Tuchel, after the victory: “It lacked rhythm and intensity”

Tuchel's Chelsea remains undefeated. The latest victim? The Barnsley (13th in Championship), in the second round of the FA Cup. A goal from Tammy Abraham to a pass from Reece James was enough to beat Valérien Ismaël's, but not to satisfy the German coach. Tuchel was upset after the clash with his players, from whom he said he expected “much more.” Having suffered against a lesser rival, no matter how much they played at Oakwell Stadium in Yorkshire, cannot be repeated, in the eyes of the Krumbach coach. In fact, Kepa was one of the best players in the match, responding to the confidence of his new coach.

“We changed to a line of four (at halftime) and took Marcos (Alonso) out for this tactical change. Andreas (Christensen) had to go out because his head hurt. The changes made it a bit easier to get closer to the rival area and get out of the front line of pressure. We did well at the beginning of the second half and played continuously in the opponent's field“He began. However, Abraham's goal in 64 'changed everything.

“We scored the goal and I have the feeling that they started to risk more, but we fell apart. We did not show courage and we backed away too much, for a long, long time. We can clearly play better, so yeah, I expected more, but not in terms of getting frustrated. If you lack rhythm and a bit of self-confidence, and you have to perform on the pitch, against an opponent who risks and is playing the game of his life, it is not easy “, continued the coach, before softening his words: “We can do better, but I don't want to be too hard on the players.”

The next rival in the competition for Chelsea will be Sheffield United on the weekend of March 20. “It will be a tough match,” Tuchel acknowledged, but was delighted to be able to play at home, as the draw ruled that they will play for the FA Cup semifinals at Stamford Bridge. For now, Tuchel remains undefeated, but does not want relaxation to make an appearance.