Chelsea youngster Tino Anjorin has been included in the side’s squad for the Champions League semi-final first leg clash against Real Madrid.
The 19-year-old midfielder has made just five appearances for the Blues and his only start this season came in a dead rubber against Krasnador in the group stages in December.
Chelsea will be without Mateo Kovacic in the Spanish capital after the midfielder failed to recover from a hamstring issue in order to face his former side. The Croatia international is Chelsea’s only absentee for the trip to Madrid but Tuchel is clearly keen on having reinforcements in midfield, with Anjorin selected to travel with the Chelsea squad for the first leg.
It remains to be seen whether the teenager will be selected as a substitute against Zinedine Zidane’s side, with Tuchel likely to go with N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and Mason Mount in midfield.
The clash means Chelsea legend Eden Hazard will come up against his former side, though he may start the first leg on the bench given he has just returned from injury.
The Belgian spent seven years at Chelsea, winning two league titles along the way. Tuchel admits Hazard is one of the ‘hardest’ players in the world to stop.
‘Eden is a top-quality player,’ said Tuchel. ‘He was the key player here for many, many years in this club and this league – which is one of the hardest in the world and a tough one if you decide matches so consistently like Eden did for this club here.’