“… it hit us strangely..” – Thomas Tuchel talking about the impact of injuries in Chelsea

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel in his latest interview with Sky Sports talks about Chelsea’s aspirations in this transfer window and how the injuries have stalled the team out of nowhere. Tuchel has had a good start to his managerial role in Chelsea, but the Blues failed to continue their run as the season progressed.

One of the main causes of concern was the injuries to crucial players at critical moments. Thomas Tuchel asserts that he can not confirm whether Chelsea will make a signing in this window, but Chelsea are looking for high-level players.

He said: “I would not say no but we’ll also not say yes that we’ll absolutely do [sign players this window] because we are looking for a high level of commitment, of character but also talent to make our squad better than it already is.

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Talking about Chelsea’s injuries, Thomas Tuchel said: “It hit us strangely. It hit us in groups like there were these injuries for all our strikers, then suddenly all our midfielders and now it’s all our defenders that we now struggle to find defensive players. [It is] not always with injuries but also with COVID.

“So, doing something in this window, [the player] must be a perfect fit and then you have take into your thoughts that [loaned] players come back – Reece James will come back at some point, Ben Chilwell of course needs time and we want him to play an important role here in Chelsea, so it’s quite complex to think about everything and [there] may be no easy answer for that.”

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Thomas Tuchel on Lukaku and his confidence

Thomas Tuchel, who has repeatedly defended Romelu Lukaku ever since the player made some controversial statements, was further asked about Romelu Lukaku and whether the Belgian has lost his confidence.

Tuchel, to his reply, said: “Yeah, from outside I would agree with it. I mean there was COVID, but we put him [against] Aston Villa and he was straightaway decisive for us.

“I remember at half-time that I asked him that ‘Can you play one half?’ and he said ‘Yes’, because I thought it’s maybe way too much for him. We rushed him into this and he was strong and then came the situation with the interview that did not help to clear his mind I guess.

Thomas Tuchel goes on to add that Lukaku might still be affected by the whole situation surrounding the interview depending on his surroundings and his environment.

Also read: “The right amount of confidence and arrogance.” – Adam Lalana on Mohamed Salah