PERFECTIONIST TUCHEL IS LAWN UNTO HIMSELF

CLASS ON GRASS: Tuchel and (right) Christian Heidel

WACKY Thomas Tuchel is such a perfectionist he once got down on his hands and knees to measure the grass on a football pitch.

And the Chelsea boss was so pleased with it, he even demanded his club sign the groundsman who laid and tended it.

Tuchel leads the Blues into tomorrow’s Champions League Final showdown with Manchester City with no worries about the playing surface in Porto.

But close friend Christian Heidel, who gave Tuchel his big break in football, says such an obsessive nature is the secret to his success.

Heidel is CEO of German minnows Mainz and promoted Tuchel from youth coach to first team manager there back in 2009.

He told Starsport: “We were once on a training camp in Austria for a friendly and Thomas was looking really closely at the grass.

“He was lying on the ground, measuring the height, sniffing… and he was so thrilled with this pitch he wanted me to sign the green-keeper!

“If you hire Thomas as a coach you need to be aware he is a perfectionist.

“He analyses every little detail – that’s why his teams are so good.”

Heidel describes Tuchel as a workaholic with a hunger to learn, and says he’s long been fascinated by City boss Pep Guardiola. Heidel said: “Once, we were sitting on the team bus and there was a documentary on the TV about Guardiola. “They were showing the pass pattern, like a map, of Guardiola’s players from one match. “And Thomas was studying this for two hours because he was so obsessed with this pattern and trying to learn more about football.

“He is hard working and has high demands on his teams, which is why they are so successful.

“He is always seeking perfection. He has a very strict plan and wants everything to go according to that plan.”