Thomas Tuchel has given his thoughts on Chelsea’s current transfer links with Wesley Fofana and Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang but admitted Chelsea need defensive backing.
The Blues boss was speaking ahead of his side’s derby with Tottenham on Sunday, following a turbulent summer in which he lost a number of first-team starters.
The London side have spent around £148million on five new players but have seen key departures in their backline.
Centre-backs Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger left with strikers Timo Werner and Romelu Lukaku, while Kalidou Koulibaly was the only one to arrive in defence.
Chelsea have been heavily linked with a big money move for Fofana from Leicester to fill the void, but Tuchel declined to comment on the player, only the position.
When Fofana’s name came up, Tuchel interrupted the reporter to jokingly say, “We can shorten that, I won’t comment. Regardless of the relevance of your question, I will not comment.
He then added: “We could use one more centre-back; if you look at the numbers and we’re playing with a back-three. The profile of the guys in the three is a bit different, I admit.
“We can play with Azpi [Cesar Azpilicueta]who is more of a full-back than a centre-back. [Marc] Cucurella is also possible. Both cannot play as a central central defender. So we could use one more central defender. Let’s see what happens.
“I think we could use and strengthen our squad in depth and strength. But it is one thing you want and another that is possible. It has to be possible.
“We are looking for top quality personalities, good characters and competitors at the highest level. You don’t always get what you want, and that’s why we’re both calm and ambitious. There are still a few days left before the end of the transfer window. Everything is possible until the end. »
Not only are Chelsea light at the back, but also up front, having sent record signing Lukaku to Inter Milan early in the window, before allowing Werner to join Leipzig.
Former Arsenal captain and current Barcelona striker Aubameyang has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge and previously played under Tuchel at Borussia Dortmund.
The German coach declined to comment on links with a striker who scored 79 goals in 95 games for him, but instead talked about the player himself.
“I really liked working with him, it was a pleasure,” said Tuchel. “It has nothing to do with the current situation, but the players remain your players because you work very, very closely. Auba is one of those players.
“We had a very close relationship. Always when we played him here with Arsenal, there was always this close bond right away. They still remain your players in a way, Auba is one of those guys.
The 48-year-old was then asked about Aubameyang off the pitch, given he was one of the scripts in the new documentary series ‘All or Nothing: Arsenal’.
A new episode focused on him being relieved of his duties as Gunners captain by Mikel Arteta for disciplinary reasons, but Tuchel never had such problems.
“No worries because I haven’t experienced any of that,” he said. “It has nothing to do with the situation at Arsenal, which I won’t comment on either out of respect.
“It’s not for me to comment, and I don’t know what happened. In Dortmund, there was never a problem.
“I’m not the press about Pierre. Don’t be offended. I don’t follow the press very much. I don’t know if it has bad or good press. I do not care. It does not matter. Nice try, but we don’t talk anymore.
“I was very polite to talk about my time at Dortmund, but we are not talking about a future with players who are not there. The future is at the next training session tomorrow morning with all the players here in the dressing room. . That’s where the energy goes.”
Tuchel then spoke about the transfer window as a whole.
“It is what it is,” he said. “We won’t panic and we won’t do anything [for the sake of it].
“We will not try to sign players of whom we are not 100% convinced. All the signings so far are fantastic signings that help us.
“To be very honest, it’s now a day-to-day business of coaching the team that’s here and not losing your mind as a coach about what could be.
“What sense does it make if I lose my mind at the office and think about players who aren’t there?
“We are ambitious and working hard to further strengthen our squad, but we are calm, all the energy and ambition is going into the group that is here. We still have time.”
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