Football news - Thomas Tuchel praises Chelsea's 'unbelievable effort' against Atletico Madrid
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Published 17/03/2021 at 22:47 GMT
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel spoke after his side's 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid saw them through to the Champions League quarter-finals. Goals from Hakim Ziyech and then defender Emerson gave them the win, with Atletico kept quiet across both legs, marking a 13th straight game unbeaten for Chelsea under Tuchel.
Edouard Mendy and Thomas Tuchel
Image credit: Getty Images
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel praised his Chelsea side for their performance after a 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid.
The win gave them a 3-0 aggregate victory over Diego Simeone's side and is their 13th unbeaten game under Tuchel.
Speaking to BT Sport after the game, the German manager said: "Very good performance, unbelievable effort, even from the guys in the stands... could feel we totally wanted it.
"They tried to pressure us high in the first half but opened up some spaces in the back of the midfield and we could exploit it. Second half there were minutes where we suffered but we were ready to do what was necessary to win.
"We missed Andrea Christensen today, Thiago for many weeks - big personalities. I tell Kurt Zouma this morning he plays and he steps up. It's about team work, courage and reliability of feeling safe around each other."
Tuchel admitted that the task in hand might have been a lot harder had Cesar Azpilicueta been penalised for a foul in the box in the game's early stages.
"Is it a penalty? Azpi [Cescar Azpilicueta] got a bit frightened because his ball was short, I did not see it but was a bit frightened.
"We know if we cannot find solutions with offensive play we can rely on our physical game. We were absolutely not afraid to put it on a physical level if we don't get offensive solutions. We enjoyed the battle. The guys were totally on and sharp, we were super hungry to go through.
"Quarter-final means there's only four games - it's a big step and feels excellent."
Chelsea now await the Champions League quarter-final draw on Friday.
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