Not sure if you are being obtuse, or just misunderstood my point. The comment on spending was rillustrating their quality depth. I recognize the tired tropes of in a one off game or any given match etc, but this season has been grueling and the "collapses" of those lower budget teams shouldn't be all that surprising.
Easy. Sit Werner, at this level you need to simply finish your chances. You can't afford to not play Pulisic against, Madrid. They are scared of him.
huh? I totally get your point, hence my glib reference to needing a golf style handicap based on salary spending... The range in team spending in the EPL is nuts. I was just pointing out that Everton and WH were, just 2 - 4 games ago, well in the hunt. Had either one of them (or both) jumped Chelski there's no doubt they'd be punching above their spending weight but as, say, Arsenal (and to a lesser extent Spurs and Pool), prove salary is not 100% destiny. Sticking with Lampard and some small slip ups on Chelski's part (or a bit more something out of Everton or WH) could have made the last few weeks more interesting, but, aside from Everton beating Arsenal, they and WH have choked. Everton lost to AV, who spend less than 1/2 of what Everton spend. WH losing to Chelsea might be expected but it is also the game that an overachieving team has to win or at least tie. WH couldn't manage it, but they also lost to a not-very-spendy NUFC just a week before (with RC in both games.) That's not the sign of a team that was primed to take advantage of their good season. It looks a bit like choking/not being up for it. Not saying teams like WH and Everton don't have an uphill battle late in the season, but Everton esp spends a bit and has tied or lost to teams they needed to get more points from.
This is awesome. As if you can't play Pulisic and Havertz together ... a couple of their better offensive games of the last couple months have come starting Pulisic and Havertz with Mount. Second leg vs. Porto, a big game? He went with those three. Last time they scored more than two goals? He went with those three. Also, it ignores the obvious point that Tuchel was resting people - only Mount looks to been have run into the ground among the more running-heavy positions.
It’s funny because the article doesn’t even mention Pulisic - just the headline. It only talks about Kai’s performance.
Will he be able to do that, or will Marina and Roman go chasing after the prettiest strikers on the market?
Of course you can play CO and KH together, and he should be doing that. The problem is the insistence on Mount being on the front line AND Werner being in the starting lineup. If you require both of those two things to be your operating premises, then that creates the conflict posed by the headline.
Call me when he's nicknamed Playoff Havertz. It was Fulham after all. KH is good, and I think will get better in the EPL, but there's no headache for Tuchel for RM unless it's play Havertz and drop Timo.
Tuchel is awesome. I'm a big fan. He wears out his welcome and is an awkward dude but he's a cleanup artist.
Managers are like players. They have streaks. Klopp was top dog until not long ago. Now, it's Tuchel's turn.
The irony is that in terms of direct contrigutions, Werner is having a great year on paper. But his 11g/10a should probably be 30g/10a...
This is so true and really frustrating. Often times it’s Pulisic creating the chances for him. He’s lucky with his stats because he’s the type of player that attempts a shot more often than not, and Pulisic and Chelsea in general have been giving him a lot to work with. I’ve been saying it for a while, but I’m very confident that Giroud would have more goals and assists than Werner if he was given the minutes Werner has gotten.
He may not be one of the better players, but he might be one of their more important players. I'd argue Mount is Chelsea's most important player, even though he is not their best player. Likewise, even though there are may be one or two strikers at Chelsea better than Werner, it may be that the style of play Tuchel wants necessitates the inclusion of Werner over guys who are likely to score more goals over the course of a season.