Thomas Tuchel flying to London to finalise contract and take Chelsea training

Thomas Tuchel is expected to fly in to London on Tuesday to finalise his contract with Chelsea, and he hopes to be able to lead his first training session later in the afternoon.

Chelsea made the decision to cut ties with former boss Frank Lampard on Monday amid concerns over the team's form and the atmosphere in the dressing room, and Tuchel was quickly touted as his successor.

The Blues had been in talks with Tuchel ever since his dismissal from Paris Saint-Germain in December 2020, and according to The Athletic's David Ornstein, everything has been agreed for the German's arrival at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

Contrary to initial reports, Tuchel remained in Paris following his departure from PSG, and he is scheduled to fly over to London on Tuesday, where he hopes to meet his players and conduct his first training session.

He has agreed an 18-month contract at Stamford Bridge which also includes a one-year extension clause which can be triggered by either the club or Tuchel himself.

However, RMC Sport's Mohamed Bouhafsi has stood by his previous claim of a two-and-a-half-year deal which will also have an option, so this might be one of those where you've just got to wait and see what the club announce.

Tuchel's initial transition to life at Chelsea should not be too problematic. He's German but speaks fluent English and is comfortable in French as well, but he will likely insist that everyone at the club tries to speak in English.

During his time in Paris, he demanded everyone spoke in French to try and eliminate dressing-room cliques based on language - something which earned him plenty of praise from PSG director Leonardo.

Tuchel will have to work to bring Chelsea's fractured squad back together. Fringe senior players are understood to have clashed with the rest of the squad over Lampard's management, and it created an overall ugly atmosphere which spilled out on to the pitch.

If all goes to plan, Tuchel hopes to be on the bench on Wednesday when Chelsea welcome Wolverhampton Wanderers to Stamford Bridge.

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