I THOUGHT REECE HAD BEEN CALLED UP TO PLAY WATER POLO!
Tuchel: James can’t play for England, he’s only fit enough to train in the pool
THOMAS Tuchel was stunned to find Reece James selected for England duty despite an ankle injury that is restricting the defender’s training schedule to exercises in the swimming pool.
‘You would assume so,’ replied Tuchel, when asked if James (right) had been summoned by Gareth Southgate after consultation with Chelsea and would be fit to face Southampton today.
‘When I saw it, I thought maybe Reece goes with the England water polo team because right now he trains in the pool.
‘I was a bit surprised when I found out he was playing for the football team. ‘This will not happen. My last information is he will not go. It must be a misunderstanding.’ The Chelsea boss insisted he did not expect a courtesy call from Southgate to check on the availability of players, and said such liaison is usually via technical director Petr Cech. Mason Mount is back from a knock as Tuchel seeks a response to losses against Manchester City and Juventus, and tries to free his £97.5million striker Romelu Lukaku from the shackles of opponents. Having made a prolific return to English football, Lukaku has now gone four games without a goal and there were accusations he had become isolated during Wednesday’s defeat in Turin.
‘Of course they isolated him,’ said Tuchel. ‘It felt like there were seven players around him all the time in the box.
‘Teams are well prepared against us. I see Zenit play a back five for the first time in 200 matches. I see Aston Villa play a back five when they never play a back five.
‘They are looking to close us down when maybe before they were looking to beat us. It is part of our success. There are solutions and we are on it.’
Tuchel also urged Timo Werner not to become frustrated by his limited involvement since Lukaku’s arrival.
‘He is a healthy young guy who has the best job in the world at one of the best clubs in the world,’ he said. ‘He has no reason to be frustrated. There are 100 reasons to be happy.’