skilled players. Frank, who had performed brilliantly at Brentford, had to bide his time for his big break. Not chosen by Manchester United after they let go of Erik ten Hag, his opportunity came when Tottenham brought in the Dane after sacking Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Currently, Frank and Maresca confront one another, both holding high-profile roles. Their relationship is not currently a established rivalry, but they shared some hard-fought matches last season. Frank’s Brentford were unlucky to suffer a 2-1 defeat 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 divergent approaches between the tacticians. Frank is more of a adaptable coach, more willing to be direct, play on the counter-attack, and wait for chances to unveil an variety of deadly set-piece plays, whereas Maresca veers towards a strict philosophy. The Italian is a product of the Pep Guardiola coaching tree; he prizes control of the ball.

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

Those experiences point to Spurs might adopt a defensive approach when they face Chelsea. Tottenham, after all, have one win from their last seven home league games. The statistics are disappointing. Spurs’ return of 13 points from their last 18 home outings is the lowest of any team to have been in the top flight during that timeframe.

This is a hard game to read. Spurs are five points off the top and unbeaten in the Champions League. Chelsea are Club World Cup winners and advanced to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup this week. Nevertheless, fans of both sides remain unconvinced 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 moan about their young side’s inexperience, lack of discipline, and toils against low blocks.

The situation is that both managers are performing adequately. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they lose to Spurs, but there is mitigating circumstances to their indifferent results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have taken a toll. A interrupted pre-season, resulting from the club reaching the final at the Club World Cup, cannot be overlooked.

Yet, there is room for improvement, especially when it comes to keeping 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s ludicrous dismissal during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win against Wolves was Chelsea’s sixth such red card in nine games, including Maresca’s dismissal from the dugout 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 defensive teams. The goals have dried up for João Pedro, and more steadiness is needed from Chelsea’s young attacking midfielders.

Disappointment mounted during last weekend’s 2-1 home loss by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their peak of the season, but their expected goals was 0.97. Sunderland’s adjustment to a five-man defense confused Maresca. Régis Le Bris had studied his opponent. Numbers indicating that it is one win from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its maximum this season implies that their core identity is being exploited and turned on them.

This is not a new issue. It was zero victories from the four league games in which Chelsea had their most possession last season, underscoring a vulnerability when Maresca’s drive for control is taken to the limit. The danger is drifting into sterile domination, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s term. José Mourinho’s line about the team with the ball having the fear also is relevant.

Maresca disagrees, but it is worth noting that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they put in their most impressive performance under the Italian and routed PSG in the Club World Cup final. Variety is a strength. Chelsea have plenty of fast attackers and are exciting when they have room to attack.

Will Frank allow them opportunity? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s adventurous tactics on their past two visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will certainly be more cautious. Is a change to a back five possible? Chelsea have allowed goals from three long throws this season. Spurs could have Kevin Danso launching balls into the box. They will observe that Chelsea have improved at offensive set pieces but are conceding too many chances.

Being so long-ball oriented does not necessarily align with Spurs’ style. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski absent, 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 one-dimensional in from open situations. Their forwards remain inconsistent.

But this is one game where the ends may justify the means. Spurs fans will not object if a defensive approach breaks a four-game losing run against Chelsea. Success would energize Frank’s reign. How he would relish to win this battle with Maresca.