Thomas Tuchel praised Hakim Ziyech and Romelu Lukaku after Chelsea’s Premier League win over Tottenham.
Chelsea beat Spurs for the third time in 19 days thanks to Ziyech’s incredible strike and Thiago Silva’s header.
Tottenham felt aggrieved to go in at the break goalless after Harry Kane’s goal was disallowed for a foul on Silva.
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Spurs’ mood even got worse two minutes after half-time as Ziyech curled home a superb goal from 20 yards after a run from Callum Hudson-Odoi.
The Blues doubled their advantage on 55 minutes when Silva headed in from Mason Mount’s inviting free-kick.
‘Maybe it was his best game, it was a very good game overall,’ Tuchel said of Ziyech. ‘He took the risk where it was possible, he was safe when it was possible to be safe.
‘It’s probably the best position for him, we don’t normally have this position in a 4-3-3. The overlap gave him the space and the strike was brilliant.’
On Ziyech’s goal, Tuchel added: ‘I was right behind it! I had the feeling it was a bit too high but it dropped at the right second. It was a brilliant goal. His technique was brilliant.’
While Lukaku did not score – missing two decent chances in the first-half – the striker impressed Tuchel with his all-round display.
There has been much spotlight on Lukaku’s form since he angered Chelsea supporters with comments he gave during an interview with Sky Sports Italia.
Asked to rate Lukaku’s performance, Tuchel said: ‘Very good performance, very good team performance. He was absolutely reliable and put in a huge effort. It was a good match for him.’
Chelsea defeated Tottenham almost a year to the day that Tuchel took over from Frank Lampard as manager.
In his first year at Stamford Bridge, Tuchel guided Chelsea to Champions League glory and the FA Cup final.
‘A good year, a nice year,’ Tuchel said, reflecting on his time in charge of the Premier League giants.
‘I feel very good because it feels still like the first day, nothing has changed, it is exactly the right place to be. I feel an enormous amount of support – hopefully many more years to come.’
