Frank Leboeuf thinks Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel played Cesar Azpilicueta in completely the wrong position during yesterday’s 3-1 home defeat to Real Madrid.
Azpilicueta, 32, started for the Blues at left wing-back during Wednesday’s Champions League showdown. He then dropped into a traditional left-back role when the team swapped to four at the back in the second half.
Unfortunately, Tuchel’s side were beaten at Stamford Bridge by Madrid in the first leg of a Champions League quarter-final. Karim Benzema’s hat-trick for the visitors secured the win, despite another goal from in-form Kai Havertz.
Pundit and ex-Chelsea player Leboeuf said in his post-match analysis that Azpilicueta shouldn’t have started on the left.
The £150,000-a-week star is a versatile defender that certainly didn’t let anybody down with his individual display. In fact, he produced an important clearance late on and went so close to scoring himself from outside the box.
However, the team did perhaps look a little unbalanced with the right-footer on the left. They could’ve done with his defensive expertise on the opposite flank to try control Vinicius Junior, too.
“The line-up was wrong. I think Azpiliceuta playing on the left side to cope with [Federico] Valverde was a very bad decision from Tuchel,” Lebouef told ESPN.
Couple of Chelsea selection errors
It’s easy to see now with hindsight that Tuchel made some tactical mistakes yesterday, something which has been rare during his tenure in charge.
First of all, Andreas Christensen was tormented as the right-sided centre-back before being taken off at half time.
Elsewhere, the balance of the midfield was all over the place against a dominant opposition.
Cesc Fabregas was crying out on Twitter for Mateo Kovacic from the bench during the first half, which is a substitution that worked well when made at half time.
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