It is London derby day as the Blues from the west take on the Eagles from the south. Chelsea manager, Thomas Tuchel, has said Christian Pulisic can be a “huge weapon”, as the season enters its business end.
The Blues were shocked 5-2 by West Brom in their Premier League game and gave up the fourth place as a result.
However, Tuchel’s men bounced back with a 2-0 victory against FC Porto in the Champions League in midweek.
Pulisic looked lively when he came off the bench against the Portuguese side, while he also scored in the defeat to the Baggies and appears to have finally overcome the injury niggles that have plagued his season.
The American winger has only scored two goals in 20 league appearances, but Tuchel is hopeful he can reproduce that level of performance when they face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
When asked if Pulisic can replicate his form from last season’s run-in, and how important his fitness is, Tuchel replied: “I think for Christian fitness is always important.
“Especially for him, because he has this huge physical impact for us in the number of sprints and the amount of intensity that he can give to the team on the highest level.
“This is one of his biggest strengths. And the other thing is that he needs to feel confident and he needs to feel calm mentally and then he can be a huge weapon for us.”
Tuchel, has named two players that the club will not lose faith in. The players are Timo Werner and Kai Havertz.
Tuchel said this on Friday during his pre-match press conference ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Both Werner and Havertz struggled again in Chelsea’s Champions League win over Porto on Wednesday.
The Germans have scored just three goals between them since the start of 2021.
“They did not have the easiest task upfront. They had a big impact defensively, and they worked hard for us, both Kai [Havertz] and Timo [Werner],” Tuchel said.
“It was difficult for them to find spaces and create something, so we changed after 65 minutes, but we’ll not lose faith and trust.
Read Also: Chelsea Are One Foot In Semi-Finals As They Thrashed Porto 0-2 In Seville
“We accept sometimes it is hard sometimes to have a big impact. Maybe Timo misses a bit of confidence in his finishing, but Kai, I feel, is very self-confident.
“There are no bigger concerns. It was just in this game we tried to change the momentum.”
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