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Tag: Tuchel

  • Loftus-Cheek reminds me of Ballack – Tuchel

    Loftus-Cheek reminds me of Ballack – Tuchel

    Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel insists Ruben Loftus-Cheek can have a future at Stamford Bridge.

    Loftus-Cheek is spending this season on loan at Fulham and so will not be able to feature against his parent club at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

    Speaking on Friday, Tuchel said on Loftus-Cheek: “I was quite a fan of him when he was younger.

    “He reminded me of Michael Ballack. There were links with him moving to Germany. We are well aware of his talent. I don’t know why things have not worked out as he wished but now he is doing good.

    “I cannot judge him from TV and hearsay. I love to work with players then to give my opinion.”

  • Tuchel frustrated with Werner after ‘big’ miss at Madrid

    Tuchel frustrated with Werner after ‘big’ miss at Madrid

    Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel was frustrated with Timo Werner’s miss in the draw with Real Madrid on Tuesday.

    The German saw his close range shot saved by Thibaut Courtois in the 10th minute of the 1-1 draw at Madrid in the Champions League semi-final first leg.

    “He missed a big one in West Ham now he missed another big one here. That does not help, but it also does not help to cry about it or to regret it all the time. It is like this.

    “There are millions of people who have harder things to deal with than chances that you miss, so this is the good thing about sports – nobody cares tomorrow. Today we were sad we were angry in the moment, this is normal.

    “He is angry. He is maybe disappointed.

    “Tomorrow he has a free day and the next day he has to put his chin up. He is a professional guy a top guy, he works hard. He is in positions and from there on we go.

    “We will never stop pushing, we will never stop believing and I have the feeling that everybody accepts the situation like it is and as a striker it is easy, you score the next game and nobody speaks about it.”

  • 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.”

  • Thomas Tuchel confirms injury blow for Real Madrid

    Thomas Tuchel confirms injury blow for Real Madrid

    Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has confirmed Mateo Kovacic will miss the Champions League semi-final first-leg tie with his old club Real Madrid.

    Kovacic has been unavailable for the Blues’ last three matches after injuring his hamstring in the lead-up to the Champions League quarter-final with Porto.

    The 26-year-old has been a regular for Chelsea for much of this season, starting 27 of their 37 Premier League and Champions League matches this season, so would almost certainly have been at least in the squad for Tuesday’s trip to Madrid.

    But on Friday Tuchel confirmed Kovacic will miss Saturday’s crucial match with West Ham and the midweek clash against his former club.

    Tuchel is hopeful Kovacic, who signed for the Blues permanently in the summer of 2019 after a season on loan, should be ready for the May 1 clash with another London rival, Fulham, though.

    “Me personally, I hope (he will be ready) for Fulham,” Tuchel said during his pre-match press conference. “Don’t take it for granted or that it is medical advice, this is just my personal opinion.

    “I think it’s maybe possible to be back against Fulham, in-between the Madrid games.

    “I think Madrid could be close as he’s not trained with the team. To be realistic, tomorrow is a game, then two days to prepare for Madrid, without training, it will not happen. Hopefully Fulham is a realistic target.”

  • Super League Protests affected Brighton performance – Tuchel

    Super League Protests affected Brighton performance – Tuchel

    Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel says he doesn’t need an apology from directors over their Super League involvement.

    However, Tuchel also sahys the fan protests around the now failed competition affected Tuesday’s performance in the goalless draw against Brighton at Stamford Bridge.

    “Yes it has been distracting, but it’s the owner’s club, it’s not my club,” said Tuchel.

    “I’m part of the club, but it’s the owner and the club’s decision, and now they change that decision.

    “There’s no need to apologise to me directly, my job is to adapt to the circumstances. And were we distracted? Yeah clearly.

    “Me personally I arrived in a state of mind on Tuesday at the stadium that was clearly not the mindset that I normally arrive in, for a match.

    “But that’s already in the past, and like I said, I don’t think they need to apologise to me.”

  • Tuchel pushes Chelsea to call Real Madrid about Varane

    Tuchel pushes Chelsea to call Real Madrid about Varane

    Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has asked the club to enquire about the availability of Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane.

    The 27-year-old’s current contract expires at the end of next season.

    It has been suggested that Real would accept an offer of £50m to sell Varane, so as he will not walk away for nothing when his contract expires.

    Manchester United have long been linked with the World Cup winner.

    But they could have a battle on their hands, with German outlet Bild reporting Tuchel wants Varane to bolster his centre-back stocks.

    Varane is undoubtedly one of the world’s best defenders, having won three La Liga titles and four Champions League crowns in 10 years with Real.

