Pressure is on Chelsea boss Tuchel but he has boosts as key duo back from Omicron

BY PAUL LAGAN
paul@slpmedia.co.uk

This time last year Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was preparing to clear his desk at Paris St-Germain as he was sacked by the French giant.

Now, he is again in the knockout stages of the Champions League – having won it with the Blues in May – third in the Premier League and into the semi-final of the League Cup.

All on the surface seems rosy, but scratch a bit deeper and Tuchel is facing pressure. Not on his job, but pressure to put out a side capable of sustaining a title-winning presence.

Covid and injuries have ravaged the squad in the past four weeks, yet The Blues are still on the coat-tails of Manchester City and Liverpool.

Tuchel will be buoyed by the return of Romelu Lukaku and Callum Hudson-Odoi, who both trained yesterday after testing negative following a bout of Omnicron.

Also back are Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante. Both had significant cameos in Chelsea’s 2-0 quarter-final victory over Brentford in the League Cup on Wednesday.

Kante, in particular, had wanted to get minutes on the pitch rather than have extra time off.

But Tuchel will be without Kai Havertez who has a back injury.

Daily Covid tests will determine the final line-up.

Tuchel said: “It is a Premier League game at one of the toughest places where you can play in Aston Villa. It is good news [having players back], don’t get me wrong but I am not over excited now because I know I need to check how they are.”

Chelsea will face Spurs in the two-legged semi-final of the League Cup in January.

It will see Spurs boss Antonio Conte face his former side.

Tuchel said: “It was clear it was going to be a tough draw, four strong teams. The Tottenham draw is nice for our fans, a London derby, very difficult but we are looking forward to it.”

Of the victory over Brentford, he said: “We did everything to make sure we were in the semi final.

“We wanted to be there and I am absolutely happy with the result. We had a brilliant performance and result, given the circumstances.”

Tuchel gave debuts to three youngsters – Harvey Vale, Jude Soonsup-Bell and Xavier Simons.

He said: “They did well. They hadn’t trained for a week because the academy was closed for Covid and then we invited them into training two days ago, so two sessions with us. They listened carefully and did their jobs, they did good.

“Also, full credit to the seven guys they played with. They took care and made sure they did the right stuff and were supportive. Well done to the three guys and well done to the other seven.”

Chelsea FC Women have signed left-back Russian international Alsu Abdullina on a two-and-a-half-year deal.

The 20-year-old left back was signed from Lokomotiv Moscow and will wear shirt number 27.

She said: “I am so happy to join Chelsea. This is a big change in my life, a new challenge. I am very proud to be part of this team, which has so many great players.

Head coach Emma Hayes said: “Alsu is a very good young player who has accumulated a lot of club and national appearances for her age, including winning the league a number of times with Lokomotiv.

“She is a versatile player who can play any position on the left, adding more depth to the squad. We look forward to seeing how she develops in our environment over the next couple of years.”