Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has defended his decision to use Christian Pulisic at right-back, with the American striker reportedly said to “play many minutes” while delivering “the numbers”. Tuchel feels he deserves it.
The USMNT star plays more at home in wide attack deployments, but his versatility has been brought to fruition in recent weeks, with the talented 23-year-old regularly providing his team-mates. absent team.
He was used as a central striker when Romelu Lukaku was out of action, and with the Belgian defender Pulisic now has time to replace the injured Reece James as a defensive full-back. more than.
What does Tuchel say about Pulisic’s versatility?
Tuchel can appreciate why questions have been raised about his decision to move Pulisic, but the German believes there are plenty of positives that need to be done by a player with just three goals and 2 assists this season.
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The Chelsea coach told reporters, when asked if a US international would fill too many positions, that in the end Pulisic would do whatever he could to help the team. “Yes, we did move him around a bit,” Tuchel said of the American, “but eventually they wanted to play, and it would be nice if they could play more positions. “
“You could always argue that I would be more consistent or better if I had a clear position,” continued Tuchel, “but maybe then you have less minutes or you face a lot of opponents. more, because ahead of us we have two or three players in every Position. So first of all that’s a good thing, it’s also a bad sign because it means we’ve been struggling at left-back and right-back with injury and he helped us there. We are delighted with the impact he has had. “
Tuchel also said Pulisic will continue to be on the team, despite the team recovering health and depth.
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“He can play many minutes, he needs to play many minutes,” said Tuchel, “he has a physical ability that can help us. Of course everyone wants him to have numbers, everyone wants him to be efficient, and we can improve everyone, we can improve that. And from there we go, this is the situation. ”
Pulisic is part of an all-star attacking team at Stamford Bridge, with the likes of Lukaku, Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Kai Havertz also vying for game time. Werner, Havertz and Hudson-Odoi have all missed time last month due to positive COVID-19 tests, causing some uncertainty for the team. However, Havertz and Werner are back, and Hudson-Odoi is expected to do so soon.
Will Chelsea add players in January?
The Blues are well-stocked in almost every area of the pitch – aside from at full-back, where the untimely hits start – and there are likely to be more additions in January.
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Asked about his hiring plans when the winter window opens, Tuchel said: “We react daily to the situation, but the situation has not changed for us. No news, no updates. Clear areas. We are looking at the market and we have our ideas, but there is no need to pressure and certainly no need to pressure the public.
“We are relaxing. I am relaxing. I am happy with the players. I look forward to having all the players here, so we take good care of them. Those with injuries are hoping to return as soon as possible and hopefully without a new positive test.
