Chelsea boss Tuchel wants titles; Bayern confident as PSG loom

Thomas Tuchel said on Monday that he came to Chelsea to immediately win titles as the Blues aim to take big steps toward Champions League and FA Cup success this week.

Tuchel’s men take a 2-0 lead into the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, second leg, against Porto on Tuesday before facing Manchester City in the FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday.

The German won silverware during his time at Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain and has made a big impact since replacing the sacked Frank Lampard in January.

In 17 games under Tuchel, Chelsea have lost just once to progress in both cup competitions and are within a point of the top four in the Premier League.

“If you can win consecutive games you can of course win titles because Chelsea is a club that has the culture, the history, the quality and the structure to do so,” said Tuchel, ahead of the return leg against the Portuguese giants, which is being held in Seville due to coronavirus restrictions on travel between Portugal and England.

“I am here to win games and as a result to win titles. This is what I demand of myself, so why now should we say we want to win in two or three or five years. Now is the time.

“But tomorrow is the game to play and there is no tougher game than the next game. There is no other obstacle to overcome than Porto tomorrow. We should not get lost in dreams and hopes and speeches. We are here in the reality and the reality is we have a hard battle. Hopefully after tomorrow we can talk about the semi-final.”

Tuchel will make a late decision on the fitness of N’Golo Kante after the Frenchman made his comeback from injury as a substitute in the first leg against Porto and a 4-1 rout of Crystal Palace at the weekend.

“Normally it is hard to imagine a game like this without N’Golo, but at the same time we need to be absolutely careful about him and that we don’t take risks with his health and with his injury situation,” added Tuchel.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich midfielder Joshua Kimmich is convinced the holders can beat Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday in their Champions League quarter-final second leg to reach the last four.

“I believe that we will progress, because we’re the better team,” Kimmich told the club’s website.

Bayern need to overturn a 3-2 defeat from last week’s first leg in Munich.

“We were the better team in the first leg, but unfortunately the result didn’t correspond to the performance,” added Kimmich.

“Nevertheless, I’m confident that we can still turn it around in the second leg.”

Despite peppering the PSG goal with 31 shots, 12 on target, Bayern lost the first leg at home after Kylian Mbappe scored twice and Marquinhos also hit the net as PSG had just four shots on target.

“In the first leg, they threatened three times and scored three times,” said Kimmich.

“Apart from that, I don’t remember Paris having that many chances. Overall, our attack had more possession and more chances. Now we have to take these chances.”

Bayern are without injured top-scorer Robert Lewandowski and winger Serge Gnabry after he tested positive for Covid-19.

However, Bayern coach Hansi Flick says Leon Goretzka, Lucas Hernandez, Jerome Boateng and Kingsley Coman have shaken off knocks and should be fit.

“We have to do our job, force them to make mistakes,” Flick told a press conference on Monday. “It’s a tough task, but we want to create a little surprise.”

Kimmich added: “A lot will come down to mentality, but also efficiency.

“We already showed a good mentality in the first game but we weren’t efficient enough. This time we need both. It’s down to every individual in our team, not just me. Every player must become a leader in this game.

“Everyone must show their character on the day and have total belief in themselves. And then we have to strike when the chance comes.”

Bayern need to win by two clear goals or score three times and win by one to have a chance of going through, but forward Thomas Mueller said the German champions would not be reckless.

“Despite our attack-minded philosophy, we’ll avoid playing with five strikers and one midfielder,” Mueller told reporters Monday.

“We want to push for our first goal very quickly, but not use the crowbar from the start.”

Mueller highlighted the importance of not allowing Mbappe to attack the space behind Bayern’s defence.

“Mbappe in particular is very dangerous. The way we play creates space, so it is important that he cannot be left to run on his own in space,” added Mueller.

Agencies