Attacking zonally means that players stay in their zone, but the game looks more open when players enter other players’ zones where there is overlap to combine. The old approach forcing players not to roam might be outdated.

If these attackers stay in the center of their zone, they should be able to pass around the back, but what about going forward? The old approach doesn’t reward risk-takers.

Risk takers like Noni Madueke and Cole Palmer are annoying in a zonal attack because when you carefully and meticulously pass the ball around the back for 20 minutes, you don’t want to give the ball to one player and allow them to quickly lose it immediately.

It is like working in an office cubicle. You stay within your cubicle, do your job, and pass the tasks around to the next worker.

But then the more dynamic players become restless, and it’s only until then, when they go to the edge of their zone to overlap with another player’s, that the team starts to break down the opponent because then they can work the ball through the center.

Current Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca is working towards a zonal attack, and a non-zonal attack is what I think former manager Mauricio Pochettino was working towards.

It is harder to work the ball forward and create chances in a super rigid zonal attack, but it is easier to defend with the ball. If Wrexham can stop a super rigid zonal attack, you could make the argument that it has been found out by most teams, that it might be becoming outdated.

Technical and athletic system players like Raheem Sterling and Christopher Nkunku should perform better in a zonal attack because the rigidity helps showcase their sharpness, while playmakers and creatives like Cole Palmer and Noni Madueke should perform better in a non-zonal attack because they’d have more room and freedom to move.

Match: Chelsea 2-2 Wrexham, 25 July 2024