Football Manager 2020: Chelsea Team Guide, Player Ratings, & Tactics

Chelsea have been up and down a lot of late. When you take over at the start of Football Manager 2020, the Blues have claimed two of the last five Premier League titles, but also finished as low as 10th.

You step into the managerial office needing to bring stability and domestic success back to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea are the EURO Cup holders when you come in, but if you think winning that again will keep the fans and board happy then you have another thing coming.

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Club vision

Chelsea's board have a lot of tasks for you in FM20 — HIGH HOPES: There is a lot of work to do

This new feature has been a big success in FM20. It is both a short-term and long-term set of goals for the club as laid out by the board that includes play style aims, financial targets, and competition results.

Chelsea’s competition expectations are high. You are expected to hit a top-four finish in the Premier League while also reaching the quarter-final of the Champions League. These are the two required results, but the board also want to you reach the FA Cup final and maintain incredibly high standards within the youth team.

There are some strict financial and cultural demands too.

The five-year plan is to sign young players, work within your wage budget, but also to maintain self-sustainability and expand the stadium or build a new.

Culturally you have to sign players under the age of 22, play attacking and possession football, and develop players using the youth system.

That is a lot to take on board and try to work within!

Tactical style

Chelsea’s squad is in flux when you take over. There are some quality players around and also a lot of talented youngsters, but there is not much attacking prowess in the squad.

As a result, a more balanced tactical style would be suitable to start. Be it tiki-taka in with a balanced mentality or the fluid counter-attack will depend on the strength of your opponent. Both are strong options given the defensive quality on this team.

Formation

Chelsea’s depth across the midfield and central defence mean a number of formations are possible.

A 5-3-2 WB would allow you to create a stern defensive wall and would be good with the fluid counter-attack style, but if you want to be more forward-thinking and use tiki-taka then you can’t go wrong with the 4-1-4-1 DM Wide.

In this formation, Kepa Arrizabalaga will be between the sticks for you, with a back four of Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, and Emerson.

N’Golo Kante is the natural defensive midfielder behind a pivot of Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho.

The front three has Willian on the right and Pedro on the left with Olivier Giroud up front.

There are plenty of options for your bench, but you should have Willy Caballero, Marcos Alonso, Kurt Zouma, Ross Barkley, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Callum Hudson-Odoi, and Tammy Abraham as your substitutes.

There are plenty of options across the team though, so be sure to rotate regularly.

Key players

While Chelsea’s squad isn’t likely to compete for the Premier League right away, there is plenty of talented players that you can build a strong unit around.

N’Golo Kante – CA 4 star (165), PA 4 star (165)

The World Cup winner N’Golo Kante has been a difference-maker for his team for a long time. He first came to prominence as part of Leicester City’s title-winning team and his arrival at Stamford Bridge meant another Premier League triumph for the Blues.

In Football Manager 2020 he is a dominant force. With 20 tackling, stamina, teamwork, and work rate is the epitome of a workhorse. Natural at both defensive and central midfield he will be in your team nearly every game.