It was inside a soulless, pandemic-impacted Stamford Bridge that the bond shared between Thomas Tuchel and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was perhaps best highlighted.
Less than an hour earlier, the two had been opponents as Aubameyang captained Arsenal to an unexpected 1-0 victory over Tuchel's Chelsea. Yet there was no animosity. No hard feelings. It's why after showering and changing, Aubameyang took a seat in the away dugout and waited to greet the German.
Tuchel had his post-match media duties to undertake – and also needed to debate a crucial penalty decision with referee Andre Marriner and his assistants as they made their exit. But then his attention firmly turned to Aubameyang, who was warmly embraced by the Chelsea head coach.
