TUCH DECISION
How Chelsea could line up against Real Madrid as Thomas Tuchel rules out ‘crazy’ reaction to Brentford drubbing
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THOMAS TUCHEL will not make any drastic changes to his team to face Real Madrid despite the 4-1 defeat to Brentford.
The Chelsea boss said he did not see the humiliating loss coming, even during the match, and he is concerned by that.
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But he is confident his squad knows what to do to respond - and that does not involve big changes or impassioned speeches.
Tuchel said to : "A win is always the most helpful to prepare the next match, so now it's a bit harder because we have to digest the big loss.
"We didn't see it coming really, and also not within the match, which is maybe the problem. I didn't see it coming and the players didn't see it coming so I'm involved in it.
"So we will now find a way to digest it and prepare for Real Madrid, and Real Madrid will do what they want to do with it.
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"I don't think that we will do crazy stuff now and give crazy speeches or whatever.
"We do what we need to do to prepare the next match as good as possible, it doesn't matter if it's [against] a big name or not such a big name, there are only tough matches out there for us in the last weeks of the season.
"Now we need to do our stuff better, on a higher level, more committed, more mature and we cannot lose concentration for a minute because you can get punished for that in the strongest league. It's very untypical for us but it happened on Saturday."
As a result, Tuchel will likely line up in a familiar formation with tried and tested personnel.
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The front five that orchestrated the win over Real Madrid last season - Jorginho, N'Golo Kante, Mason Mount, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz - could all feature again.
Andreas Christensen could still be absent which means Cesar Azpilicueta will likely continue in central defence alongside Antonio Rudiger and Thiago Silva, despite conceding four to Brentford.
Tuchel could mix things up by playing three in midfield which could mean Werner drops out for Matteo Kovacic and Christian Pulisic providing the pace up-front instead of Mount.
Chelsea have operated in such a style in big games against Manchester City and Lille this season but whatever happens, Havertz is sure to start.
Tuchel was impressed with his performance against the Bees, saying: "I felt he was our strongest player. He worked like an animal and he was very dangerous. I'm very happy with his performance."
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