Thomas Tuchel told talkSPORT that he had a bad Christmas, but is now overjoyed to be the head of Chelsea and head the Premier League.
Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard at the Stamford Bridge hotseat this week and oversaw his first game on Wednesday night, just 48 hours after entering.
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Thomas Tuchel replaced Frank Lampard at Chelsea
The German was only fired by Paris Saint-Germain in December, but he wasted no time in taking a new position at Chelsea.
Speaking to talkSPORT after Chelsea’s 0-0 draw with the Wolves, Tuchel said: “The league itself [excites me], and the club and this league are incredible.
“In terms of work, I had a very bad Christmas and, suddenly, it seems that I found the best gift and forgot the best gift under the Christmas tree and it is there.
“It is a dream to be in competition with the best teams and the best coaches; that’s what you dream of and when it comes true it’s an incredible feeling.
“In general, I had doubts that this was going to happen and suddenly in the last 72 hours it was Chelsea and the Premier League.
“I had the feeling that I couldn’t let this possibility pass me by, as I would regret it for the rest of my life as a coach.
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Frank Lampard directed Chelsea for 18 months
“Of course, with all due respect to Frank Lampard’s legacy and work here was the possibility … and in the end there was no doubt about jumping because the combination and mix in the team of personality, experience and intellect is incredible to work with. “
When asked if he had any reservations about replacing the Lampard club legend, Tuchel added: “I certainly have a lot of respect and the club made that decision and it has nothing to do with me. I had the chance and that’s it. “
Tuchel’s debut was hardly a classic, as the game with Wolves at Stamford Bridge ended in a stalemate.
Chelsea had a lot of possession and passed the ball more than 800 times, but failed to get that important revelation.
But Tuchel was more than happy with the first impressions of his side.
He continued: “I was very happy and at the same time impressed with the intensity of my team. I was very happy with the energy and attitude, so I learned today that the guys are totally reliable.
“They were absolutely focused since yesterday’s training, an hour of tactical session and today the two talks, I could see everything out there on the field.
“Great recoveries in the final third and I learned that we have a very good mix in the group, a high quality group that is ready to play in a group and [it was] totally reliable performance.
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Chelsea moved quickly to bring Tuchel to Stamford Bridge
“I’m very happy with that and anywhere in the world on the field, if you don’t score, you can’t win.
“Scoring is the most difficult thing and against a team that defends as well as wolves you may need half a chance, a little or luck, an opener to make things easier, but there is no room for doubt now.”
Tuchel also admitted that he had to limit the amount of information he gave his players with so little time to work with them.
He concluded: “You always have to be selective because less is more. Yesterday’s team, in training, we talked about certain things about attack and defense, which were very open and absolutely ready to do what was necessary.
“It was a very good performance and always makes me want to give a lot of information, but less is more.
“In terms of structure and intensity – I was very happy.”