The result is rarely deemed the important thing in a pre-season friendly but it was impossible to ignore Thomas Tuchel's frustration in the press conference following Chelsea's penalty shootout defeat to Charlotte FC. The German coach cut a spiky figure in the North Carolina night after his side were unable to find much fluency in a disjointed performance.
Tuchel noted ahead of the match that he hoped to use the friendly at the Bank of America Stadium to begin to progress tactically after the opening game of the US tour saw more of a focus on physical preparation. The Chelsea boss was not happy with the lack of quality produced by his side, particularly in the second period.
Tuchel said: "Second half, it took us half an hour to show some quality and then it was maybe for ten minutes, so it was not good at all. Not offensively, not structure-wise, not in effort, hunger to be the dominant team. It was not good enough."
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While Chelsea's third place Premier League position was matched by seeing them as the league's third highest goalscorers last season, it was telling why they sat around 20 goals fewer than Manchester City and Liverpool. The Blues were able to punish teams on occasion but despite their quality and an overperformance of xG, Chelsea would often appear unable to penetrate the opposition box creatively.
While the Blues were well-stocked in their forward positions and required defenders, it still made sense that completing a £47.5 million deal for Raheem Sterling was the first of a new era. Tuchel made it clear that signing the former Manchester City star was among his priorities.
"He was the absolute number one for that position. I gave his name to Todd straight away," Tuchel said "Every time we played against him...horrible to play against, horrible! The main point is his intensity and the amount of repetition of intensity that he delivers. This is simply outstanding over the last years.
"It's not about his goalscoring last season or about his performance against us. It's eye-catching, of course, when he plays against you – he caused us huge trouble – but once you dig deeper into his data, beyond his goal involvements and into his high-speed intensity, over 30km-an-hour, the amount of repetitive intensity, it's outstanding. It's exactly what we need to raise the level of our players, that they understand what is needed. That's what we are so sure, and that's why it was like for us top of the list."
Sterling's debut against Charlotte served to remind that purpose. In a front three alongside Mason Mount and Kai Havertz, the 27-year-old instantly almost managed to find space to convert a Conor Gallagher cross, and produced a number of promising runs with the ball before being denied late on by Charlotte goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega.
It is still early days for the trio to have meshed completely and even in Tuchel's disappointment with his side's efforts going forward, it seems Sterling is the standard-bearer, with his efforts already hinting at Tuchel's expectations from when he was signed.
Following the match, Tuchel said: “I didn’t see it today [that this was Chelsea's best front three]. So it doesn’t matter what I have in my mind, the only thing that matters is what I see on the pitch. I saw four accelerations in the second half and they all came from Raheem.
"This is what he delivers and there is no need for major doubts or huge criticism, but it is never important what the manager has in his head before pre-season, it’s the reality that counts. Every day in training and matches like this count and from there we go.”
The squad are further benefitting from his presence too. The introduction of his leadership was expected but Sterling has also proposed a level for Callum Hudson-Odoi to reach. The young Chelsea winger wants to replicate his new teammate's numbers.
Hudson-Odoi said: "Raheem has had a big influence in the dressing room already. We knew what sort of player he was anyway, he’s a top, top player and that’s highlighted with what he’s done in his career for club and country.
"For myself, it’s good to look up to someone like him and see if I can replicate his numbers in terms of goals and assists and the way he dribbles and things like that. It’s definitely good to have someone like him in the squad. He’s a great personality in the changing room and he’s someone who wants to help the team win more trophies and be the best he can be for Chelsea."
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