Although Thomas Tuchel may have come away from St. Mary’s disappointed that his Chelsea side hadn’t taken all three points at Southampton, there was still enough for him to be pleased about.
Not least the colossal performance put in by central midfielder, N’Golo Kante.
MORE: These Chelsea fans are disgusted by Tuchel
The Frenchman’s future at Stamford Bridge was being questioned during Frank Lampard’s tenure, but he’s proved beyond doubt since Tuchel’s arrival that he deserves to keep his spot.
Once again on Saturday he provided incredible figures.
Most ball recoveries (13), most tackles made (7), most interceptions (4), with 1– percent of his take-ons completed and 100 percent of his aerial duels won.
N’Golo Kanté vs. Southampton:
? Most ball recoveries (13)
? Most tackles made (7)
? =Most interceptions (4)
? 100% take-ons completed
? 100% aerial duels wonA huge shift. pic.twitter.com/7KTHmSLz9b
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) February 20, 2021
That’s certainly the way to go about impressing your new manager. One who is clearly ruthless when it comes to how he sees the game.
Callum Hudson-Odoi came on at half-time, only to be hooked 30 minutes later with the German suggesting after the game that his attitude was the issue.
Thomas Tuchel: “With Hudson-Odoi, I was not happy with the energy and with the attitude and counter-pressing so we decided to take him off.”
— Squawka News (@SquawkaNews) February 20, 2021
There’s certainly no problem with Kante’s application.