Thomas Tuchel believes Hakim Ziyech and Kai Havertz are currently ‘not in their very best shape’ after Chelsea’s 3-1 win over Southampton on Saturday.
Trevoh Chalobah gave Chelsea the lead at Stamford Bridge before James Ward-Prowse equalised via a penalty for Southampton.
Ward-Prowse was sent off shortly after and the London club’s pressure finally paid off as late goals from Timo Werner and Ben Chilwell secured the win for the Blues.
Both Ziyech and Havertz were unused subs for the game, with both Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley given minutes instead.
And Tuchel admits that Ziyech and Havertz are struggling to find their best form. He said: ‘We always try to do our best to bring the players in the best shape but at some point after a lot of chances we have to admit that Kai and Hakim, for example, are not in their very best shape.
‘It’s maybe not even their fault, it’s just like this in the moment. They struggle in the moment to be decisive.
‘For example, we had a period after pre-season where Kai and Hakim were very decisive for us. Hakim was a key player in our preparation. Even in the first game we played against Villarreal in the Super Cup final, Kai delivered the assist for Hakim’s goal.
‘This is where they came from but they lost maybe the belief or confidence. We will not stop to push them, nobody is angry at them, nobody has major concerns but we have to pay attention to actual form and we need to win games.
‘Today was a day where we felt we needed a bit of a mix of players who are actually used to our style of play then we can have quick decisions because we knew about the high pressing and intensive game of Southampton. On the other hand, some players who don’t feel the pressure so much and maybe do not have these high expectations to themselves and also from us the expectations are maybe very high towards Hakim, Timo and Kai.
‘Not because we want to overwhelm them with our expectations but because we know what they can deliver and we want to have it. At a club like Chelsea, you need to be sharp every three days and fight for your place. This is what is going on.’
