International watch: Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher was on the scoresheet as England Under-21 won against Germany.
Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher has said that he had a call with Thomas Tuchel and the German tactician convinced Gallagher to stay and fight for his place in the first team. Speaking to BBC Sport (h/t Birmingham Mail), the 22-year-old revealed how a talk with Tuchel gave him a clear plan of pre-season and where he was going to be next season.
Gallagher was pretty impressive in the last season on loan at Crystal Palace. The box-to-box midfielder earned plaudits for his performance week in and out as he finished the campaign with 8 goals and 3 assists in 34 league appearances. His good form earned him a call-up to the England national team, while he is yet to play for Chelsea.
[Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel] said he wants me to be part of the squad and to prove myself in pre-season, so that’s the plan. I’m happy with that and just willing to work as hard as I can to prove to him that I can play for Chelsea. It’s what I wanted to hear, it was a nice phone call that we had and it gave me a clear plan of pre-season and where I’m going to be. It was great to hear.”
This will come as good news to the Blues faithful, while interested clubs will be disappointed. Aston Villa were said to be one club interested in the midfielder, but the Crystal Palace player of the season is looking to fight for his place in the team rather than going anywhere.
Tuchel will be happy to know that he was able to convince one of the top English talents in the league to stay at the club and fight for his place. Chelsea’s midfield, though one of the best, is ageing. N’Golo Kante and Jorginho are not getting any younger and Mateo Kovacic can only do so much.
With Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley not preferred so much by Tuchel, it is up to Gallagher and Billy Gilmour to take the reins. A Chelsea youth product, Gallagher has spent the past three years on loan to various clubs. Having played both in the Championship and Premier League, the 22-year-old has amassed huge playing experience.
Now, he has been given the opportunity to play for his boyhood club, and one can expect him to perform his very best to show Tuchel why he should be starting for him every week.
If he continues to perform well, he could become a natural successor for N’Golo Kante. This would save Chelsea a lot of headaches, as replacing a world-class player like the Frenchman is never easy. Still young, he can learn more about the trade from the senior midfielders and under the guidance of a top-class coach like Tuchel, he could become the next big thing to come out of Cobham.
Gallagher will also have his sight on the coming World Cup and he would love to break into the team to have a chance to make it to Gareth Southgate’s squad which will travel to Qatar in November for the World Cup. This should serve as an extra motivation to the young midfielder who is currently in the United States, preparing for pre-season.
It will be interesting to see him play for Chelsea next season. When and how Tuchel uses him will be of great importance as we will know his role for next season. For the time being, fans can hope to see him play in the Chelsea colours on July 17 against Club America.
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