Thomas Tuchel: Chelsea are guaranteed a 3rd place finish irrespective of any realistic events on the final matchday. Many might view this as a failure for the club after their spending spree in recent windows. However, the club’s manager Thomas Tuchel believes it is a miracle they have managed that. The German has recognised the absence of Kante as the reason for their lacklustre season.
“I think he is our key, key, key player,” he said. “But key, key, key players need to be on the pitch and he has played only 40 percent of the games, so it is maybe a miracle that we arrive in third place.
“He is simply that player, the guy who makes the difference and if you only have him 40 per cent of the time it’s a huge problem.
“Given that percentage, it’s maybe a miracle how consistently we produced results and it puts everything into perspective because I saw Liverpool last season without Van Dijk and they struggled heavily.
Thomas Tuchel: He constantly starts getting rhythm, and once he has rhythm, comes a little injury and he’s out again
“You see the difference. N’Golo is our key player and he needs to be on the pitch.”
“He constantly starts getting rhythm, and once he has rhythm, comes a little injury and he’s out again.
“Last year, in the Champions League, they handed him the trophy before the match.
“It was clear he would be man of the match. And this guy who gets man of the match in every Champions League game is only here for 40 per cent of the matches and that’s huge for us.
“We do everything to solve it and him as well.
“I don’t blame him. It’s just a concern and it’s a fact that we miss him a lot because he brings something that is unique in world football and he has that ability to lift everybody up and make the difference.
“He is one of the very best midfielders in the world.”
