Thomas Tuchel has called on his team to put the pain of their FA Cup final defeat to Leicester to good use as motivation ahead of the two sides meeting again in the Premier League tomorrow evening.
The Foxes visit the Blues at Stamford Bridge for another major encounter, this time for a top-four finish, with the fixture coming off the back of Saturday’s FA Cup final at Wembley in which Leicester edged out Tuchel’s cavaliers by a solitary goal.
Despite the defeat, the German has reiterated how mentally strong his players are and believes the focus on their remaining goals will not waver.
“This is a strong group”, he explained.
Tuchel says his side didn’t get the rub of the green in their encounter against Leicester.
“There is no reason to doubt these players, who have done so well to get into the top four from 10th place, to reach the FA Cup final and to be in the final of the Champions League.
“We are strong enough to handles these situations and these are the challenges that we face. It’s not easy, but it is fun, and there are a lot of teams chasing us and our situation.”
The player key to the resurgence under Tuchel has been Mason Mount, with the midfielder time and again proving hhow invaluable he is to the team.
The England international came close to drawing the Blues level in the cup final, denied only by a slick Kasper Schmeichel save late on, and Tuchel had loads to say about Mason, confessing even that even though he would like to give the young lad a rest, he expects Mount to feature heavily in their final few games.
“We tried to give Mason a little break recently because he gave a lot in the Real Madrid games and he has been so decisive for us,” said Tuchel.
“We didn’t have much time between those games and the [Manchester] City match, particularly when you factor in the travel, but we wanted him to rest to conserve his energy and his form.
“I think he struggled a little bit in the game against Arsenal in terms of having his usual high standards and impact on the match. He has played the last few games in a double six role, which I don’t think is the best position for him, but I’m still so happy with Mason.
“In the cup final, perhaps he could have played with a little more composure but don’t forget, if it wasn’t for an incredible save from [Kasper] Schmeichel, then he would have scored an equaliser. It wasn’t to be but Mason is always a dangerous player for us and we should be careful that we don’t over-expect from Mason.
“He is a key player for us in every match, he’s always so decisive and that will not change for the next three matches. He is absolutely key for us.”