Thomas Tuchel
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has said the Premier League (PL) are playing a dangerous game with player safety after the London club were forced to play their 0-0 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux on Sunday.
Chelsea were left angry after their request to postpone Sunday’s game was rejected despite recording seven COVID-19 cases in their camp, including Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Callum Hudson-Odoi.
Tuchel said he is concerned about the growing number of infections in his squad and believes that by travelling together and sharing a dressing room, there is a strong possibility of more.
“We talk a lot about safety and protecting the players, but I’m not so sure we did this today,” Tuchel told Sky Sports.
“If we have tomorrow and the next test, the next positive, I would like to speak to the Premier League about what they expect.
“We were made to be in the bus and travel together for three hours, we were in meetings together, in dinner and lunch and the situation does not feel like it will stop if we keep on doing this.”
Tuchel said he fears Chelsea could be without more players for Wednesday’s League Cup quarterfinal at Brentford.
“If they make us play against Brentford, shall we not arrive or not train? What should we do?”
A total of 10 Premier League games have been postponed due to outbreaks of COVID-19, and clubs will hold a meeting on Monday to discuss the ongoing crisis.
The Chelsea boss said he feels the club made a strong case for the Wolves game to be postponed.
“We applied for not playing. It was rejected… it is very hard to understand it, we are concerned about the health of the players,” he said before the match.