Former player and pundit Paul Merson has picked out three Chelsea players he believes Thomas Tuchel should build his attack around ahead of a huge clash against Crystal Palace at the weekend. The Blues face the Eagles in the semi-final of the FA Cup, with football’s oldest competition the only feasible silverware remaining for this campaign.
It comes after a difficult few months for the German head coach, who has overseen his side losing the League cup final, have their future up in the air as the club was put up for sale and were most recently knocked out of the Champions League. The FA Cup could provide much-needed respite, though Patrick Vieira’s men aren’t an easy side to overcome.
Discussing the challenge ahead of them, Tuchel said in his pre-match press conference: “It is a huge opportunity to play at Wembley. We need to be very well prepared to control the counter-attacks, the individual quality, the dribbles and play with the same level of intensity. They can create a certain atmosphere, especially at Selhurst Park but also at Wembley."
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Heading into the match, one of the dilemmas that the manager has to ponder over is the right selection up front. Romelu Lukaku is back in contention for a starting place, though Kai Havertz and Timo Werner have recently found their space in the side.
Pundit Paul Merson has since picked the three forwards he would start ahead of the Crystal Palace clash, telling Sportskeeda : “Chelsea were absolutely outstanding against Real Madrid the other night. Timo Werner could’ve scored five goals in the first half against Southampton, but he still has a long way to go at the club.
“He’s scoring great goals at the moment and could play a part against Crystal Palace, Werner, Havertz, and Mason Mount are Chelsea’s best front three at the moment. With Conor Gallagher unavailable for Crystal Palace, I see nothing but a Chelsea win here.”
All three players have been in fine form as of late, finding the net eight times between them in the last three games. They may be the combination to finally unlock Thomas Tuchel’s best side heading into a huge clash in the FA Cup.
