Enzo Maresca once wrote a thesis entitled “football and chess” and, on this compelling evidence, it is easy to see why Leicester’s manager is so obsessed with two games he believes are all about positioning.
Maresca’s only problem on Teesside was that Michael Carrick shares similar ambitions to become a tactical grand master. Thanks to a combination of a clever gameplan and Sam Greenwood’s sublime 83rd-minute free kick, Middlesbrough’s manager duly enhanced his burgeoning reputation as a top coach in the making.
