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

The feeling was that Maresca’s structured approach and emphasis on possession rendered him the best fit for Chelsea’s roster of skilled players. Frank, who had performed brilliantly at Brentford, had to remain patient for his next chance. Not chosen by Manchester United after they dismissed Erik ten Hag, his break came when Tottenham hired the Danish manager after sacking Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Currently, Frank and Maresca meet, both occupying high-profile roles. Theirs is not yet a full-blown rivalry, but they had some close encounters last season. Frank’s Brentford were unfortunate to endure a 2-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge last December and created the better chances when they drew 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two competitive games, made more intriguing by the contrasting styles between the coaches. Frank is considered a practical manager, more likely to be straightforward, play on the break, and wait for chances to execute an range of deadly set-piece routines, whereas Maresca tends towards ideological rigidity. The Italian is a product of 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 varies his approach more. Spurs are not inherently a defensive side – they are ranked seventh in the possession table, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is notable that their most impressive showings have come in games where they have relinquished the control. They were excellent with a defensive setup in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, implemented an exceptional counterpress when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and dominated Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those performances suggest Spurs might play on the counter when they host Chelsea. Tottenham, it must be noted, have only one victory from their past seven home league games. The numbers are awful. Spurs’ return of 13 points from their last 18 home fixtures is the poorest of any team to have been in the top flight during that timeframe.

This is a hard game to call. Spurs are five points off the summit and unbeaten in the Champions League. Chelsea are Club World Cup winners and advanced to the last eight of the Carabao Cup this week. However, fans of both sides remain unconvinced about Frank and Maresca. Spurs supporters have grumbled about a shortage of creativity when the responsibility is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s lament about their young side’s inexperience, indiscipline, and toils against defensive setups.

The situation is that both managers are managing reasonably well. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they lose to Spurs, but there is mitigating circumstances to their mixed results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have been costly. A disrupted pre-season, due to the club going all the way at the Club World Cup, cannot be dismissed.

Still, there is room for development, especially when it comes to maintaining 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s unnecessary red card during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win 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 angry with Delap, who is banned for the visit to Spurs. But he is also considering how to make his team more penetrative against defensive teams. The goals have slowed down for João Pedro, and more reliability 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 highest of the campaign, but their expected goals was 0.97. Sunderland’s adjustment to a five-man defense confused Maresca. Régis Le Bris had prepared well. Numbers revealing that it is only one victory from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its peak this season indicates that their core identity is being weaponised and turned on them.

This is not a recent issue. It was zero victories from the four league games in which Chelsea had their highest possession stats last season, underscoring a vulnerability when Maresca’s pursuit for control is taken to the limit. The risk is falling into sterile domination, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s expression. José Mourinho’s remark about the team with the ball having the worry also is relevant.

Maresca disagrees, but it is worth recalling that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they delivered their finest performance under the Italian and decisively beat PSG in the Club World Cup final. Adaptability is a advantage. Chelsea have several fast attackers and are pulsating when they have room to attack.

Will Frank allow them space? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s gung-ho tactics on their last two visits to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will undoubtedly be smarter. Is a change to a back five possible? 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 conceding too many chances.

Being so straightforward does not necessarily match Spurs’ history. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski missing, 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 one-dimensional in from open situations. Their forwards remain unreliable.

But this is one game where the ends may excuse the approach. Spurs fans will not mind if a defensive approach breaks a four-game winless streak against Chelsea. Victory would energize Frank’s reign. How he would relish to win this battle with Maresca.