Pulisic remembers 'disappointing' Champions League decision by Tuchel

The American star struggled for game time under the former Chelsea manager.

Christian Pulisic was ‘dumbfounded’ by Thomas Tuchel’s decision not to start him in a key Champions League match.

The USMNT star played a key role in the first leg of the Blues’ 2021 semi-final clash against Real Madrid in the Champions League.

However, Tuchel decided to bench him for the second game, starting Kai Havertz in his position. The Chelsea star claims Tuchel had misled him prior to the game.

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“What happened before that game was hugely disappointing for me,” Pulisic wrote in his autobiography My Journey So Far. “I’d had a really good first leg performance and our following match was against Fulham in the league.

“Tuchel told me that he was resting me for the second leg and as a result I didn’t play a single minute in the Fulham game. Then on match day of the second semi, Tuchel tells me he’s changed his mind and he’s going with Kai.

“I honestly was dumbfounded and very disappointed. I thought that I’d earned a start and, most importantly, he had assured me previously I was going to start. So by the time he brought me on with about 25 minutes left, I was just so wound up.”

Chelsea lost 1-0 against Dynamo Zagreb in their first match after Tuchel’s exit on Wednesday. Graham Potter’s men will take on Crystal Palace in their first game after the international break.