Antonio Conte began his reign as the new Chelsea manager yesterday when he joined up with the squad for the first time since his Euro 2016 departure with Italy.
Taking a quite frankly average-looking Italy side to the quarter-finals of the tournament, beating both former European Champions Spain and semi-finalists Belgium 2-0 on the way, set the tails of Chelsea fans wagging from side-to-side with extreme anticipation for the new season.
Conte’s love for the 3-5-2 has been widely documented since the Italian was named as the new Blues boss, and after seeing him implement it to such great effect with Italy and Juventus, many have turned their attention to how his new Chelsea side will shape-up.
One of the main causes for concern with the Blues’ current squad is who will play in the wing-back role in Conte’s system.
Following last year’s disastrous campaign, one can assume that Branislav Ivanovic will definitely not play a part out wide, after his lack of pace was severely exploited by anyone with sprint speed faster than a snail.
One player who could benefit from Conte’s 3-5-2, however, is Kenedy. After being deployed as a left-back come left-sided-midfielder last season, the Brazilian showed flashes of brilliance going forward but also highlighted how he needs to work on the defensive side of his game.
And though he is naturally an attacking midfielder which explains his slight defensive vulnerability, his experience of playing at the back could benefit him should Conte insist on using wing-backs.
If anything, Kenedy’s performances at left-back last season fit the bill for an ideal left-wing-back.
Whilst his defensive side of the game has room for improvement, he isn’t a bad defender overall and he uses his pace and energy to bomb up and down the left touchline.
His natural attacking instincts are another crucial feature for any wing-back, and the Brazilian impressed going forward last season by creating chances, scoring twice and laying on one assist.
Cesar Azpilicueta and Abdul Baba Rahman may have a say in whether Kenedy breaks onto the scene as a left-wing-back, though the 20-year-old fits the attacking criteria more than the former, and I believe he is just a better player in general than the latter.
Whilst Kenedy was seen as a Jose Mourinho signing when he joined the club, it seems to me that he could well be more of a Conte player this season.
