A few hours ago, football lovers were hit by the news that Chelsea has sacked their manager, Frank Lampard. Lampard’s sack came after 18 months of being in charge of the club. The former Chelsea player took over the reins of management at Chelsea in July 2019, after signing a three year deal with the club. His first season in the club was not entirely a productive one in terms of trophies, but there were signs that things could get better in the coming season. In his first season, Chelsea finished fourth place on the Premier League table, and also made it to the final of the FA Cup.
Chelsea began the new season in a really impressive way, but was unable to maintain the tempo. In December, they even topped the Premier League table briefly, but they have now dropped to the ninth position on the table, after suffering five defeats out of eight games. Lampard was also able to take the club into the last 16 of the Champions League.
For some time now, speculations have been going round about Lampard’s sack, but no one knew when the axe would finally fall on him. On Sunday, Chelsea recorded a convincing 3-1 win over Championship side Luton, but the win was not enough to convince the management to retain him as Thomas Tuchel takes over at Stamford Bridge.
Thomas Tuchel isn’t a new name in the footballing world, as many already know his track record as a manager. But what many Chelsea fans are wondering is if Tuchel has what it takes to restore Chelsea back to its glory days. Can Tuchel accomplish what Lampard couldn’t achieve for the club? Is he the right person for the job?
So in this article, we are going to look at 8 facts you need to know about Thomas Tuchel, and from there you can judge for yourself if he has what it takes to give Chelsea management what they want.
1. Tuchel is 47 years old, as he was born on August 29th, 1973. As a manager, he still has age on his side. So his youthful age would obviously play a major role if his deal with Chelsea goes through, as he will be able to relate with the players well.
2. Tuchel had been a player before, but his career was cut short at the age of 25 years because of a severe knee injury.
3. He began his coaching career in 2000. He began with VfB Stuttgart youth teams.
4. In 2009, he was signed by Mainz 05, after an impressive one-year stint at FC Augsburg II.
5. Tuchel spent five years at Mainz 05, and during his term there, he was able to establish a reputation for himself for his energetic style of play.
6. In 2015, he joined Borussia Dortmund, and during his time there, he won the DFB-Pokal.
7. In 2018, Tuchel was appointed Coach of French club Paris Saint-Germain, and during his time there he was able to lead the club to two league titles. In his second season at PSG, he led the club to domestic quadruple. One of the major achievements he made at PSG was guiding the club to its first Champions League final.
8. In the footballing world, Tuchel is known for his penchant for the projection of youth players.
So Tuchel isn’t a new kid on the block in the coaching world, as he has handled a handful of notable clubs in Europe. And if his talks with the management of Chelsea goes through, then Chelsea will certainly be one of his biggest challenges as a coach. So whether he will be able to achieve the kind of successes he achieved with his previous clubs with Chelsea is another subject that needs deliberations.
At this point, Chelsea needs a coach who will come in and develop the young talents that Chelsea has. It is already known that one of major things that led to Frank Lampard’s sack was his rift with the management over the signing of new players. So Tuchel already has a reputation for projecting youth players, so he will probably be a good choice for Chelsea.
Chelsea is now sitting ninth on the Premier League table, 11 points behind the leaders – Manchester United. For a club like Chelsea, that is definitely not an impressive position to be. Now a good way into the season already, there is a need for the club to fight back for a spot to make it to Europe next season. And if Tuchel ends up as the new coach, let’s hope that he will be able to get Chelsea back on its winning ways
