“We were the better team and deserved to win” – Thomas Tuchel insists he is ‘fine’ with Chelsea performance during 1-1 draw against Leicester
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel believes his side deserved to beat Leicester City following a 'fine' 1-1 draw with the Foxes on May 19.
The Blues were the dominant side throughout the Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge, spurning a number of chances throughout. They conceded an early opener from James Maddison who struck a fantastic effort past Edouard Mendy in the sixth minute of the first half.
Tuchel's men dominated from there on out and found an equalizer in the 34th minute with Marcos Alonso volleying home from close range.
Chelsea really should have wrapped up all three points, especially when Christian Pulisic was presented with a golden opportunity in the second half with the goal gaping. The American could not capitalize and wasted a glorious chance.
Tuchel has commented on the 1-1 draw where he claims his side really should have come out of the game the victors.
He told reporters (via Football London):
"We were the better team and deserved to win. We didn't allow any chances, got punished by a shot from outside the box. We created enough to win, didn't allow transition and chances for Leicester. So I am fine with the performance."
It's a bit of a broken record: we did not take what we deserve."
Missed chances cost Chelsea 3 points 😞 https://t.co/mppML6zT11
Chelsea have now all but confirmed a third-place finish in the Premier League. They host Watford on the final day of the season.
Tottenham Hotspur will have to beat Norwich City while making up a huge 14-goal deficit to usurp the Blues. This is as good as impossible and hence, Chelsea can be assured of finishing third.
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel rues missed chances once again
The story of Chelsea's season has been the constant lack of end product coinciding with lapses in judgment at the back. Their UEFA Champions League collapse against Real Madrid in the quarter-finals can certainly be attributed to that.
First-leg mistakes from Edouard Mendy and Antonio Rudiger left the Blues playing catch up. They would be the dominant side in the second-leg at the Santiago Bernabeu but lacked the firepower to put the game beyond Real Madrid.
Their league form has also suffered as a result, with draws against the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brighton & Hove Albion being down to missed opportunities.
Eight PL home wins for Chelsea this season with one game to go at Stamford Bridge. That's the worst home record of the entire top seven...#cfc twitter.com/TeleFootball/s…
Romelu Lukaku became the club's most expensive player last summer, following a £97.8 million move. He has been an utter disappointment, unable to replicate the goalscoring heights of his time at Inter Milan. The Belgian has managed just eight goals in 26 appearances.
Kai Havertz's performances have improved, with the German attacking midfielder deployed as a false 9. He has seven goals in 28 Premier League games but there lies the problem of Tuchel, having to go with an attacking midfielder in such a role.
Questions remain over the lack of potency at Stamford Bridge and after tonight's game there certainly is a need for improvement.