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LONDON – The mitigating factor is that Thomas Tuchel had a training session. The bad news is that he’s not going to get much more before Chelsea play again, or indeed an extended period to work on things for some time.
Tuchel was initially reluctant to take the reins at Stamford Bridge mid-season, preferring to wait until summer break gave him enough time to implement a new ideology. He was convinced otherwise by a Blues hierarchy desperate for a change after losing patience with Frank Lampard, but a 0-0 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday underscores the challenge he faces in molding a team with so many new faces to his own image with games every few days between now and March.
However, there were indications of an immediate impact. They finished the first half with 433 completions, the most by a Chelsea team in the first 45 minutes of a Premier League game since Opta began collecting those numbers in 2003.
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However, this was not a 4-3-3. Tuchel chose to abandon Lampard’s preferred form and play 3-4-2-1 with a high defensive line and full-backs pushed as high up the field as possible. Callum Hudson-Odoi responded magnificently to the demands placed on him in that role, comfortably proving to be Chelsea’s best player.
But despite the dominance of the ball by the hosts, who finished the night with 79% possession, the Lobos had no problems for the vast majority of the game. Chelsea started with the renewed focus and intensity that you would expect from a new coach to take over, and ended strongly when substitutes Christian Pulisic and Mason Mount made a notable impression, but for most of the game the home team did not use the ball. with sufficient invention or creativity.
For all passes, the most popular combinations were between Chelsea’s two central midfielders: Jorginho to Mateo Kovacic (40) and Kovacic to Jorginho (also 40). It’s as neat an encapsulation of lateral thinking as you could ask for. With Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz drifting inside the frame to effectively operate as the No. 10 twins behind forward Olivier Giroud, space was made for Hudson-Odoi and Ben Chilwell to provide a threat from the outside.
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The end result was a Chelsea performance that resembles a part of Lampard, a part of Antonio Conte and a part of Maurizio Sarri, a combination of the last three Blues coaches, something that was perhaps inevitable to some extent, but however, a reminder of the task that Tuchel has assumed.
“I really enjoyed it because I was very happy with the intensity, the attitude, the energy and the quality of my team,” Tuchel told the media after the match. “We were well organized, we had a lot of ball recoveries in the last third, we never lacked intensity. We intensified minute by minute in the second half. I was very happy in terms of performance, unfortunately we couldn’t score. If we take care of our performance like this , the results will come. “
Tuchel stood on the touchline wrapped in blue, a Chelsea winter jacket and sweatpants, stalking the technical area for the entirety of a first half in which the Blues dominated possession but only recorded two shots on goal. , one from Ziyech and the other. by Antonio Rudiger, who were comfortably saved by Wolves goalkeeper Rui Patricio.
It felt significant that Tuchel chose to put aside the success stories of the Lampard era: Mount Academy graduates Tammy Abraham and Reece James were on the bench, and Tuchel admitted he opted for the experience given lack of time. to evaluate the team. Mount may feel particularly harsh given that he had started 17 of 19 Premier League games prior to this, but he responded with typical effort, making the most of an eight-minute cameo to help win Chelsea back in the end.
Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea looked pretty flat in his first game in charge of the West London club. Sam Bagnall – AMA / Getty Images
“Today was totally unfair because I had no explanation for anyone on the side why they didn’t play,” Tuchel said.
The wolves had sporadically threatened: Pedro Neto hit the crossbar with a high effort after a one-two with Daniel Podence as the game entered the final 20 minutes, but the pattern of the game was established early on with Chelsea monopolizing possession. . Struggling to work Patricio regularly enough.
Havertz was perhaps a bit lucky to stick around after staying on the periphery for long periods, but Timo Werner, the other expensively acquired German international whose fortune Tuchel is expected to improve, remained an unused substitute.
Tuchel needs time to stamp his authority on this team, but the schedule is unforgiving. Burnley visited West London on Sunday and continued his good form with a 3-2 win over Aston Villa on Wednesday, before Chelsea travel to Tottenham Hotspur next Thursday.
“It reminded me a bit of our games in Dortmund,” said the coach. “We had a very good training session [on Tuesday], 21 guys who were fully awake, to try to do what we are doing: tactically, structure, where to speed up the game, how to defend. I didn’t expect it to be at this level from one training and two meetings. It gives me a good feeling for the future. “
Tuchel is just getting started, but there is no time to lose.
Source: espn.co.uk
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