Thomas Tuchel decided to buy Raheem Sterling after finding the England winger “horrible” to defend against as a Manchester City player.
The 27-year-old could feature in Nevada on Saturday as Chelsea face Club America in their first pre-season game. Sterling, a four-time title winner, represents a bargain at £47.5million after leaving the Etihad in search of regular first team football.
Asked when he first decided to buy the wide man, Tuchel said: “Every time we played against him. He’s horrible to play against, horrible!
“The main point is his intensity and the amount of repetition of intensity that he delivers. This is simply outstanding over the last few years. It’s not about his goalscoring in the last season, it’s not about his performance against us. It’s, of course, eye-catching when he plays against you - he caused huge trouble when he played against us.
How many goals will Raheem Sterling score for Chelsea this season? Join the discussion in the comments section.
“And once you dig deeper into his data and not only statistics in his goal involvements, but into his intensity, high-speed intensity, over 30kms an hour, and the amount of repetitive intensity, it’s outstanding. It’s exactly what we need to raise the level of our players, so that they understand what is needed. That’s why we were so sure and why he was for us top of the list.”
Asked how quickly he asked new owner Todd Boehly to land Sterling, Tuchel added: “He was top of the list. He was the absolute number one for that position. I gave his name to Todd straight away, as we analysed the season, Todd and Behdad Eghbali, our owners, in the first week after the end of the season.
“I was not surprised we could get him. On a one-year contract you always have a chance and you can always have a go. It’s the same for us. Sometimes you have to make strategic decisions. When we were aware of it for us it was clear that we would try.”
Tuchel has also revealed Raheem Sterling never mentioned the racist abuse he suffered at Chelsea during talks over his transfer.
England’s ex-Manchester City forward sent shock waves throughout English football and the country’s media with a demand to get its house in order after he was targeted in December 2018. But while some people felt the incident would put Sterling off moving to Stamford Bridge, Tuchel revealed it was never an issue.
“He didn’t mention it,” Tuchel said. “I had a long talk with him and he had no hesitation about coming. He didn’t mention it and I think he knows that one person does not reflect the opinion and the values of Chelsea.”
The fan was banned from the Bridge by Chelsea. Tuchel added: “I was not at the club, but whoever did this has surely no right to ever come to a football stadium. He should be held responsible for what he did. He is stupid enough to have done it and hold these kinds of opinions.
“From there, we don’t worry anymore. Raheem is more than welcome in our group. I’ve told him that everyone is very excited and happy to get to the finishing line. His arrival gave us a big boost and it is hopefully only the beginning of a strong transfer where we need to be competitive. I see no other reason to give him anything other than a very warm welcome with us and how we work together.”
