Key area of Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea revolution that has been vital to unbeaten start



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Takumi Minamino.

He is the only opposition player to score against Chelsea since Thomas Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard in charge of the club as the German head coach has gone on an eight-game unbeaten run to get his career in west London underway.

Chelsea have in fact conceded just twice since Tuchel arrived at the club. The other goalscorer was Antonio Rudiger, who passed into his own net past a stranded Edouard Mendy in the victory at Sheffield United on February 7.

Two goals conceded in eight games has gone a long way to helping Tuchel get off to the good start that has certainly quietened any questions that were raised when the club dispensed with Lampard after a run of five defeats in eight games before the end of January.

It has been especially helpful since the Blues have hardly been prolific in front of goal following the arrival of Tuchel.

They have yet to score more than twice in a game since the German tactician was installed. Four times they have scored just one goal, three times they have scored twice, the other was a 0-0 draw for Tuchel’s first game against Wolves.

Fr that game, the manager immediately switched to a five-man defence and it has paid off in a big way as the Blues have been very hard to break down and Mendy has kept clean sheets in three of his six appearances.

Kepa has kept clean sheets in the other two, the FA Cup victory over Barnsley and the win against Newcastle at Stamford Bridge.

Tuchel has had to chop and change his backline as well. He brought in Cesar Azpilicueta immediately when he was appointed and the Spaniard has missed just one game in eight. Thiago Silva picked up an injury against Tottenham and he has missed four games as Andreas Christensen has stepped in serenely.

Against Saints, Kurt Zouma started for the first time in the league under Tuchel as Christensen was given the day off, you suspect to keep him fine for the Atletico game with Silva then still a doubt and likely to miss out.

Marcos Alonso has come from absolutely nowhere to usurp Ben Chilwell as the Blues’ first choice at left wing-back, while Tuchel has flitted between Reece James and Callum Hudson-Odoi on the opposite flank but both have played well.

The midfield pivot – or the “double six” as Tuchel likes to call it – of Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic has been effective, meaning N’Golo Kante has struggled for game time since Tuchel arrived.

The sight of Kante on the bench for a Champions League last 16 match against Atletico Madrid would have been unheard of before Tuesday, but Tuchel stuck with what he perceives to be his best midfield duo.

Jorginho is not the defender that Kante is, he’s in there for his passing more than tackling, but he has the protection of the back three behind him to enable the Italian to dictate things.

Silva is set to return from injury imminently to bolster the Blues ranks, while Zouma has hardly played despite being a regular for the most part under Lampard.

While the lack of goals at the other end may be a concern, you get the feeling that Chelsea are going to give someone a hiding sooner rather than later. That may not arrive imminently with tough matches against Manchester United, Liverpool, Everton and Leds on the horizon, but it’ll come.

It’s the defensive side of the game that has been the most impressive aspect of Tuchel’s reign so far.

Fikayo Tomori is away on loan at AC Milan at the moment. Imagine how he might have fared in this backline?





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