    Los Blancos president Florentino Perez will be hoping a bidding war ensues between the Premier League giants, with his club struggling financially due to the coronavirus pandemic.

  • Chelsea chairman discusses Super League with players

    Chelsea chairman discusses Super League with players

    Chelsea’s players and staff have held a meeting with club chairman Bruce Buck ahead of a clash with Brighton on Tuesday night, with fears regarding the breakaway Super League competition up for discussion, Goal reports.

    The Blues have been threatened with losing their spot in the Champions League, where they are due to face Real Madrid in the semi-finals next week, while they could be kicked out of UEFA competition next season as well.

    Both the players and manager Thomas Tuchel have been put in an uncomfortable position of fronting up the leadership’s decision to join a new Super League.

    There was no communication from above ahead of the announcement on Sunday evening, leaving club staff to receive the news in the same way that the general public did.

    It is thought that several players in the Blues group are concerned after hearing UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin threaten action on them in the coming weeks should the club stand firm.

  • I feel like part of the Chelsea family – Tuchel

    I feel like part of the Chelsea family – Tuchel

    Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has spoken about his dream start and future at Stamford Bridge after reaching the FA Cup final in his first three months as the manager in West London.

    Chelsea beat Manchester City 1-0 at Wembley Stadium on Saturday evening and will now play Leicester City on 15 May in the finale.

    However, the former PSG manager signed just an 18-month contract after replacing Frank Lampard in January, but he isn’t worried about the length of his deal as he is hoping to earn talks over new terms through success on the pitch.

    “The point is that I had these concerns [about the length of my contract] and after five, maybe 15 minutes, I said to myself that it changes nothing how many years this contract is,” Tuchel told reporters.

    “I demand from myself to deliver, to have an impact and to be the best I can. So this will not change in the future. If I deserve to stay, I am super happy to stay and I will try to stay as long as possible. I feel like a part of the Chelsea family.

    “The club feels super professional here, we have unbelievable quality of support, amount of support and we have a team which it is a pleasure to be at the side-line of and to fight with this team, so honestly, I don’t care what it says in my contract. I need to deserve to stay longer.

    “If I deserve to stay longer, I will stay longer, no matter what it says. This is what I demand from myself and I feel free at the moment also and I feel good. I am at the right place at the right moment. Everything else will fall into its place when it is there. If I want to stay longer, I deliver week after week.”

  • I’ve never had a coach like Tuchel – Ziyech

    I’ve never had a coach like Tuchel – Ziyech

    Chelsea midfielder Hakim Ziyech admits he’s never worked with anyone like manager Thomas Tuchel.

    But Ziyech says he enjoys working under the former Paris St Germain coach – and believes he is now ready to show what he is made of.

    He said: “I’ve never had a coach who has been like this – the coaches most of the time were more quiet.

    “But this is his style of managing – and we have no problems with it. It’s good for the players, it keeps them sharp. That’s the most important thing.

    “Most of the time when we are playing he’s also really in it with us. Emotionally-wise, sometimes it’s good – but sometimes you are also like ‘ooh, calm down’ – but it’s good for everybody.

    “He has come in with new ideas, new plans. He is always coming over to the group in training, it’s really good. Everybody understands, and everybody knows what his job is, and it works.

    “He loves to laugh, but always wants us to work hard. Then we can have fun, but when there has to be work then it has to be serious. Sometimes he likes to joke, but sometimes he’s serious.”

    Ziyech added: “It’s been a difficult season for me, with adaption and everything around injuries. When I came, I’d been out for seven months, so adapting to the intensity was difficult. Sometimes you think you have the rhythm, and then you have a setback. So it took some time. I just have to keep working.

    “I always believe in myself. I just keep pushing. We have all had our time to settle – for us now it’s time to perform.”

  • All my family love watching Kante – Tuchel

    All my family love watching Kante – Tuchel

    Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel claims his family loves to watch star midfielder N’Golo Kante.

    The Frenchman has struggled with injury problems at the Stamford Bridge club over the past few seasons.

    But he put a shift in against FC Porto in the second leg of their Champions League quarter final, playing 90 minutes and helping the team progress into the semi finals.

    Tuchel said post-game: “We took the risk because we know that maybe this was the moment. Maybe it was not a risk, but the situation and put him on the field and hope he had the energy for 90 minutes.

    “N’Golo is incredible, he is like one and a half or two players. Everybody who sees him for the first time loves him, all my family love him when they watch our games now. It’s so nice to have him.

    “He wins so many balls, he gives everybody confidence and at the same time, like I said, we also did it for Kova.

    “We were not sure if N’Golo would start today if we had everybody available but also, it was perfect. Now it is time to recover.”