Trusted Tuchel ally confirms crucial selection decision still to be made for Club World Cup
Zsolt Low, assistant coach to Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea, has revealed talks must be held to decide at least one aspect of their lineup for their first Club World Cup fixture.
Chelsea will be taking on Al-Hilal in the semi-final of the international tournament on Wednesday. As Champions League holders, they will be hoping to continue the European stranglehold on the competition.
Indeed, the last time a non-European side won the Club World Cup was when Chelsea lost the final to Corinthians in 2012.
Now, it is a shift of focus for the Blues, who are in Abu Dhabi to take on Asian champions Al-Hilal. They have travelled without head coach Tuchel due to a positive Covid-19 test.
Therefore, his assistant Low has been speaking to the press in his absence. And when providing some team news, the coach admitted they still have a decision to make in terms of the goalkeeping berth.
Edouard Mendy has been away on a successful Africa Cup of Nations mission with Senegal. But he could be back to compete with Kepa Arrizabalaga for the jersey.
Low said at a press conference: “Mendy will arrive probably later today or tomorrow and we’ll see how tired he is.
“He has to arrive first, we have to check him and talk to him. We’ll see if it’s possible he plays, maybe.
“We have two amazing goalkeepers. Mendy made a fantastic performance to win the Africa Cup and be best goalkeeper but Kepa does an amazing job with us here.
“In last game he saved an important penalty and is in good shape. We’ll have talks with the goalkeeping coaches before deciding.”
Outfield, Low and the rest of the Chelsea staff must also wait to make a decision about the availability of midfielder Mason Mount.
He clarified: “Mason is getting better and better every team. We’ll see how he moves and feels today, take the last decision tomorrow.”
But one man who will definitely be absent, despite travelling, is wing-back Reece James.
Low said: “Reece James, no chance he’ll play in the cup. He’s in a good way but will miss still some days. He’s here to enjoy the group again.”
Low also confirmed it is “possible” that Hakim Ziyech will start after a return to form.
Chelsea getting by in Tuchel absence
Throughout the press conference, Low faced several questions about the absent Tuchel. And it is clear the head coach will still play an important role from home.
Low said: “We are constantly in contract with Thomas. We’re using video calling all the time.
“We change our ideas a lot of times in the day. We have good conversation to make it like he is here with us together.”
The UAE is four hours ahead of UK time, but Low does not think that will be a problem for their communication.
He said: “Not necessary to change time zone. We have meetings with an alarm call. If we need him at 6am, we need him at 6am and we are training in the afternoon so Thomas is already awake.
“Maybe he can connect with the team. In the hotel is a bit easier with the connection. Maybe here in the dressing room can be more difficult.
“We all the time have phone contact also during the game so he can analyse and try to translate to the team.”
However, he did confirm Tuchel’s own claims that using his phone is not the manager’s strong point!
Low said of his superior: “You cannot copy him. We have to share the whole training and coaching staff, we have to share different things on the sideline.
“We try to push the team forward, change all the time. Phone calls and messages aren’t Thomas’ strongest part but he needs to be prepared and ready and be with us on the phone. He’s been absolutely perfect in the last days.”
Low was not yet able to confirm whether Tuchel will be able to travel on Friday, merely sharing his “hope the next [test] will be negative”.
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