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Tag: Azpilicueta

  • Euro 2020: ​Chelsea defender set for first Spain start

    Euro 2020: ​Chelsea defender set for first Spain start

    Spain are set to turn to veteran defender Cesar Azpilicueta as they attempt to stay at Euro 2020.

    Luis Enrique’s team need to win their remaining game of the group stages against Slovakia on Wednesday.

    Spain have two draws from their two games against Poland and Sweden.

    According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea captain Azpilicueta could be in line for his first start at Euro 2020.

    Sergio Busquets of Barcelona may come in for Manchester City’s Rodri, while changes across the front line are also possible.

  • I’ve never seen any special player like Kante – Azpilicueta

    I’ve never seen any special player like Kante – Azpilicueta

    Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta believes his Champions League success can benefit Spain.

    Azpilicueta says he’s learned from the experience of being underdogs with Chelsea and it’s something he can take into the Euros.

    He said, “Many times people give their opinion without seeing a single game. We weren’t going to compete because we were in ninth place. We had tough rivals and we won. In the case of Spain, it is in our power to change what has happened in recent tournaments. We are going to go game by game, playing at our house is special.”

    Azpilicueta was also asked about playing with N’Golo Kante at Chelsea.

    He added: “He is a very special person. I have not seen a player like him in my entire career. He covers a lot of ground, reaches the area … when we all run out of battery, he always has an extra.”

  • Tuchel makes glowing tribute to Chelsea captain

    Tuchel makes glowing tribute to Chelsea captain

    Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel says Cesar Azpilicueta embodies the values of the club.

    The Blues captain was deployed as a right wing-back in the win over West Ham on Saturday rather than his preferred right-sided centre-back role.

    Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final with Real Madrid, Tuchel had no qualms about Azpi’s ability to adapt.

    “He’s fantastic and I want him absolutely to be on the pitch because he’s a fantastic captain and a fantastic sportsman,” Tuchel said.

    “He is everything Chelsea means in my point of view – he’s humble, he’s a fighter, he thinks constantly about winning and he does everything to be in shape every three days.

    “He’s a true professional and there is no work too hard or distance too long for him.

    “We used him as a wing-back and it was a bit hard because he had to do several long runs. It was a bit different for him but we chose the back three with Andreas, Toni and Thiago because we knew about West Ham’s strength in set-pieces and we wanted to gain some centimetres in height.

    “Azpi is totally open to anything once he sees the reason why. He was very excited to be involved a bit more offensively and it’s nice to have this. The two positions [wing-back and full-back] suit him very well and he’s absolutely reliable.”

  • UCL: How we’ll stop Luis Suarez – Chelsea captain

    UCL: How we’ll stop Luis Suarez – Chelsea captain

    Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta has a plan to stop high flying Luis Suarez in the Champions League round of 16 first leg clash on Tuesday.

    They will be hoping to secure an advantage for the second leg, but Azpi will be all too aware of the threat Atletico and Suarez pose.

    “The best way to defend against him is to keep him as far as possible from the goal and that’s a collective job,” Azpilicueta told reporters.

    “I faced him when he was at Liverpool and Barcelona in the Champions League so I know he’s a great striker.

    “We know his numbers and we know wherever he has played, he has scored lots of goals so we have to try to defend against him together and keep all their attacking players away from our goal.”

  • Azpilicueta opens up on Chelsea future, Lampard sacking

    Azpilicueta opens up on Chelsea future, Lampard sacking

    Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta says he’s happy at Stamford Bridge.

    The Spain international insists he’s settled in London and with his role at Chelsea.

    He told Mundo Deportivo, “I am very happy at Chelsea. I don’t like to look much further. I enjoy the moment, I have the ambition to leave the club as high as I can and I am going to train with the hope of continuing to do important things. Hopefully it lasts a long time.”

    On the dismissal of former manager Frank Lampard, Azpilicueta also said: “The results just weren’t good. Frank has been a myth as a footballer, I was lucky enough to share a dressing room with him and after he trained me, but (Roman) Abramovich and his executive were the ones who decided to change course.

    “The dressing room is responsible to the extent that we did not earn enough, but nothing more.”

  • With Tuchel everything has improved – Azpilicueta

    With Tuchel everything has improved – Azpilicueta

    Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta says things have improved rapidly under new manager Thomas Tuchel.

    Azpilicueta, speaking with Mundo Deportivo, is adamant Tuchel’s appointment has helped the team get their season back on track.

    He said, “Six weeks ago we weren’t at our best. Now with Tuchel everything has improved. The team has better feelings. Although the Premier has nothing to do with it, reaching the Champions League on a roll is good news.

    “The solidity has recovered, fewer opportunities are granted and that speaks of the work of the group, from the first attacker to the last defender. With the new coach we try to control the games with and without the ball.

    “He takes great care in improving the footballer’s movement and how to attack to punish the opponent. Now we are in that first phase of quickly absorbing all the information because there is hardly any rest, processing it and carrying it out. Winning helps to continue in the same direction.”

  • REVEALED: Chelsea captain Azpilicueta clashed with Rudiger

    REVEALED: Chelsea captain Azpilicueta clashed with Rudiger

    Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta has had a running battle this season with Toni Rudiger, it has been claimed.

    The Telegraph says Azpilicueta clashed with out-of-favour team-mate Rudiger ‘on more than one occasion’ as tensions flared between players prior to the sacking of Frank Lampard.

    One of Lampard’s biggest issues was his inability to trim his squad to make room for new signings Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, Edouard Mendy and Thiago Silva.

    The bloated squad saw Rudiger, Marcos Alonso and Jorginho given a stay of execution despite all three being players Lampard wanted to offload.

    All three are believed to have ’caused issues’ for the Chelsea boss prior to his sacking.

    Azpilicueta as captain ‘attempted to ease tensions’ between players with academy stars also said to have been upset at their treatment amid claims of favouritism under the now-departed Lampard.

  • VAR official dropped after wrong call against Chelsea

    VAR official dropped after wrong call against Chelsea

    Referee David Coote has been dropped from this weekend’s Premier League games, after failing to send Giovani Lo Celso off, for a rash tackle on Cesar Azpilicueta.

    Lo Celso appeared to stamp on Azpilicueta’s leg in the second half, but was not even booked.

    Michael Oliver who was the centre referee for the match missed the incident and VAR waved it aside after a review.

    Coote has now not been named to officiate a game, appear as an assistant nor take part in Video Assistant Referee (VAR) duties.

    Oliver will, however, be in charge when champions-elect Liverpool travel to Watford in Saturday’s late kick-off.