EPL

Chelsea appoint Tuchel: Fixing Werner woes on new coach's to-do list

By Sports Desk January 26, 2021

Thomas Tuchel's appointment as the new Chelsea head coach was confirmed on Tuesday - and the new man does not have a lot of time to get settled.

Frank Lampard was sacked on Monday, with Tuchel's widely anticipated arrival promptly following.

The former Paris Saint-Germain coach took charge of training on his first day and will be thrust straight into the spotlight when Chelsea host Wolves on Wednesday.

The Blues entered the latest round of Premier League fixtures sitting ninth in the table and Tuchel will be looking for an immediate impact.

But there are long-term tasks to complete, too, if the German is to stay at Stamford Bridge beyond the end of his initial contract, which runs to 2022.
 

HELP WERNER AND HAVERTZ

Having worked with the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar during his time at PSG, Tuchel knows all about the challenges of motivating some of the world's top talents.

At Chelsea, that will mean eliciting an improvement in the performance of his much-criticised compatriots Timo Werner and Kai Havertz.

Werner, for whom Chelsea paid RB Leipzig close to £50million, scored 28 Bundesliga goals in 34 appearances last season but has mustered just four in 19 in the Premier League, the most recent of which came on November 7.

Meanwhile, Havertz arrived from Bayer Leverkusen with a price tag in the region of £70million and a reputation as one of Europe's most creative young stars but has one goal, two assists and just 11 key passes to date.

Tuchel will be asked to get more from the Germany pair to boost a Chelsea team who have scored only four goals in their past five league outings.
 

KEEP ACADEMY ACES INVOLVED

Hindered by a transfer ban in his first season in charge, Lampard at least made use of Chelsea's impressive academy to bring a number of young talents into the team.

Perhaps most exciting among those were Mason Mount and Billy Gilmour.

Both Mount, 22, and Gilmour, 19, started Lampard's final game in charge against Luton Town and formed a creative double-pivot in an attack-minded side, earning praise from the coach for their discipline and movement.

Mount will surely feature in Tuchel's immediate plans, but Chelsea will hope both the England midfielder and team-mate Gilmour can continue to develop over the coming years.
 

SETTLE ON HIS BEST SIDE

Between the big spending ahead of this season and the promotion of a number of academy talents, Lampard was certainly not short of options. But that might have been to his detriment.

Looking to pack an array of star names into a first XI, the team too often lacked balance.

Juggling club captain Cesar Azpilicueta and Reece James proved tricky, while Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma - seemingly Lampard's preferred centre-back pairing - have started together in only 14 of the 29 games so far this season in all competitions.

There has been concern regarding the form of N'Golo Kante, perhaps played out of position, while Lampard struggled to work out the best fit up front in his 4-3-3.

Tuchel must be more decisive.
 

EFFECTIVELY MANAGE UPWARDS

An increasingly strained relationship with director Marina Granovskaia reportedly contributed to Lampard's demise, so keeping the Chelsea board onside will be crucial for Tuchel.

Dealings with the top brass at PSG in his previous job were not always straightforward for Tuchel and may have been a factor behind his departure from Paris, which came despite impressive results across recent seasons.

Criticism of PSG's transfer business did not go down well with sporting director Leonardo, who fired back at the coach, telling him he "must decide to respect the choices of the sports management".

Tuchel could hardly complain about the level of investment at Stamford Bridge over the past year, so similar comments towards Chelsea power-brokers would be unlikely to go down well.

Related items

  • Eden Hazard lived the ‘dream’ playing for Real Madrid despite injury problems Eden Hazard lived the ‘dream’ playing for Real Madrid despite injury problems

    Eden Hazard has no regrets about how his dream move to Real Madrid unfolded as he enjoys life after football.

    The Belgian forward joined the Spanish giants in 2019 after becoming one of the best players in the world at Chelsea but could not have the impact he hoped for.

    Injuries and poor form restricted him to just 76 appearances in all competitions before leaving the club after four disappointing years last summer.

    He decided to retire soon after, aged just 32, but will put his boots back on this summer after signing up to play for the World XI at Soccer Aid.

    Hazard still looks back on his time at the Bernabeu with pride.

    “It was my dream, I can tell you,” he said. “Even if the story was not that good, we all know injuries and this and that, but when you look back you can see some pictures of me wearing the Real Madrid shirt and it was something I am really proud of.”

    Asked whether he could have carried on playing had things ended differently at Madrid, he replied: “That’s a good question, who knows? I think so, but my time playing football was over, I had a lot of injuries, so no regrets.”

    Hazard’s involvement in Soccer Aid on June 9 will see an emotional return to Stamford Bridge, where he enjoyed a stellar seven years.

    He won two Premier League titles, two Europa Leagues, an FA Cup and a League Cup and reflects on “pure happiness” during his stay in west London.

