Thomas Tuchel, one of European football’s most successful head coaches, was appointed on Tuesday to replace the sacked Frank Lampard at Chelsea.
The German has signed an 18-month contract with the Blues with the possibility of an extension and has expressed his excitement at becoming the new Chelsea boss.
“I would like to thank Chelsea FC for their confidence in me and my staff.” Tuchel said.
Lampard was sacked on Monday, with Chelsea struggling in the league after picking up just eight wins from their 19 game so far.
“We all have the greatest respect for Frank Lampard’s work and the legacy he created at Chelsea. At the same time, I cannot wait to meet my new team and compete in the most exciting league in football. I am grateful to now be part of the Chelsea family.” Tuchel said.
Tuchel was sacked after an inconsistent start to the 2020-21 season despite having guided Ligue 1 champions Paris-Saint-Germain to their first Champions League final in August, where they lost 1-0 to Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
The 47-year-old coach has won admirers throughout his coaching career for getting his teams to adopt high-pressing and attacking football, qualities which have become demands of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich in recent weeks.
“It is never easy to change manager in the middle of the season but we are very happy to secure one of Europe’s best coaches in Thomas Tuchel.” Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia said.
There is still much to play for and much to achieve, this season and beyond. We welcome Thomas to the Club.” she added.
Tuchel’s first game in charge will be a trip to 14th-placed Wolves on Wednesday. He will be reunited with Christian Pulisic and Thiago Silva who he coached during his times in Borrusia Dortmund and PSG successively.
