Graham Potter revealed how he will correct Thomas Tuchel’s mistake on Christian Pulisic with is the formation
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Graham Potter has a lot to do at Chelsea in a short period of time. It’s a typical new manager appointment in that he must take charge of the locker room, inject some spark and fire into performances, adopt his own methods, bring through the kids, and deal with some fan dissatisfaction.
He may be lucky to have several more days of preparation due to the postponement of Chelsea’s match against Fulham, but that only means that his anticipated first encounter will be a Champions League debut at his new home ground: no pressure. If the games scheduled for next weekend go forward, his first league game will be against Liverpool. The international break that follows will most likely be favourably appreciated.
Within this framework, he must gel and accelerate the team’s misfiring offence. If he continues with a three-man defence, it will be difficult to see how Kai Havertz, Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – the most likely candidates for the front three places – can play together.
Aside from that, Thomas Tuchel’s departure is unlikely to influence the emotions of previously unattached strikers Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic, who both fell fast out of favour under the German and never really recovered. Their frantic usage in the latter weeks of Tuchel’s rule encapsulates the strategy: it seemed optimistic rather than pragmatic.
Pulisic and Ziyech are in need of a lift once more, since they are on their third new boss in three years since joining the club. Pulisic is on his fourth contract, despite the fact that Maurizio Sarri was in charge when Chelsea decided to sign him in 2019.
Many expected Pulisic, who struggled to find form outside of his post-lockdown explosion under Frank Lampard, to become a vital component of Tuchel’s framework at Chelsea because the duo had a solid connection at Dortmund. However, this was not the case, causing USA men’s coach Greg Berhalter to ruffle some feathers.
“I’m not glad a man lost his job,” he said in an interview, “but if this means a greater chance for Christian [Pulisic], then it’s good because he’s a guy who’s demonstrated that he can perform at that level. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
Pulisic is already the public enemy No. 1 for some Chelsea supporters owing to his treatment by the national team, which some have suggested appears to prioritise national team football over club football, and Berhalter’s words won’t help. However, Pulisic and his manager’s displeasure is reasonable.
Pulisic appeared in 51 of Lampard’s 84 matches, averaging 68 minutes per game. The majority of these games were on his favourite left side. Pulisic played 71 games under Tuchel, who managed 100 but only averaged 51 minutes each game. He was rarely used as a first-team player, instead being relegated to the role of an impact substitute, and even less frequently was he used in a natural winger position, instead being used as an inside No.10, makeshift wingback, and, towards the end, some variant of a central midfielder, similar to Ziyech.
Despite playing more games, Pulisic only played slightly more minutes for Tuchel and contributed less. He had 12 goals and nine assists under the German, compared to Lampard’s 13 goals and ten assists.
Nobody expected Pulisic’s raw talent to be used in this manner, not even Berhalter, who said upon Tuchel’s appointment, “I think the benefit for Christian is that if Tuchel is the coach, he knows him very well, which is always important; he’s coming in with a really good understanding of what Christian can do and his skill set, which I think is important.
“He has also witnessed Christian grow and progress throughout his time at Dortmund, and Christian attributes this to his familiarity with how he instructs, his coaching staff, and his communication approach.
“All of this is beneficial, and there is no awkward moment while getting to know the coach, which I believe is one of the advantages.
“It’s a difficult business for Frank to no longer be the coach. Chelsea is a good team that expects to win every game they play, which makes it tough for managers to cope with. When a coworker loses his job, it is never pleasant.
“In terms of the successor, if it’s Tuchel, we have contacts with that staff, and I’m certain we’ll be able to start up where we left off.”
But it didn’t work out, and now the American star must strive to break into Potter’s new Chelsea. Pulisic may not yet be free of the wingback position due to the diverse efforts of Leandro Trossard, but considering the importance of a World Cup for his country, he will have to accept whatever minutes he can get.
