Zimpapers Logo

Everything changed the second Thomas Tuchel arrived at Chelsea. The Champions League finalist, the DFB-Pokal winner and the most sought-after manager in European football had landed the Chelsea job replacing Frank Lampard.

For context, Lampard had guided Chelsea through a transfer ban, into the top four, into the last 16 of the Champions League and to an FA Cup final.

He was sacked in what was his first blip in management and the entire reset of the Chelsea managerial merry-go-round was over.

Chelsea fans had proudly sung about having ‘Tomori at the back and Tammy in attack’, we loved the fact that the jewels in our crown had come straight outta Cobham. Abramovich, however, simply gave up on that project.

He brought in a proven manager and demanded instant results. Consequently, Tuchel could give no thought to tomorrow as he had to prioritise today.

Reece James is on the bench as often as he plays. Billy Gilmour’s hopes of representing Scotland at the Euros are in serious jeopardy, Callum Hudson-Odoi is rarely seen and most disgracefully of all, Tammy Abraham, the best striker at the club by a clear distance, was left out of the entire squad for the cup final.

Two left backs made it onto the bench but the top goalscorer of that particular competition wasn’t even given the respect of being part of the matchday squad.

There is no doubt in my mind that Abraham would contribute goals for the club, but even taking that aside, this is a level of disrespect shown to a man who has been at the club since the Under 8’s.

I stand with Leah Monroe. A truly disgraceful decision by Tuchel matched only by the decision to lead Chelsea out at the FA Cup final at Wembley wearing a baseball cap and a tracksuit.

Of course, for the first few months Tuchel barely put a foot wrong and for that he has some credit in the bank. However, some decisions that rest squarely on his shoulders have put us into a position where Champions League qualification is now actually looking quite uncertain. If Leicester take a point off us on Tuesday it is effectively over.

Resting our best goalkeeper in a cup final is mind-boggling, resting the same keeper in a game against Arsenal that ended in defeat is equally strange.

I can also make no sense of persisting with one of the worst strikers in the Premier League but these are all decisions that Tuchel stands by. — daily Mail