Jamie Carragher admits he ‘admires’ Thomas Tuchel’s furious reaction to Chelsea’s pre-season drubbing by Arsenal… as the Sky pundit insists the struggling Blues ‘shouldn’t be getting beaten 4-0’ by Mikel Arteta’s side
- Jamie Carragher has backed Chelsea’s Thomas Tuchel’s after recent comments
- The German questioned his side’s physical and mental state yesterday
- Chelsea lost 4-0 to Arsenal in pre-season with the start of the season looming
- Carragher said Chelsea should not be getting beat 4-0, even in a friendly
- Tuchel also sent a message to the new owners, asking for more reinforcements
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has backed Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel’s angry reaction to the Blues’ 4-0 pre-season defeat to Arsenal.
Chelsea lost to their London rivals in the early hours of Sunday morning and, after the game, Tuchel questioned the physical and mental state of some of his players with the start of the Premier League fewer than two weeks away.
Carragher, who is now a renowned pundit, backed the German’s frustration after the defeat when talking to TalkSport, claiming they shouldn’t be losing 4-0 despite the game being a friendly.
Jamie Carragher has backed Thomas Tuchel’s comments after Chelsea’s loss to Arsenal
Tuchel questioned his players’ mental and physical state with uncertainty surrounding the club
‘I think it’s easy to downplay them [friendlies] when they don’t go well, we all know that,’ said Carragher.
‘I’ve been a player and we can say results mean nothing because it will be decided on the first game of the season. If you win, it doesn’t matter.
‘But as a player or a manager there is nothing better than winning and playing well and building some sort of confidence.
‘You can see the reaction of Thomas Tuchel after the Arsenal game. I quite admire the reaction. You’re still playing for Chelsea, you’re playing Arsenal, and it’s a big game.
Chelsea lost 4-0 to their London rivals in their latest match of their pre-season tour
‘I know it’s a pre-season friendly but you shouldn’t be getting beaten 4-0, and I actually quite admired how seriously he was taking it.
‘I don’t think they should massively be getting carried away, but I don’t think they should be getting massively beaten by Arsenal two weeks before the start of the season.’
Arsenal were much better than Chelsea on the day, and the game left Chelsea fans with several questions around formations, tactics and personnel.
It’s unclear which system Tuchel favours at the minute, with the German using both a back three and a back four during their tour of the USA.
Arsenal were by far the better side on the night, leaving Tuchel with plenty to ponder
Carragher said he ‘admired’ Tuchel’s comments and how seriously he took the game
Several players have also been linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge, whilst Tuchel has called for the new owners to bring in more signings.
He said: ‘The worrying part is the level of commitment, physically and mentally… it was far higher for Arsenal than us.
‘[There was] a level of mental commitment that we lacked because we have a lot of players who are thinking about leaving and looking at their options.’
Tuchel had made a plea for more singings before the match, but nothing has yet materialised.
Chelsea face Everton at Goodison Park in their Premier League opener in fewer than two weeks
‘We come from sanctions, we come from losing top-quality players, key players, we are a club in transition, in transition of ownership, we were behind in the transfer race and we were behind in the table. So we have things to improve,’ he said.
‘The signing of Raheem [Sterling] shows what we’re capable of doing, it shows the ambition of the club and the ownership and it’s good because we’re all here to win and compete.
‘We love to compete and we love the challenge at the very top. For that we need signings of new quality players, otherwise there’s no chance.’
Chelsea face Udinese in Italy on Friday in their final pre-season game before travelling to Goodison Park to take on Everton in their opening match of the Premier League season.
