Chelsea’s manager Thomas Tuchel has been named the Premier League Manager of the Month for October. The former Paris Saint-Germain boss has managed to completely change the Blues from a struggling team with talented individuals to a rock-solid squad with a defence that can withstand the strongest attacks in Europe. Last season, Tuchel took over Chelsea in the middle of a mid-table scrap. He elevated the Blues into the top four and won the UEFA Champions League, as well. This season, he has set his eyes on the domestic title. The way things are going Chelsea is on track to do just that after an amazing run in October that saw Tuchel recognized for his efforts.
The October fixture list might have looked easy for the Blues, but coming off of two major defeats to Manchester City and Juventus in September must have been tough for the so-called perfectionist. Toward the end of last month, supporters began to notice the overly defensive tactics used by the boss. This was obviously reflected in the stats, as well. While Chelsea did win comprehensively against Tottenham and Aston Villa in September, the Blues were not very convincing in the attacking phase and the scorelines did not reflect the true story. Thus, in October, Tuchel decided to play with more attacking intent and absolutely dominated the month.
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel wins the Premier League’s Manager of the Month award for the Blues’ superb run in October
Chelsea started the month in rather weak fashion with a mere 1-0 win against Brentford. While a win is a win and three points any day are better than a draw, the Blues had to work hard for the win. The Bees were always looking like a threat. From there onward, the team looked much better and its contest against Southampton was more dominant. After that came a brilliant and flawless 7-0 thrashing of Norwich City. All the players on the pitch looked very sharp and ready to fight for the title. These are the games that Chelsea often dropped points in, in years past. Now, it is good to see a clear difference between Tuchel’s men and the sides in the lower half of the table.
After the masterclass display against the Canaries, the London side went on to thrash Newcastle United 3-0 and there was never really a competition between the two sides. The Magpies are currently going through a big transitional phase and they were never going to match up against an in-form Chelsea side. The Blues also smashed Malmo 4-0 in the UEFA Champions League. Tuchel showed everyone throughout the month that he does not need his two natural strikers to get the job done in the short-term. His innovative and adaptive ways have really helped the club out a lot.
November began on the wrong foot though. The team is looking well polished, but Chelsea did drop points against Sean Dyche’s Burnley. Nevertheless, the team played with some real intent and dominated the entire match. Some incredible saves courtesy of Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope kept the Blues out. They will need to work on their finishing going forward. Regardless, Chelsea seems like a project that is close to perfection and Tuchel deservedly picked up the October award.
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