Chelsea
head coach Thomas Tuchel says he is the happiest he has been in a
professional sense since taking over at Stamford Bridge.
Tuchel continued his excellent start to life in England by guiding Chelsea
past Real Madrid and into the Champions League final against Manchester City
earlier this week.
Chelsea also have qualification for next season's competition via a top-four
finish in the Premier League in their own hands following a significant
improvement to their league form after Tuchel's arrival.
When asked how he has enjoyed his time in England so far, Tuchel told Sky
Sports: "Absolutely, yes (it is the happiest I have been professionally), it
feels very, very good to be coach here and it has felt like this from the
first day and has never changed and I say this regularly to my family, to my
friends.
"I say it out loud that it is like this and I don't hold back and that if it
ever changes, that they should remind me that I said it out loud. I don't
want to hold back but I never got the feeling I have to hold back.
"I'm absolutely happy and it feels like the right place at the right moment
to be for me. Hopefully everybody feels it and hopefully that makes me
confident and calm.
"I have the feeling I can totally concentrate on my job as coach and I'm
appreciated and in the right place at the right moment. It feels like a big
reward and I'm very happy about it."
Tuchel: PL not easy, I've not experienced
away fans yet
Despite his early success, Tuchel says he is not allowing himself to fall
into a false sense of security over how easy the Premier League is.
The former Borussia Dortmund and PSG head coach understands there will be a
marked difference in intensity, especially in away games, once spectators
are allowed back into grounds.
He continued: "No, (it has not been easy). It's super hard, it's even harder
than we expected. It matches minimum all the expectations. So from the
intensity level to the schedule we have and what it demands from you, every
team has a unique style of playing and it's so intense. At the moment, there
aren't even supporters.
"I can hardly imagine what it's like to play all these away games at
Southampton, at Leeds, at Liverpool. I've played Liverpool twice already but
to play all these matches against smaller teams with the support of their
spectators.
"I don't know what would have happened if we arrived in the FA Cup at
Barnsley and they had their enthusiastic crowd behind them, maybe we would
not be in the FA Cup final.
"It demands a lot from the players and it sharpens their mentality and the
mentality of the coach and it brings out the very best in us. It's exactly
the challenge we wanted, it's a big adventure and we're happy to be in it."
Tuchel out to turn Chelsea into Man
City-like 'machine'
Tuchel described Saturday's opponents Manchester City as a "winning machine"
ahead of this weekend's game, live on Sky Sports Premier League.
The German, a rival and admirer of Pep Guardiola, says he wants to transform
his team in a similar way to how the Spaniard has Manchester City.
He said: "Hopefully we are on our way, this is the job. I want to transform
Chelsea with the support of everyone around me and the players of course. We
want to become a winning machine, we want to become a reliable squad who can
produce these kinds of performances that leads to results every three days.
"I'm very pleased because that's what we are actually doing at the moment
and it's very impressive. It's a pure joy to be on the sideline and guide
this team and be part of this club."
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