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

The opinion was that Maresca’s tactical system and emphasis on possession positioned him as the most suitable for Chelsea’s roster of skilled players. Frank, who had excelled at Brentford, had to bide his time for his big break. Passed over by Manchester United after they let go of Erik ten Hag, his moment came when Tottenham appointed the Dane after firing Ange Postecoglou last summer.

Currently, Frank and Maresca face each other, both occupying prestigious roles. Their relationship is not currently a full-fledged rivalry, but they had some close duels last season. Frank’s Brentford were unlucky to endure a 2-1 defeat at Stamford Bridge last December and had the better chances when they drew 0-0 with Chelsea in April.

Those were two decent games, made more interesting by the divergent approaches between the tacticians. Frank is considered a pragmatist, more likely to be straightforward, play on the counter-attack, and wait for opportunities to deploy an range of clinical set-piece routines, whereas Maresca veers towards a strict philosophy. 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 bettered only by Liverpool in the Premier League. Frank adapts his tactics more. Spurs are not naturally a defensive side – they are seventh in the possession standings, ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle – but it is notable that their most impressive performances have come in games where they have ceded the control. They were excellent with a defensive setup in the Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain, executed an outstanding counterpress when they won 2-0 at Manchester City, and dominated Everton with set pieces last Sunday.

Those performances suggest Spurs should adopt a defensive approach when they welcome Chelsea. Tottenham, after all, have only one victory from their past seven home league games. The statistics are awful. Spurs’ record of 13 points from their past 18 home fixtures is the lowest of any team to have been in the top flight throughout that timeframe.

This is a hard game to predict. Spurs are five points off the top and undefeated 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 doubtful about Frank and Maresca. Spurs supporters have grumbled about a shortage of creativity when the pressure is on their team to attack; Chelsea’s moan about their young side’s immaturity, indiscipline, and struggles against low blocks.

The truth is that both managers are managing reasonably well. Chelsea could fall to 12th if they are defeated to Spurs, but there is background to their indifferent results. Injuries to Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill have been costly. A disrupted pre-season, resulting from the club reaching the final at the Club World Cup, cannot be ignored.

Yet, there is scope for development, especially when it comes to maintaining 11 players on the pitch. Liam Delap’s unnecessary sending off during Wednesday’s Carabao Cup win against Wolves was Chelsea’s sixth red card in nine games, including Maresca’s banishment from the dugout during the win over Liverpool.

Maresca was furious with Delap, who is suspended for the trip to Spurs. But he is also pondering how to make his team more incisive against defensive teams. The goals have slowed down for João Pedro, and more reliability is required from Chelsea’s young wingers.

Irritation built during last weekend’s 2-1 home defeat by Sunderland. Chelsea had 68.4% possession, their maximum of the campaign, but their expected goals was 0.97. Sunderland’s change to a back five flummoxed Maresca. Régis Le Bris had studied his opponent. Statistics indicating that it is only one victory from the six league games when Chelsea’s possession has been at its highest this season indicates that their core identity is being exploited and turned on them.

This is not a new issue. It was no wins from the four league games in which Chelsea had their highest possession stats last season, highlighting a weakness when Maresca’s pursuit for control is taken to the limit. The danger is falling into unproductive possession, to borrow Arsène Wenger’s expression. José Mourinho’s comment about the team with the ball having the worry also applies here.

Maresca disagrees, but it is worth noting that Chelsea had 33.5% possession when they put in their most impressive performance under the Italian and thrashed PSG in the Club World Cup final. Variety is a strength. Chelsea have a number of fast attackers and are exciting when they have room to attack.

Will Frank grant them opportunity? Chelsea punished Postecoglou’s gung-ho tactics on their past two trips to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Frank will undoubtedly be more strategic. Is a switch to a five-man defense possible? Chelsea have allowed goals from three long throws this season. Spurs could have Kevin Danso chucking balls into the box. They will observe that Chelsea have gotten better at attacking set pieces but are allowing too many chances.

Being so long-ball oriented does not necessarily fit with Spurs’ history. But with James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski unavailable, there is a heavy creative burden on Mohammed Kudus. Xavi Simons, targeted by Chelsea last summer, has not made an impact since arriving from RB Leipzig. Spurs are lacking variety in general play. Their forwards remain erratic.

But this is one game where the outcome may excuse the method. Spurs fans will not mind if a cautious approach ends a four-game sequence of defeats against Chelsea. Success would energize Frank’s tenure. How he would cherish to win this contest with Maresca.