Tuchel angry with Chelsea’s performance

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel lambasted his squad for showing no hunger or determination in their 1-0 Champions League defeat at Dinamo Zagreb, saying he did not see this performance coming after he thought they had turned a corner.

Thomas Tuchel
Photo: photosport

The loss was Chelsea’s third in five games and the Premier League side looked poor in attack and flat-footed in defence when they conceded a counter-attack goal early in the first half.

An angry Tuchel also blamed himself but said it was not the performance he expected after Chelsea narrowly beat West Ham United over the weekend.

“I didn’t see it coming, obviously I was in the wrong movie,” Tuchel said. “I thought that the last game helped us… I thought the team was prepared, I thought we know what this is all about.

“I don’t really know where this performance today comes from. A lack of determination, a lack of hunger and a lack of intensity to actually do the things that we need at the highest level. We are clearly not where we want to be.

“I’m angry about our performance… It’s not precise enough, it’s not clinical enough, it’s not aggressive enough on the ball, it’s not determined enough. It’s not good enough individually, it’s not good enough as a team.”

Tuchel said they did not underestimate Zagreb but added that Chelsea losing focus has been the “story of the last few games” where they start well before conceding goals.

Erling Haaland continued his free-scoring start to life at Manchester City with two more goals in an impressive 4-0 win at Sevilla.

Erling Haaland
Photo: PHOTOSPORT

The Norwegian has now scored 12 goals in seven competitive games for City since joining the club from Borussia Dortmund during the close-season.

The goals also made the 22-year-old the fastest player to score 25 goals in the Champions League — a milestone he has reached in just 20 matches.

Real Madrid claimed a 3-0 victory over Celtic in their opener but it came at a cost as they lost forward Karim Benzema to a knee injury in the first half.

Vinicius Jr, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard were all on target in the second half for holders Real at a sold-out Celtic Park although they rode their luck at times as the Scottish side spurned a number of opportunities.

French striker Benzema, who was clearly in pain, was replaced by Eden Hazard in the 30th minute, limping off the pitch and straight to Real’s dressing room.

“We will have to wait for the tests tomorrow, but the first impressions by our medical staff are that it is not something serious,” manager Carlo Ancelotti said.

Kylian Mbappe played chief tormentor as Paris St Germain started their Champions League campaign by beating Juventus 2-1 at home, their first victory against the Italian side.

-Reuters