Thomas Tuchel insists Ben Chilwell can still reclaim Chelsea starting spot

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has insisted that the door is not closed to summer signing Ben Chilwell, despite the Englishman starting just two of the new boss' five games in charge.

A firm favourite under Tuchel's predecessor, Frank Lampard, Chilwell has been forced to share left-back and wing-back duties with Spaniard Marcos Alonso, who did not even make the matchday squad for Lampard's last 16 league games in charge.

Alonso impressed upon his return, netting a volley in the 2-0 win over Burnley which won the club's Goal of the Month award for January, but Tuchel was adamant that he is not blind to Chilwell's obvious quality.

"If he is [worried about play time], I can absolutely understand, because he got some difficult and very tight decisions go against him," he said (via Sky Sports News)

"We took the choice for Marcos in a game where we played with five [defenders] because he was more familiar with the position, he played under Antonio Conte and we opted for him for his strengths in the air, to defend and attack set pieces.

"Marcos did a very good match and scored the decisive goal and from there it was hard to come back. I had a talk with him before the Tottenham match and told him 'You have to trust me now, I see the potential, I see your talent'."

It's a tricky one for Tuchel. Alonso usually turns into prime Roberto Carlos when played as a wing-back, whereas Chilwell is undoubtedly the superior traditional left-back. With the boss sticking with a back three at the minute, Alonso's pedigree simply cannot be ignored.

"It's possible that [Chilwell] thinks a lot about this situation, hopefully not too much because he can have trust in himself first of all, and he can trust us as staff that we will keep on pushing and we will find possibilities to reward him," Tuchel continued.

"He showed a good performance in Sheffield which was very important for him and for the team, but sometimes it takes a little bit of time and there are hard decisions at the moment in clubs like Chelsea with a squad of 23 players.

"It's my job to not lose these players, and to help them not to lose their trust, and if he keeps on going he's a fantastic guy and he has a lot of potential and we will find possibilities for him to be on the pitch.

"At the same time, we wanted to have a start where we are fair to everybody and we don't judge nobody by the amount of money that the club has spent, but to give everybody the feeling that this is a fresh start.

"If Marcos is in the moment the guy who took a bit the advantage of this situation, yes, but this is not the end for Chilly's development, for sure."

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