Chelsea transfer news - ‘Not a tier-one manager’ – Do Chelsea need Hasenhuttl, not Thomas Tuchel?
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Updated 25/01/2021 at 11:45 GMT
Should out-of-form Chelsea dispense with the services of manager Frank Lampard and bring in Thomas Tuchel, despite the legendary midfielder's struggles in the Stamford Bridge hot seat? In the fourth Eurosport show in partnership with The Beautiful Game Podcast, we look at a tricky decision for Roman Abramovich.
Thomas Tuchel, coach of PSG, during the post-match press conference following the Ligue 1 match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and RC Strasbourg at Parc des Princes stadium on December 23, 2020 in Paris, France.
Image credit: Getty Images
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and Thomas Tuchel would have a tempestuous relationship should the German take up the reins at Stamford Bridge, according to our latest vodcast with The Beautiful Game, with Southampton manger Ralph Hasenhuttl floated as a superior option should they replace Frank Lampard.
The German was fired by Paris Saint-Germain over the Ligue 1 winter break and replaced by Mauricio Pochettino, while Lampard was axed as Chelsea boss on Monday.
Tuchel boasts trophy-winning pedigree, having won the French championship twice, a Coupe de France and a Coupe de la Ligue during his time in Paris, along with a DFB-Pokal from his two-year stint at Borussia Dortmund.
But would he be the best option to rejuvenate Chelsea, or would another German, working in England already, be a better option?
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'Not convinced he can challenge Klopp or Pep' - Is Tuchel really the man for Chelsea?
"I think it's a tough one because when you look at it, is Tuchel the man to take that final step?" asked Dot from The Beautiful Game podcast, which was recorded before Lampard was sacked.
"We saw him get to the Champions League final and ultimately fail at the final hurdle. Chelsea are a team that pride themselves on success: they need to win a trophy every year. Is Tuchel that man to compete with Klopp and Pep Guardiola at the top level? I'm not quite convinced."
"Yeah he's not a tier-one manager," replied Dej. "I would rather go for Hasenhuttl at Southampton. When you look at the resources he has worked with, he has done very, very well and someone like him coming into Chelsea on an upwards trajectory, it kinda reminds me when Poch from Southampton to Tottenham.
"That's the kind of energy he has got. A clear philosophy, worked with Werner, so it makes sense."
But, he has often fallen out with owners and, according to Dej, a partnership with Roman Abramovich could be a disaster waiting to happen.
"The reason I'm interested in this one is Thomas Tuchel is notoriously a character that owners tend to fall out with," said Dej. "And although Abramovich keeps a kind of quiet public persona, you get the impression that you have to fit in to a certain type of person to collaborate with him. And I think Tuchel and Abramovich won't really click."
Eurosport's Ben Snowball disagreed, however, saying that he would back Tuchel to be a rousing success in west London: "I think Frank Lampard should be given time. He started brilliantly, he's in a slump. I think Chelsea have been too reactionary in the past.
Having said that, Tuchel at Chelsea could be brilliant.
"I think we can ignore his spell at PSG because you have to bow to the player power there. Everything revolves around Neymar and Mbappe, there's no room for an actual philosophy, which is Tuchel's strength."
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