    View this post on Instagram

    A post shared by Eden Hazard (@hazardeden_10)

    “I spent seven years, the best memories of my football career,” he said.

    “I met great players, not just inside the team but also outside the club, it was seven years of pure happiness.

    “When you leave you always feel a bit sad but this club is always in my head, so just good memories.”

    Hazard, who has kept in shape because he doesn’t want to look like “Peppa Pig”, is enjoying life away from football.

    He does not see a future in professional coaching or management, but would love to help his five children follow him into the game.

    “I am enjoying it a lot, I miss being with the lads in the dressing room a bit but I have the freedom to do what I want now,” he told the PA news agency.

    “I have kids, I have family, I can go to Belgium to see my mum and dad, so I can do a lot of things.

    “I don’t know, now it is just good to be away, but I still love football, for sure I am going to do something in football in the future, but now I just want to relax and enjoy my retirement.

    “I don’t think I will coach professionally, but I think I can coach for youth teams. I have kids, and I want to teach them how to play football.”

    He will be managed by current Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino in the charity match, with the likes of Usain Bolt and Roberto Carlos joining him in the World XI.

    “It’s going to be at Stamford Bridge with friends, so it is going to be a great night,” he said.

    “So let’s have fun, score some goals and make the fans happy. They do amazing work, especially when you are a dad and you have kids and you see everything they do for kids.

    “You want them to do more and that is why you want people to come to the game to have a good time at Stamford Bridge.”

    :: Soccer Aid for Unicef 2024 takes place on June 9 at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, with tickets available at www.socceraid.org.uk/tickets.

  • Real Madrid complain further about alleged racist abuse towards Vinicius Junior Real Madrid complain further about alleged racist abuse towards Vinicius Junior

    Real Madrid have filed a further complaint with the Spanish authorities over alleged racist abuse directed at striker Vinicius Junior during their 4-2 LaLiga win at Osasuna on Saturday.

    Real had already filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office last week after footage on social media that appeared to show Atletico Madrid fans chanting racial abuse prior to their Champions League clash with Inter Milan.

    In a statement, Real said they have updated their initial complaint, as well as filing a separate protest to the Spanish Football Federation’s disciplinary committee over the conduct of referee Juan Martinez Munuera.

    Real allege Munuera filed a “negligent” referee’s report, adding: “The official omitted, in voluntary and deliberate fashion, the insults and humiliating chants directed towards our player on a repeated basis, despite his attention being drawn to them continually by our players as they were happening.

    “Real Madrid once again condemns these violent attacks of racism, discrimination and hate and demands that measures finally be taken in order to eradicate the violence to which our player Vinicius Junior has been subjected.”

  • Dave Challinor feels the frustration as two points slip away at Crawley Dave Challinor feels the frustration as two points slip away at Crawley

    Stockport boss Dave Challinor admitted his promotion-chasing side should have gone on to beat Crawley after letting themselves down with a “very poor first half” at the Broadfield Stadium.

    Antoni Sarcevic headed the visitors in front just after the hour mark but Klaidi Lolos ran through to drag Crawley level seven minutes from time.

    The late goal denied Stockport the chance to cut the gap on leaders Mansfield to two points and leaves Challinor’s men with only one win from their last seven games.

    He said: “It’s frustrating because for me the feeling is it’s a carbon copy of last Thursday (when Stockport drew 2-2 at Salford).

    “It was a poor first 45 minutes followed by a second half in which we do enough to win the game but don’t do it.

    “They (Crawley) will be disappointed with the way we scored but we work hard on the training ground on set-pieces and sometimes it comes off. “

    Challinor believes his men must respond better after going in front in games, adding: “What happens to players I don’t know. Sometimes you think it’s fear when they’re in front and it leads to a sort of panic.”

    “I can speculate on many things as to why there was such a difference between the two halves, but what’s the point?

    “We’ve got to move on to the next game and it’s a big one (at home to MK Dons on Saturday).”

    A Crawley win would have earned them a place in the top seven and manager Scott Lindsey confessed the mood in the dressing room afterwards was “a bit flat.”

    However, he tried to concentrate on the positives after Lolos’ late goal left his team with only one defeat in their last eight games.

    The former Swindon boss said: “The overriding feeling is a bit flat because we knew we’d be in the play-offs had we won.

    “But to come back against a really strong side like Stockport, a side who are going to get promoted, and to take points in both matches we’ve played against them makes me proud.”

    Crawley are only a point outside the play-off places and Lindsey still believes they are in a good position.

    He added: “If you look at the table, the Gods are shining on us at the moment.  We’re in the best position of all the teams who want to get in the play-offs. “

    Greece-born Lolos has now scored in his last three games and Lindsey believes he is the type of player he needs to keep on the pitch for as long as possible.

    He explained: “Lolos had a quiet night but I know even when he’s not playing at his best he has that threat to make things happen and it was a great finish.”

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.