Tüchel’s Premier League worries: “We’re not ready”
The Chelsea manager doesn’t think his team is prepared enough to start the Premier League this weekend. The Londoners visit Everton on Saturday.
Thomas Tüchel has has to endure an unsettling and uncertain past few months. After Russia invaded Ukraine, Chelsea was directly affected by the sanctions that the British government imposed on Vladimir Putin’s trusted men in the United Kingdom. The club, which had been owned by Roman Abramovich, passed into the hands of a consortium led by Todd Boehly. Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rüdiger jumped ship, as did Romelu Lukaku. Despite the fact that César Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso remain under Tüchel’s orders, both might not be able to resist the lure of a move to Camp Nou.
It was precisely Barcelona who prevented Raphinha and Jules Koundé from landing at Stamford Bridge, despite the fact that Leeds and Sevilla had previously accepted Chelsea’s offer. Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly have been the only two signings at Chelsea this summer. The former has already scored for his new club during pre-season, and the latter has received praise from coach Tüchel. The coach praised Sterling’s performance and celebrated the transfer of Koulibaly after the win over Udinese in the last friendly before the start of the season. “Sterling had opportunities and participated in many more occasions. Koulibaly is a very, very good signing. He is a strong player with a strong personality. I’m glad he was able to play, he’s getting fitter and fitter. It is very important for us for the start of the season,” Tüchel said.
Goodison on Saturday
The Premier League season gets underway on Saturday with the Londoners travelling to Liverpool to face Everton. After three friendlies in the United States and another in Italy, the moment of truth has finally arrived. But Tüchel is not sure his team has had the best possible preparation. “It has been a very long pre-season”, explained the German. “It’s been exhausting spending so much time in the United States, and then having to travel to Italy. It’s not easy, it’s very demanding. After this weekend we will do nothing but prepare for the game against Everton. The season is about to start, and although there are many positive aspects to highlight, we have to improve. We are not ready yet. We don’t have to be yet, we still have a week to go. Then we have to be at our best level”.