‘For a year or two’: Frank Leboeuf says something has been wrong at Chelsea since Tuchel was in charge

Add as preferred source on Google

Frank Leboeuf believes some Chelsea players have not been coached correctly for nearly two years.

Speaking on ESPN, the former Blues defender argued that some of the current squad have been undermanaged since the early days of Thomas Tuchel.

Chelsea’s side has changed somewhat from Tuchel’s first game in charge on the 27^th of January 2021.

A wave of new players arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer, forcing several to head out in the opposite direction.

Repeated changes at Chelsea

Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly, Wesley Fofana, Denis Zakaria, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Marc Cucurella all joined the first-team.

Conor Gallagher and Armando Broja earned a spot in the squad thanks to strong seasons out on loan.

Romelu Lukaku, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Malang left on loan, whilst Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen and Marcos Alonso departed for Spain.

Timo Werner was the other high-profile mover, returning to RB Leipzig to rediscover his former footballing self.

With such a constant cycle of fresh faces, it must be difficult for any manager to implement a consistent style of play.

This is something Graham Potter has certainly endured following his appointment at the expense of Tuchel in September.

His style still hasn’t settled upon the Chelsea camp, reflected in the recent Premier League results.

Are injuries or bad tactics to blame?

Potter will partly blame the poor performances on the number of significant injury absences staring him in the face.

Yet, Leboeuf challenged the idea that the Blues cannot cope without a few key players.

“I think we talk about it, but you don’t want to find any pity against teams who usually have a squad of two teams,” he said.

“So, they should be able to interchange players. Of course, some players are more important than others.”

Leboeuf instead blamed Chelsea’s downturn on the approach of the men standing in the dugout.

“It’s not about the personnel, it’s about the way they play.

“When you have any of the players that have been injured and they were not injured, they play the same.

“It’s been like that for a year or two. It’s not about injuries, it’s about mental and physical frame of mind and tactics from the coach.”

Potter’s tactical approach majorly came under fire last weekend at home to Arsenal, having already faced criticism after the 4-1 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion.

He could face further backlash if Chelsea fail to get a positive result in the Carabao Cup against Manchester City on Wednesday evening.