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

The feeling was that Maresca’s structured approach and focus on possession rendered him the best fit for Chelsea’s roster of technicians. Frank, who had excelled at Brentford, had to wait for his next chance. Not chosen by Manchester United after they dismissed Erik ten Hag, his moment arrived when Tottenham brought in the Dane after replacing Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Now, Frank and Maresca face each other, both occupying prestigious roles. Their relationship is not yet a established rivalry, but they experienced some hard-fought duels last season. Frank’s Brentford were unlucky to suffer a 2-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge last December and created the superior chances when they drew 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two engaging games, made more intriguing by the contrasting styles between the managers. Frank is more of a practical manager, more likely to be direct, play on the break, and wait for opportunities to execute an array of clinical set-piece plays, whereas Maresca leans towards a strict philosophy. The Italian comes from the Pep Guardiola coaching tree; he values control of the ball.

Chelsea’s average of 59.7% this season is topped only by Liverpool in the Premier League. Frank adapts his tactics more. Spurs are not instinctively a defensively-minded side – they are seventh in the possession table, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is significant that their strongest displays have come in games where they have ceded the initiative. They were outstanding with a back five in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, implemented an outstanding pressing game when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and dominated Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those performances suggest Spurs should play on the counter 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 past 18 home matches is the lowest of any team to have been in the top flight throughout that timeframe.

This is a difficult game to predict. Spurs are five points off the top and unbeaten in the Champions League. Chelsea are Club World Cup winners and reached the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup this week. Nevertheless, fans of both sides remain skeptical about Frank and Maresca. Spurs supporters have expressed frustration about a lack of creativity when the pressure is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s complain about their young side’s immaturity, lack of discipline, and difficulties against defensive setups.

The situation is that both managers are doing fine. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they lose to Spurs, but there is background to their inconsistent results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have had an impact. A disrupted pre-season, resulting from the club reaching the final at the Club World Cup, cannot be ignored.

Yet, there is potential for improvement, especially when it comes to maintaining 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s rash sending off during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup victory against Wolves was Chelsea’s sixth red card in nine games, including Maresca’s removal from the touchline 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 penetrative against defensive teams. The goals have dried up for João Pedro, and more reliability is needed from Chelsea’s young attacking midfielders.

Irritation mounted during last weekend’s 2-1 home defeat by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their peak of the season, but their xG 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 indicates that their key approach is being used against them and turned on them.

This is not a recent issue. It was zero victories from the four league games in which Chelsea had their most possession 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 expression. José Mourinho’s line about the team with the ball having the anxiety also is relevant.

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 strength. Chelsea have several fast attackers and are pulsating when they have room to attack.

Will Frank give them space? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s gung-ho tactics on their past two visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will surely be smarter. Is a shift to a back five likely? Chelsea have conceded from three long throws this season. Spurs could have Kevin Danso chucking balls into the box. They will observe that Chelsea have improved at attacking set pieces but are allowing too many chances.

Being so direct does not necessarily align with Spurs’ history. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski absent, there is a considerable creative responsibility on Mohammed Kudus. Xavi Simons, targeted by Chelsea last summer, has not made an impact since joining RB Leipzig. Spurs are lacking variety in from open situations. Their forwards remain erratic.

But this is one game where the ends may justify the approach. Spurs fans will not mind if a pragmatic approach halts a four-game losing run against Chelsea. Victory would ignite Frank’s reign. How he would relish to win this contest with Maresca.