Thomas Tuchel says he was impressed by Conor Gallagher from day one and claims he would’ve ‘loved’ to have played alongside Chelsea’s on-loan midfielder.
Tuchel, who was forced to retire as a player aged 24 because of a knee injury, has gone on to become one of the world’s elite managers. The 48-year-old coached the Blues to a Champions League trophy last season, plus his side are currently top of the Premier League table.
He was asked in his Friday press conference about Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher.
Gallagher, 21, has been superb this season since joining Crystal Palace on loan from Chelsea. The box-to-box midfielder even made his senior debut for England during the international break, too. Tuchel has given a glowing verdict on the youngster who’s on the club’s books.
He said: “There cannot be a coach who does not love guys like this, humble nice, always with a smile on their face, always ready to give everything, who wants to learn and improve.
"Also as a team-mate I would have loved to play with him, because he’s a helper. He starts in minute one and he finishes maybe in the shower, that’s the earliest minute where he finishes running and seeing balls. So it's a pleasure to know the guy, to have the guy and I'm super happy it's worked out so well.Now it's on him to keep his feet on the ground, to keep going, and the rest we will decide, not in a rush."
There is still such a long way to go in the 2021/22 season, but it’s hard not to get excited about the prospect of Gallagher returning to Stamford Bridge next season after his loan.
First of all, the energetic midfielder needs to continue his dazzling form with Palace to stay in the spotlight. Also, he can look to make inroads into Gareth Southgate’s England side.
Rio Ferdinand recently described Gallagher as one of the best young players in the Premier League, which highlights his kind of potential.
He’s definitely a brilliant teammate to have due to his amount of running.
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