Chelsea’s shock home defeat by West Brom serves as a ‘lesson’ for Thomas Tuchel, according to Joe Cole – with pundit insisting ‘this isn’t the Bundesliga’ and praising ‘unwavering’ quality in the Premier League
Chelsea‘s chastening home defeat by West Brom serves as a harsh ‘lesson’ for Thomas Tuchel, according to Joe Cole.
Tuchel was made to suffer his first loss at the helm since replacing Frank Lampard – and the result came about in humiliating fashion with the visitors netting five goals.
Cole insisted that West Brom deserved credit for the shock result, but was quick to warn the Chelsea boss about the high standards often on show in the top flight.
Joe Cole believes Chelsea’s shock defeat by West Brom is a ‘lesson’ for boss Thomas Tuchel
Chelsea were dealt a blow in the race for the Champions League after collapsing at the back
Tuchel managed Borussia Dortmund, and also steered Paris Saint-Germain to success, but was handed his first sobering setback in England by the strugglers.
‘It’s a lesson for Thomas Tuchel. This isn’t the Bundesliga, this is the Premier League,’ Cole said on BT Sport. ‘They have a lot of quality, Robinson, Diagne, they were at it.
‘They pressed Chelsea from the front. It was a bitty 20 minutes. The sending off made a big difference.
Cole delivered a harsh assessment of Chelsea’s loss but praised West Brom for their ‘quality’
Callum Robinson lofted home West Brom’s fifth goal with the strugglers stunning Tuchel’s side
‘But credit to them, credit to the manager to get them out, only two days to prepare. They had international duty too.
‘Chelsea had six players out the starting line-up and West Brom had five.
‘When you are managing in the Bundesliga and you’re managing a Bayern Munich or one of those top teams, you can shift things, plan for the next game.
‘But the Premier League is unwavering. The levels are high. West Brom have good quality players and they proved that today.’
Cole also said that the ‘unwavering’ standard of the top flight is higher than its competitors
Thiago Silva was sent off for the hosts in the first half and his team-mates in defence spectacularly collapsed.
Matheus Pereira netted a quickfire double to send West Brom, who remain fighting for survival in the bottom three, into the break ahead.
The embarrassment was further inflicted on Chelsea after the restart through Callum Robinson’s brace and a further effort from Mbaye Diagne.