After losing to Arsenal 4-0, Thomas Tuchel was very direct in his criticism of Chelsea’s performance – as you would expect him to be.
His remarks, however, have betrayed a much deeper sense of frustration linked with the fact that the transfer window is not going to plan for the Blues.
Chelsea don’t just struggle to sign their preferred targets – they also can’t offload players who aren’t in Tuchel’s plans.
The boss said as much after the game as he lamented the lack of commitment from players ‘who are thinking about leaving and looking at their options’.
It begs a logical question, however, that it was asked by the Chelsea fans on social media. Why were those players on the pitch at all?
Alex Goldberg, Twitter: “Don’t get me wrong, I really rate Tuchel, but I just feel irrespective of how the transfer negotiations are going, he could be using his time a little better this preseason. We are literally showcasing deadwood. Which is bad time management & bad business.”
Mark Worrall, Twitter: “Woke up, the Blues featured, according to Tuchel, ‘a lot of players who are thinking about leaving & looking at their options’. I’m thinking, why play them?”
jukv, Reddit: “But he’ll still give them game time. Make them train with the u23s and have the committed players play more minutes”
MAH, Twitter: “Why take all of the crap to the US and leave Vale & Gilmour in the U23s? Not the other way round?”
crustlesswheat, Reddit: “All for the new honest Thomas but he spent 18 months defending the status quo. He took Batshuayi, Kenedy, Barkley on tour with him. He spent 18 months giving charity minutes to Kepa. These are problems he has created