Marcus Alonso has aimed a fresh dig at former Chelsea boss Frank Lampard after saying the Blues ‘took a leap tactically’ after appointing Thomas Tuchel last year.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, the wing-back discussed how Chelsea managed to win the UEFA Champions League last season after appointing Tuchel midway through the season following Lampard’s dismissal. The former midfield great - now in charge of Everton - never saw eye to eye with Alonso and demoted him from the starting XI during his stint in the dugout, more often than not favouring Ben Chilwell in the position.
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Tuchel’s arrival saw Alonso’s playing opportunities increase though, with the Spaniard playing 180 minutes against Atletico Madrid in the last-16 of the Champions League as Chelsea won 3-0 on aggregate. He also made a string of appearances in the Premier League, even scoring in the 2-1 win over Manchester City at the Etihad and starting the FA Cup final against Leicester.
And when asked what he thought of Tuchel, Alonso couldn’t help but make a sly dig at how he perceived the managerial change: “Since he [Tuchel] arrived, the team took a leap tactically and when it came to defending. We are very happy with it,” he told AS.
Alonso also said the reason Chelsea were able to go all the way and win the Champions League last season was due to their attention to detail. The Blues beat Atletico, Porto and Real Madrid in the knockout stages before beating Man City 1-0 in the final to lift their second European Cup in nine years.
“We were a very balanced team,” he explained. “In these close qualifiers, the little details make the difference. We were a team in every way. We defended very well, we were an uncomfortable team to play with, we defended all eleven and the small details made the difference. At this point in the Champions League, everything is very even and it depends on very small details.”
The Blues will have to beat Real Madrid over two legs once again if they are to lift the Champions League for a second year running after they were drawn against the competition’s most successful side in the quarter-finals. Los Blancos overcame a two-goal deficit in their last-16 tie with Paris Saint-Germain when Karim Benzema scored a 17-minute hat-trick at the Bernabeu to knock out the Parisians.
“I knew from before the tie that Madrid was a very dangerous team,” said Alonso. “As superior as PSG were for much of the tie, you can never give Madrid up for dead. Of course, it's always difficult to face Real Madrid at any time and especially in a competition like the Champions League.
“We already showed last year what we are capable of. It's a different year, another moment, but we're facing two great teams and we'll try to give everything to reach the semi-finals.”
