Some of Chelsea's wantaway stars have been slammed for their performance against Southampton as Thomas Tuchel watched his side lose 2-1, having gone ahead in the first half. The Blues caved in following Raheem Sterling's opener and couldn't respond on a damning night for the German coach.
Already without key first-team duo Reece James and N'Golo Kante, Tuchel had to use a makeshift midfield of Jorginho, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek whilst Hakim Ziyech started the game despite being linked with a move from the club all summer. He was later joined by Christian Pulisic off the bench, a player who is also extremely keen on a move out of Stamford Bridge.
It raised questions about what Tuchel will be managing when the window closes as first-team spots remain open to senior players that have their eyes on being elsewhere and have spent large parts of the summer looking for or in anticipation of departing the club.
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The players in question were mainly Ziyech and Pulisic due to their public desire to leave the club, whilst Jorginho's flaws were again exposed, and Tuchel's management of the midfield was left bare to witness an early season dampener.
It also appears that the lack of second-half response from some of Chelsea's players went down just as badly with former players as it did with the unhappy fans. Scott Minto, who played more than 50 matches for Chelsea from 1994-97, hung Ziyech out to dry, saying, "For me, Hakim Ziyech, it wouldn't bother me if he didn't play for Chelsea again," he told talkSPORT.
"It was difficult for Christian Pulisic coming on, but again, he's another player who has flattered to deceive over the last 18 months or so. At the moment, Chelsea have a lot of 'flair players', but they're not getting on the ball, and in the second half, it was Southampton who stepped it up and fully deserved the three points in the end.
"It was disappointing for Chelsea, and it's going to be an interesting last couple of days before the transfer window finishes. The goal that made it 2-1 gave Southampton a big cheer and a big pat on the back. Coming off at half-time, everyone in the stadium was up for it. Okay, it's half-time. How are Chelsea going to react? They did not react at all in the second half."
Ziyech was in talks with former side Ajax over a move back to the Netherlands, but with the transfer window closing a day earlier than in England, a move is unlikely to materialise despite the Dutch club having funds now Antony has joined Manchester United.
Meanwhile, Pulisic has also been a target for Erik ten Hag's side, but nothing came from it, and there have been no offers for the player as of yet, with Chelsea reportedly looking to keep the American superstar this summer. Paul Tenorio of the Athletic writes, "They [Chelsea] are blocking any deals and holding him against his wishes."
This looks like it will only end sourly for both parties, and the longer Tuchel has unhappy players around him, the harder it will be to sort out.
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