says he’s made it clear in his talks with Andreas Christensen he still demands 100% focus from him in the end of season run-in even if he looks set to leave the club.
The Dane’s contract with the Blues expires at the end of the season and there looks to be little indication so far he’s set to sign a new deal.
Christensen has been strongly linked with a move to and amid the speculation he’s found himself in and out of Tuchel’s starting XI.
Speaking ahead of ’s clash with Real Madrid this evening, Tuchel made it clear he still expects Christensen to give his all until the end of the season.
‘Maybe it is a bit more challenging for him [Christensen] than normal, in a moment where everything is clear or you’re fully committed to the club you play for, which is us and Chelsea,’ he said.
‘Maybe he cleared his future, I don’t know it yet, but for me it was very clear when I started, and the bottom line in conversations I had with him was that as long as you’re my player I expect you to be 100 per cent committed and I will not accept anything less.
‘I will not start digging into how committed he is now; this only leads to distraction. This is what I demand from him. He is our player and we want to have the most of him.
‘He needs to be focused, he needs to be determined, and this is what we expect from him. And I think it is what we can expect from him.’
Christensen has been with the Blues since 2013, winning the Champions League and the Europa League in is time with the club.
But the 25-year-old now looks set for a fresh challenge in La Liga, and Tuchel was a bit more frank when asked whether it could be the right move for his career.
‘The situation of the club was pretty sure. I think I gave an honest statement that he is in exactly the right place for his journey,’ Tuchel added.
‘That he could continue with this club and become the defender that he can be, the real personality and the playing minutes figure that he wants to be.
‘In my opinion, he shouldn’t forget where he comes from, where his education comes from, where is home and that’s just my opinion.
‘He needs that kind of environment to bring the best out of him. That’s just my opinion and I gave it some weeks ago but the talks in autumn and the summer were constant talks.
‘We are in exchange with our players of course. I hope that my talks didn’t make him want to leave but I don’t think so.’
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