Thomas Tuchel admits he has been ‘a bit unfair’ on Christian Pulisic after failing to give winger a Premier League start since arriving at Chelsea… as he insists star’s struggle for playing time isn’t down to ‘a lack of trust or quality’
Thomas Tuchel has admitted that he has been ‘a bit unfair’ on Christian Pulisic after leaving him out of the starting line-up in every Premier League fixture so far.
The American winger was again on the bench for Chelsea’s 2-0 win over top four rivals Everton on Monday night and only came on with a minute remaining.
And Tuchel, who worked with Pulisic at Borussia Dortmund and gave him his debut for the Bundesliga giants, says he may be suffering as a result of their relationship.
Christian Pulisic plays a pass after coming off the bench in Chelsea’s 2-0 victory over Everton
Thomas Tuchel has admitted he has been ‘a bit unfair’ on Pulisic since arriving at Chelsea
‘I can say nothing else but good things about him,’ Tuchel said during his post-game press conference at Stamford Bridge.
‘Maybe his biggest problem is that I know him from Dortmund and I think he started only in the cup games.
‘It is my responsibility and it is a bit unfair but I know what impact he can have in the last 20 or 30 minutes.’
Pulisic has only started once since Tuchel arrived at Chelsea in late January – in a 1-0 FA Cup victory over Championship side Barnsley – and has appeared off the bench six times in the top-flight.
Pulisic replaced Timo Werner with just a minute left to play at Stamford Bridge on Monday
The former Dortmund star has also struggled with injuries this season, missing 12 matches with hamstring and muscle problems so far.
‘He was a bit unlucky in the last few games,’ Tuchel added. ‘It isn’t a lack of trust or quality, it is just that he will have to be patient.’
Tuchel also admitted that defender Emerson Palmieri and striker Tammy Abraham were being affected by his ‘bad decisions’, with both left out of the squad to face Everton entirely.
‘I have another guy who I would love to mention in Emerson [Palmieri] who suffers from bad decisions by me,’ the German added.
‘He does not play but he is an amazing guy who trains at the highest level and he never lets the team down with his mentality.
‘It was a super hard decision today to have him out of the squad, the same with Tammy [Abraham].
‘It is like this, we have a strong group. The guys have to keep on fighting. There’s no other way.’