Thomas Tuchel detailed via the Fifth Stand why he took both Andreas Christensen and £24 million man Marcos Alonso (Sky) off at half time for Chelsea against Barnsley.
The pair were removed at the interval with Chelsea being held by their lower league hosts during their FA Cup clash.
Reece James and Antonio Rudiger replaced Alonso and Christensen as Tuchel reverted to a back four over his preferred three-man defence.
Chelsea managed to get over the line thanks to a Tammy Abraham tap in which was assisted by James.
When asked about the double sub, Tuchel explained the decision was mainly methodical.
“I was not frustrated,” he said. “I just wanted to give them a little help because Barnsley attacked our back three with their front three very aggressively so we decided to change to a back four.
“We took Marcos (Alonso) out because of this tactical change and Andreas (Christensen) had to go out because he had a headache.
“We made these two changes to make it a little bit easier to come to the opponent’s half and overcome the first three players and the pressing line.”
Barnsley gave the Blues a real run for their money throughout the tie and could’ve snatched an equaliser late into the game.
Luckily for Chelsea Abraham was on defensive duty and managed to clear the goal bound clearance over his own crossbar.
Christensen did take a bang to his head midway through the opening period and looked a little wobbly.
Hopefully the extent of this isn’t too server considering the Dane was brought in to replace the already side-lined Thiago Silva.
The 24-year-old has done extremely well in the two- and a-bit games since Silva hobbled off against Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month.
Tuchel will hoping he can continue to get the best out of Christensen as potential long-term option for the experienced Brazilian.
The Chelsea Chronicle View
I think we saw a clear indication into Tuchel’s in game management against Barnsley. He observed the opposition’s strengths and changed his team accordingly.
Rudiger was good when he came on and James’ contribution was crucial.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
