Thomas Tuchel has confirmed his representatives have held contract talks with Chelsea over extending his stay at Stamford Bridge.
The 48-year-old, who arrived in the capital back in January 2021 succeeding Frank Lampard, has been a great success for the Blues which has seen him guide the club to Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup triumphs during his 19 months.
Tuchel was initially given an 18-month deal at Chelsea but that was extended until 2024 following the Champions League win in Porto against Manchester City last May.
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The Chelsea head coach has played a big part in the transition of Roman Abramovich selling the Stamford Bridge outfit and the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital consortium taking over in west London.
He has been backed by the new owners this summer who have given him six new signings, some for instant success (Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella) and some for the future (Gabriel Slonina, Carney Chukwuemeka and Cesare Casadei).
But they aren’t done yet with several more names expected to arrive before the end of the summer transfer window, while backing is being done with the current players as long-term deals are set to be offered to the likes of Mason Mount and Reece James.
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Tuchel has been given full control of the market by the new owners, a sign of faith and trust as the new relationship continues to develop.
There were reports that the club were ready to speak to the German over extending his current deal at the club until 2026 and that has now been confirmed by Tuchel.
However, the Chelsea boss wants to focus on matters on the pitch for now. Despite this, he believes it’s a “good thing” that the club is showing intent of keeping him.
He told reporters: “There are talks. But I think given the situation where we come from, and where we are in the middle of the transfer period, I think it is the very best if I focus on my team and on sports and on being competitive.
"My people talk to the owners and take care of everything else.
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"You know how glad I am to be here and how much I like it. So it’s a good thing."
Tuchel is pleased with what he has seen from his side already this season, even after drawing against Spurs, but is wanting more signings if they are possible.
He added: "I’m very happy, very confident after last week’s performance because I saw a good team, very good team performance. Excellent match.
"Like I told you, we work together about the reinforcements but it’s never easy and it’s not that we can just wish for something and it will happen.
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"As long as the transfer window is open, there’s always possibilities.
"We know what we are trying, we know what we are doing. The focus is on what we have, not what we could have. This is the team, they get their full energy and attention from us.”
Topics: Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea, Football, Todd Boehly
Matthew Debono