Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher believes Thomas Tuchel has successfully made Chelsea “a team nobody wants to play against” as he promised.
Tuchel has pretty much cemented his place among elite managers after leading Chelsea to their second Champions League triumph after just four months in charge.
His journey, from an Under-19s coach at Mainz to being one of the best managers, also inspires many young coaches, including Plymouth’s Schumacher.
“He didn’t have the greatest footballing career but, obviously, he’s a talented coach and puts the work in,” the Plymouth boss said in the pre-match press conference (via Plymouth Herald).
“He has got to the very, very top, so I would definitely try and pick his brains if possible.”
Tuchel also famously said that he wanted to build a team that nobody wants to play against at Chelsea — and Schumacher believes the German has achieved exactly that.
“Yeah, because of their style,” he added on why teams would dread facing Tuchel’s Chelsea side.
“The data says that they are the best team at regaining the ball high up the pitch.
“I think that’s Thomas is going on about.
“Whoever goes to Stamford Bridge doesn’t get an easy day, and they have also got a clear style of how they want to play with the ball.
“Everyone who goes there experiences a tough afternoon, and we won’t be no different.”
Schumacher clearly had done his homework prior to the press conference.
According to Statsbomb (via FBRef), only Liverpool (945) have pressured opposition players in the final third than Chelsea (887) in the Premier League this season.
Tuchel’s men also rank second in terms of total interceptions (376) in the league, behind Southampton (412).
So, Chelsea are indeed one of, if not the best team in terms of pressuring opponents higher up the pitch.
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