Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne reveals the reason behind him leaving Chelsea for Wolfsburg

Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne told The Player’s Tribune (h/t football.london) that he decided to leave Chelsea because of a lack of playing time at the club.

The Belgian midfielder joined the Blues from KRC Genk in January 2012 but was loaned back to the club until the summer. Upon joining, it was clear that he was not a part of the first-team picture.

This resulted in a loan move to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, and ultimately, a permanent transfer to VfL Wolfsburg in the winter transfer window of 2014. His time at Chelsea was not productive.

De Bruyne made just 5 starts in all competitions for the club. The midfielder then revived his career at Wolfsburg, and earned a move to Manchester City, where he has become one of the best midfielders in the world.

A big mistake

And after 7 years of leaving the club, the 29-year-old maestro has revealed just why he took the decision to leave Stamford Bridge and if he regrets that move.

“I decided to go away because I felt I didn’t have any chances of playing at the time. I didn’t see more opportunities coming so for me, it was the best decision to leave Chelsea and go to a situation where I felt I could start again.”

He says that it was a low point in his career then, but he is happy that things have turned out the way they have.

“Did I expect it to go this way? Obviously not because at that time it was a low point in my career but I never had any doubt in my abilities as a football player.”

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea confident of bringing in Erling Haaland despite setbacks
• Chelsea hold an advantage in Ibrahima Konate pursuit
• Report: Chelsea receive a blow in pursuit of Gianluigi Donnarumma

This is one decision that would certainly haunt Chelsea. Even this season, he came back to haunt them with a goal and an assist when the two sides met in the league at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea planning to line up a new contract for Andreas Christensen

A report by The Telegraph (Subscription Required) states that Chelsea are looking to offer in-form centre-back Andreas Christensen a new contract.

The Danish defender has been in fine form ever since he replaced Thiago Silva against Tottenham Hotspur at half-time. Since then, Chelsea have conceded just 1 goal in the 7 games Christensen has played.

And even that solitary goal was an own-goal from Antonio Rudiger. The other game where Chelsea have conceded under Tuchel came against Southampton, where the 24-year-old was on the bench.

The Danish defender has looked imperious in the heart of the three-man-backline. His current contract expires in the summer of 2022 and talks regarding an extension are yet to begin.

A new deal?

The defender, who expects to play at the Euros in the summer for Denmark, could see his value increase in the coming months. And Chelsea would be aware of this.

The report also adds that Chelsea have been in the market for a defender, with both Ibrahima Konate and David Alaba linked with a transfer to Stamford Bridge. Chelsea’s current defenders have done well so far.

However, both Rudiger and Cesar Azpilicueta are also out of contract at the end of the 2021/22 season. On top of that, Thiago Silva turns 37 this year and is yet to put pen-to-paper on a new deal that currently expires in the summer. (h/t The Telegraph)

Fikayo Tomori, who is on loan from Chelsea at AC Milan, has impressed in Italy and is another defensive option for Tuchel. However, Milan have stated their intention to hold talks over the option to sign him permanently for £25m.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea confident of bringing in Erling Haaland despite setbacks
• Chelsea hold an advantage in Ibrahima Konate pursuit
• Report: Chelsea receive a blow in pursuit of Gianluigi Donnarumma

And so, tying down Christensen to a long-term deal could be crucial for the club. The Blues have looked solid with him in the team and his performances would warrant a start against Everton on Monday, despite Silva’s return from injury.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel says the credit should go to players for impressive unbeaten run

Speaking to the Chelsea FC website, manager Thomas Tuchel stated that the Chelsea players deserve credit for the team’s change in fortunes since his appointment.

The club sacked Frank Lampard in January after a run of 5 defeats in 8 Premier League games. Tuchel’s first game on the touchline came against Wolverhampton Wanderers in a 0-0 draw.

And since then, the club is yet to lose under him. Tuchel has managed 10 games so far in London, and the Blues are yet to face defeat in any of them.

This includes statement victories against Liverpool, Chelsea, and Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League. Moreover, the club has only conceded just 2 goals during that time.

And the former PSG boss is rightly drawing praise for his work at the club. But he modestly deflected most of it towards his players, who he seems to rate very highly.

“I’m very flattered to have such compliments come my way but all the plaudits and all the flowers should go to the players and to the club. Chelsea, as an organisation, has everything you need to be successful as a club.”

More of the same, please

Tuchel then lauded the club and the players for their commitment on the pitch as well as in the training ground, and stated that he wishes to maintain these levels in the coming weeks.

“There is so much talent at this club and it’s a pleasure to work with this group every day and compete against other top managers and teams.”

Chelsea take on Everton on Monday in a big Premier League encounter. The Blues moved to 4th in the table after a massive 1-0 win over Liverpool last week.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea confident of bringing in Erling Haaland despite setbacks
• Chelsea hold an advantage in Ibrahima Konate pursuit
• Report: Chelsea receive a blow in pursuit of Gianluigi Donnarumma

Tuchel would now hope that he helps the club finish in the top 4 once the season ends. The German manager is on an 18-month contract at Chelsea which expires at the end of next season.

CONMEBOL takes decision on World Cup qualifiers which affects Chelsea and other Premier League clubs

A report by football.london mentions that CONMEBOL, football’s governing body in South America, has decided to call off the World Cup qualifiers in the continent at the end of this month, which comes as good news for Chelsea.

This means that Premier League clubs will retain their South American players at the end of March. The qualifiers have been postponed and will be rescheduled for a future date.

This means that Chelsea will not see Thiago Silva (Brazil) and Willy Caballero (Argentina) fly out to play for their national team this season for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Earlier, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and Manchester United gaffer Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made a fuss about the qualifiers going ahead. In the scenario that they weren’t postponed, clubs would have lost their South American players for a period of at least 10 days.

No qualifiers

This is due to the Covid-19 ruling by the government that would require anyone coming back to the UK from ‘red list’ countries would require to quarantine for 10 days. (h/t football.london)

That list, of course, includes all of South America. It also contains Portugal and several parts of Africa. The international break was scheduled to run from 22nd March to 1st April.

Normally, FIFA rulings require the clubs to release their players for international duty during the international breaks on the footballing calendar. But this has changed temporarily.

FIFA added a Covid-19 clause in the ruling which allows the clubs to retain their players and not allow them to leave the United Kingdom until the end of April. This does not matter in this case anymore, as the qualifiers are now postponed.

More Chelsea News:

• Chelsea confident of bringing in Erling Haaland despite setbacks
• Chelsea hold an advantage in Ibrahima Konate pursuit
• Report: Chelsea receive a blow in pursuit of Gianluigi Donnarumma

Chelsea now take take on another Merseyside club in Everton after seeing off Liverpool last week. The Blues are in 4th spot and would look to continue their good run of form.