Revealed: Tuchel's Chelsea fears
Stuart Telford
- Updated: 20 Jul 2022 13:21 BST
- 3 min read
Chelsea may have signed Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly this summer, but manager Thomas Tuchel thinks there is still more to do if the Blues are to get back on top.
It is now five years and counting since Chelsea last lifted the Premier League title. Although Tuchel steered the Blues to Champions League glory in 2021, the crown of English champion continues to elude him.
Chelsea finished 19 points off Manchester City's league-setting pace last season, and their future off the field looked uncertain until a Todd Boehly-led consortium succeeded Roman Abramovich as the majority owners in May.
By that time Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen had already decided to leave the Blues at the end of their contracts, the pair signing for Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively this summer. For Tuchel, summer recruitment was a minimum requirement.
DONE DEAL: Chelsea have confirmed the acquisition of Raheem Sterling from Manchester City 🔵 pic.twitter.com/yGMUvcaw5S
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) July 13, 2022
"We need a couple more to improve the squad," said the German tactician. "We finished third last season - there was a gap. If you want to keep your position you need to improve. You can never stand still. Other teams will overtake you. We've lost players."
As well as Rudiger and Christensen, Romelu Lukaku has been offloaded to Inter Milan. The Belgian disappointed in his second spell with the club last term, but his absence nonetheless leaves a space in attack.
Sterling should help assuage that. A winger by trade, he nonetheless plundered 17 goals and nine assists in all competitions for City last season, and fellow final third operators like Mason Mount should relish playing alongside the 27-year-old.
Tuchel: 'common sense'
"This is common sense," Tuchel continued. "It's the dream of every manager to find players from your own league who can adapt so easily. Raheem knows the habits of English clubs and has English teammates here."
Koulibaly may have never played in England, but the 31-year-old was regarded as one of the best defenders in Serie A during his time with Napoli, was set to captain them this season, and won the Africa Cup of Nations alongside Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy with Senegal as recently as February.
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"Kalidou knows Mendy from the national team and Jorginho was a big help from Napoli to make the process of integration faster," said Tuchel. "They are huge players for us [but] we need to speed things up."
Chelsea remain in the market for another centre-back, with French pair Jules Kounde and Presnel Kimpembe, or Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain respectively, linked in recent weeks.
Barcelona also want Kounde, while new PSG coach Christophe Galtier maintains that Kimpembe is part of his plans at the Parc des Princes.
