Chelsea won their first pre-season game against Mexican side Club America on Saturday. Second-half goals from Timo Werner and Mason Mount were enough to gift Thomas Tuchel’s side their first pre-season victory. What stole headline was Reece James’ bizarre own goal in the 60th minutes.
Conor Gallagher had an exceptional season on loan at Crystal Palace and will be hoping to replicate his last season’s form to Chelsea and earn a place in Thomas Tuchel’s lineup.
The 22-year-old England international started the game in midfield with Ross Barkley in Thomas Tuchel’s usual 3-4-2-1 formation but was substituted in the second half.
However, Thomas Tuchel was impressed with Conor Gallagher’s work rate and claims he could be a big asset for Chelsea.
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What did Thomas Tuchel say about Conor Gallagher’s performance?
Speaking at a press conference after Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over Club America, the German tactician said: “With Conor, the same as a midfield player. Conor trains at a really high level, and you can clearly see it was the right decision to let him go on loan. He made a huge step in his development at Crystal Palace and became an England player. We can see this clearly in training. It was a very good start and a good match for him.
“Now, for him, it’s important he gets used to our principles of the game, to understand when to move and when not to move, and his work rate is outstanding, and he has such a big heart. He can be a big asset for us.”
Thomas Tuchel was also impressed with Timo Werner’s performance.
Thomas Tuchel added: “We need to see, but everybody is responsible for their own situation, as is Timo. Timo played 45 like everybody else, and he scored. That’s what counts, and from there, we go. There is always stuff to improve, but it’s the first match. Kai (Havertz) had a big chance, Michy (Batshuayi) had a big chance, Timo took his chance, and so did Mason (Mount).
“I count on the facts they become more experienced and maybe more calm and adapt more and more. They are still young players, and this is what we want from them: that they stay confident and stay focused and do what they need to do as strikers.”
Meanwhile, Thomas Tuchel heaped praises on Chelsea youngster Ethan Ampadu claiming he has a chance at Chelsea.
Thomas Tuchel continued: Everybody has a chance. I was a bit sad today because some youngsters had to be outside [the squad] due to injury or to the fact that we had too many players for two teams of twenty players that we used. Some other players deserved to play. For example, Harvey Vale had a fantastic tournament with England Under-19s and did very well in training.
“Ethan did very well, I think. The position is a good position for him in the middle of the back three. He played a lot of vertical passes and did not play left to right only. He played through the lines with his passes and dribbles. So he was very active, and it was a good match for him. He is training well.”
