Chelsea will be looking to win the FA Cup for the first time since 2018 when they face Liverpool this afternoon at Wembley.
Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel’s past two outings to Wembley had ended in defeat. When his Blues face Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in the FA Cup final this afternoon, he’ll be hoping for third time lucky.
Tuchel led Chelsea to the final of the world’s oldest club league last season. Nonetheless, a mediocre and lackluster performance was produced, allowing Leicester City to claim the prestigious trophy. Tuchel is intent on ensuring that the disappointment felt after that setback is not repeated.
“We will do everything to be happy with ourselves and that we leave everything out there on the pitch,” Tuchel said during his pre-match press conference. “In these finals, there is a special energy, a special atmosphere. There is a special momentum you have to catch, and for sure, you need a piece of luck to go away with a trophy.
“We are aware of that. We feel again well prepared. The atmosphere is right. The momentum is okay after the reaction in Leeds. Everybody knows what we are up to. We want to arrive to give Liverpool a hard fight.”
Tuchel is concerned about the fitness of Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante ahead of the encounter. The former sustained an ankle injury in midweek’s win against Leeds United, while Kante has been out for two weeks with an unexplained injury. Callum Hudson-Odoi (Achilles) and Ben Chilwell (knee) are also out.
Tuchel must make important judgments all over the field. However, Edouard Mendy will start in goal. Another question is whether he will finish the game if it goes to a penalty shootout.
In the Carabao Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea in February, the Senegal international was taken off in the dying stages of the game and replaced by Kepa Arrizabalaga for the shootout.
It was a gamble that did not pay off; the Spaniard failed to save any of Liverpool’s penalty kicks and missed the game-winning one for Chelsea. Tuchel, though, was diplomatic when asked if he would be willing to repeat the process ahead of tomorrow’s encounter at Wembley.
“In the approach to the match, we always say let’s wait and see how the game goes, let’s see if we still have a change available. Let’s see how the match goes for Edou. It [the decision] is never made before and it will not be made now. We have a plan for what we can do.”
Tuchel must make an important decision on who lines up on the right side of his back three. Cesar Azpilicueta has made two high-profile errors in recent weeks, while Andreas Christensen has struggled to find his best form in the second half of the season.
Then there’s Trevoh Chalobah, who started against Leeds and contributed to the Blues’ clean sheet. The academy graduate, on the other hand, has oddly fallen out of favor in the previous two months. Tuchel is expected to stick with his captain, leaving the Blues with a defensive trio of Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, and Antonio Rudiger.
Reece James, who talked to football.london alongside his sister Lauren in the build-up to tomorrow’s final and the Women’s FA Cup final on Sunday, is anticipated to start at right wing-back, with Marcos Alonso remaining on the other flank.
Jorginho is a foregone conclusion to start and will very certainly be paired in midfield by Kante provided the Frenchman survives yesterday’s training session at Cobham. Kovacic may be on the bench and called upon if necessary.
Mason Mount is expected to preserve his position in the Chelsea attack after scoring and assisting against Leeds United in midweek. Christian Pulisic will be hoping to do the same after scoring at Elland Road.
Tuchel must decide who will lead his attack. Lukaku has started the last two games and scored three goals. But Kai Havertz is new and does the impromptu work that Tuchel requires. “We can play both, but they lacked a little of the feeling of being a perfect fit together,” Chelsea head coach Jose Mourinho remarked during his pre-match press conference.
“It’s very likely that it is one of the two, but we will not give away the line-up. Listen, Romelu has played lately and scored lately. He did everything to stay on the pitch. Will be our final call in the morning.”
Given what Tuchel expects from his attacking players – and what performed well in the Carabao Cup final – Havertz may get the nod ahead of Lukaku. However, the Belgian could provide a potent danger off the bench against a tired Liverpool defense.
Predicted Chelsea’s starting lineup is as follows: Mendy; Azpilicueta, Silva, Rudiger; James, Kante, Jorginho, Alonso; Mount, Havertz, and Pulisic.
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