Tuchel boasts: Chelsea can beat anyone after Man City win
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel was impressed by his side’s 1-0 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday.
His team reached the final of the competition courtesy of a Hakim Ziyech goal, and after the match Tuchel told the BBC: “I’m very happy and proud of the team. We played against one of the strongest teams in Europe. There’s a big gap between us in the Premier League but the target was to close the gap for 90 minutes here. We played an excellent 35 minutes in the first half and an excellent half an hour in the second half.
That's one happy boss! 😃
Thomas Tuchel pays tribute to an exceptional Chelsea #FACup performance…
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 17, 2021
“I think we deserved the win. We could have scored the second goal to make it more calm, but we didn’t and had to suffer in the last minutes of the match. We defended with a lot of courage and didn’t allow any big chances. We needed this performance. I’m happy we stole the win.
“There’s a huge gap between us in the league because they’re so, so consistent. To play against each other in one match, anything is possible if you catch the momentum, if you’re brave, free and attack and defend as a team”
Tuchel claimed that Chelsea are capable of beating any opponent.
“It’s possible to beat any team for us,” he said.
“Our target was to reach the top level and see what happens, but you need a bit of luck.
FT. COME ON!!! 💙 WE'RE IN THE FA CUP FINAL!!! 🎉 pic.twitter.com/lA0xCYV19H
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 17, 2021
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“It was a team effort. It starts with the goalkeeper and it was important that the back five and midfielders were close together. It was important we found the rhythm in the first half not to be under too much pressure. That was the key to hurt them and to implement self-confidence.
“We’ve kept on pushing. The mentality and work ethic towards training is fantastic. I couldn’t be happier as a coach to be fighting with this team on the sidelines. It’s a very, very good moment. You see the structure and quality of the players and club. I play my part in this and try to keep the momentum going.”