Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel has apologized to defender Kurt Zouma, whom he claimed he treated badly when he arrived at the club in January.
Tuchel admitted his selection policy was unfair to Zouma when he arrived at Chelsea as he opted for Antonio Rudiger over the France international, but he has been delighted with the performances of his fellow Germans since.
The Blues boss took control at Stamford Bridge last January and reinstated Rudiger in Chelsea’s first team after the 28-year-old was largely ignored by his predecessor, Frank Lampard.
“Since the first day, we have chosen it [Rudiger] in the first game it was an unfair decision against Kurt, but he’s German and I had a clear idea of what he could do because I followed him a bit more than Kurt Zouma, ”Tuchel said during his pre-match press conference on Monday ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League clash with Leicester City on Tuesday.
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“So it was an unfair decision and I had a clear idea of what I can ask of him and what he is capable of delivering to a team.
“He took the risk and since then he’s absolutely deserved to be on the team. He is a kind of aggressive leader, he has a natural aggressiveness in him, hates losing, difficult to duel, very very courageous and full of energy to defend.
“He leads by example, has a positive aggression which is what we love and when he can channel it all into top performance we are very happy to have him. “
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