1. Relationships
If there’s one thing you’ve heard about Tuchel by now, it’s likely the fact he has a shaky history with the decision makers at his former clubs. The German has butted heads with both the Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain boards on numerous occasions, which doesn’t exactly foreshadow a flawless relationship with the Chelsea hierarchy. As portrayed in the recent sacking saga with Lampard, the Blues’ board is one of the most ruthless in the sport. Luckily, that’s nothing new to Tuchel, who was sacked in Paris a few months after reaching a major cup final and winning a plethora of trophies.
At the end of the day, Tuchel is human though—we all have our flaws. If a manager’s sour relationships with the boards of his former employers are the biggest concern, Chelsea fans are being a bit nit-picky. The brains behind the Blues’ operation have dealt with their fair share of shaky relationships in the past, this would be nothing new. Luckily for the new manager, he’s already got a colossal figure in his corner: Roman Abramovich. Abramovich personally moved to bring Tuchel to SW6 and that’s the biggest possible endorsement an individual could get around Fulham Broadway.
One often underrated relationship a manager has though is his connection with the fans. Tuchel faces an uphill battle to win the support from the Chelsea faithful. He needs to say and do everything right within the first few weeks or risk a greater fall-out with those close to the club. Lampard recently found out the hard way that even though fans may not be allowed in the grounds at the moment, they undoubtedly still have a say in their clubs’ operations as social media critics seemingly sped up his sacking.
The fact of the matter is, at Stamford Bridge, there is only one thing that matters: winning. As long as Tuchel is able to steer clear of bad form, he will quickly convince the the board and supporters alike that he is the right man to lead Chelsea forward.