A furious Thomas Tuchel admitted he doubts his Chelsea side are ready for the new season after they were thrashed 4-0 by Arsenal in the final game of their US tour.
The German added he could ‘not mention’ champions Manchester City and second-placed Liverpool, stating bluntly: ‘We got absolutely beaten by a team that does not play Champions League football this season.’
And after a miserable night in Orlando which saw his misfiring frontline again struggle, he turned on his strikers, stating: ‘It’s the same players – why should anything change?’
The impressive Gunners took a 2-0 lead into the break thanks to goals from Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard. BukayoSaka’s second-half tap-in and Albert SambiLokonga’s injury-time header completed the rout in front of close to 64,000.
It completed a thoroughly underwhelming tour in which Chelsea defeated Mexico’s Club America in Las Vegas but then fell to defeats against MLS side Charlotte FC and Mikel Arteta’s rampant side.
Tuchel, who has so far added £47.5m Raheem Sterling and £34m KalidouKoulibaly but is desperate for further reinforcements, cut a frustrated figure.
He suggested Charlotte had shown more courage than Chelsea on Wednesday night and he again questioned his side’s mentality in Florida.
‘We were simply not good enough,’ he said. ‘We were absolutely not competitive. The worrying part is the level of commitment, physically and mentally…it was far higher for Arsenal than us.’
When asked if he felt Chelsea would be ready for the start of the forthcoming season – in less than two weeks – he suggested not and claimed some of his players’ minds were elsewhere, with doubts over the futures of the likes of Timo Werner and Cesar Azpilicueta.
‘I cannot guarantee,’ he said. ‘There was a level of mental commitment that we lacked because we have a lot of players who are thinking about leaving and looking at their options.’
He also spoke of the ongoing effect of the government sanctions put in place against former owner Roman Abramovich following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
‘We got sanctioned and players left us,’ he said. ‘We know that some players are trying to leave us and this is where it is.’
Chelsea hit a post through Mason Mount but rarely threatened. And while Tuchel is happy to have Sterling in the ranks, he feels his side needs more quality in the final third.
‘Listen, it’s the same players, so why should anything change? We will see hopefully development but at the moment we have the same issues because we have the same players.’
Tuchel was at least pleased to see Koulibaly play just over 20 minutes. ‘He was the best player on the pitch for us,’ he said of the former Napoli defender. ‘On an evening where nothing felt good. This felt very good.’
He did, however, dismiss claims that pre-season matches were not important. ‘I don’t know if I ever lost a match in pre-season 4-0,’ he said. ‘I can’t remember not winning two matches in a row in pre-season. I’m a huge fan of a strong pre-season in everything: atmosphere, feeling, performance, belief.’
Tuchel added that his side, who flew back to London immediately after the game, would be working hard over the coming days. –Mailonline
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