Chelsea manager, Thomas Tuchel, has said he will not accept excuses from his players when the new season starts.
With Liverpool and Manchester City still formidable, Tottenham resurgent under Antonio Conte, and Arsenal building steadily under Mikel Arteta, Tuchel knows his stars will have to hit the ground running this season.
The German has now sounded a warning ahead of their first league fixture against Everton.
“I want to be ready when we play Everton. I want to win and I will demand it from myself, my team, and all my players.
“The team will be strong. I am not ready to use it as an excuse even though it is maybe true that we are in transition. We can – I can – focus. The team can focus on what makes us strong, take it step by step and work out how to win games.
“If you look at the transfer period of Tottenham with Antonio Conte, it’s maybe the strongest team they ever built. Manchester United will not give in, Arsenal will not give in, they’ve made two big signings already. So we are aware of the situation and we’ll try to do our best to be competitive,” Tuchel said.
Tuchel, whose men face Club America in Nevada on Saturday, exhaled as he summed up the size of the task facing his new-look Chelsea team this season.
