Thomas
Tuchel has defended Timo Werner from criticism over his performances and has
revealed that he stopped the struggling forward from doing extra finishing
training.
Werner has just two goals in his last 27 appearances for Chelsea in all
competitions, and attracted further derision when he missed a glorious
chance for Germany during their humiliating 2-1 defeat to North Macedonia
earlier this week.
However, Tuchel accused critics in his homeland of using Werner as a
scapegoat for all of Germany's issues, and suggested national team boss
Joachim Low should not have named him as a substitute in all three of his
side's fixtures during the international break.
Asked about Werner's miss against North Macedonia, Tuchel said: "First of
all, it was a bad pass from Ilkay Gundogan - that's how I see it!
"He missed a chance and now everybody is passionate to talk about it, which
is a bit annoying. The truth is he did not start three times for Germany, so
maybe if he has more minutes, maybe they would have scored more.
"It's an easy solution to point the finger at Timo, which I cannot fully
understand and I will not accept. I am happy that he's back here, because
here he's protected. We demand a lot from him; we get a lot from him.
"Yes, he is in a moment where he lacks confidence. The ball simply does not
work out like it usually works out. But he works hard for us.
"He scores for us, he's doing assists, he's winning penalties. So if this is
the most critical point in your career, you can accept it and say, 'it's
pretty impressive so far'.
"Now is the moment not to think about it, not to read about it and not even
to train extra. Yesterday I sent him in from training because he wanted to
do some finishing.
"I said, 'you don't need that. Your body, your brain knows how to score. You
did it since you were six years old. So don't worry, it will come.' The best
thing to do is to work hard and be fearless."
Tuchel further backed Werner by confirming he will start for Chelsea in
their Premier League fixture at home to West Brom on Saturday, although the
Blues will be without N'Golo Kante, who was injured on international duty
with France.
Tuchel believes the midfielder will also miss Wednesday's Champions League
quarter-final first leg against Porto, saying: "Probably, yes. It's very
likely that it's too soon.
"He's doing individual training. Tomorrow he will miss the game. It's a
little muscle injury. My realistic approach is to think for the second game
against Porto."
Tuchel brushes off Haaland, Aguero linksWerner's struggles have led to
speculation that Chelsea could once again be in the market for a new striker
this summer, with Erling Haaland and Sergio Aguero both linked with moves to
Stamford Bridge.
Haaland's agent Mino Raiola, plus his father Alf Inge Haaland, met officials
from Barcelona and Real Madrid on Thursday amid reports the 20-year-old
could leave Borussia Dortmund at the end of the season.
Chelsea would likely be one of only a handful of clubs that could afford the
Norwegian international were he to move this summer, but when asked about a
potential move, Tuchel said: "I will not answer that, out of respect for the
player and Borussia Dortmund.
"Of course it's big news around him and his agent. It seems like they are
creating a race for the player. But everybody needs to accept this is a
player for Borussia Dortmund. A very promising player, of course, but no
comments. He's not in our squad and not in our club."
Tuchel provided a similar answer when the issue of Sergio Aguero's future
was raised, with the striker leaving Manchester City when his contract
expires in June.
"It's the same answer like for Haaland," said Tuchel. "We have full respect
for Manchester City and Sergio Aguero. He is a big player for them.
"There is no word needed from me about the achievements of this guy. He is a
world-class player. But don't forget we compete in three competitions with
Man City, so I will never speak about the player's future, and I expect that
they do the same with our players."
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