Romelu Lukaku dropped by Thomas Tuchel days after horror showing for Chelsea

Thomas Tuchel snapped back at a reporter after being asked repeatedly about Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Abramovich announced on Saturday that he had handed over “stewardship” of the club to the trustees of Chelsea’s charitable foundation. The Russian’s statement prompted more questions than it gave answers, given the ongoing crisis in Ukraine after Vladimir Putin ordered troops to invade on Thursday.

Chelsea blunder on Sunday.The Spanish goalkeeper was substituted on for Edouard Mendy by Thomas Tuchel ahead of the penalty shootout in the Carabao Cup final against Liverpool.However, the gamble did not pay off as Kepa failed to save a single Liverpool spot-kick before blazing his penalty over the crossbar as Chelsea lost 11-10.Now, the 27-year-old's stunning girlfriend has taken to social media to call for Chelsea fans to show their love to Kepa in an emotional post in which she slammed an "unfair situation".Andrea Martinez's relationship with the Blues stopper only went public earlier this month and she was present at Wembley on Sunday.Martinez was pictured cheering on her boyfriend from the stands whilst wearing a Chelsea shirt with his name and number on the back.Following the penalty shootout defeat, she posted a message of support to Kepa via her Instagram story, writing: "One of the things I've learnt when I was a basketball player was that a team is always a team. There are no heroes, there are no villains."In my personal opinion this is a very unfair situation and I'm not just talking about today.Should Kepa Arrizabalaga have been subbed on for the penalty shootout? Let us know in the comments section below."Real supporters must show the love today, not just when we win."@kepaarrizabalaga we are so proud of you, as a goalkeeper and even more as a person."Humble, brilliant, kind, generous, intelligent, hard worker, talented and the most beautiful soul I've ever met."This is just the small line of a huge book.

Chelsea's Carabao Cup final program has emerged online after the Blues lost on penalties to Liverpool.The article is titled 'Shoot-out Saviour' and features a prominent image of Chelsea's shot-stopper Kepa Arrizabalaga. Kepa was a late substitute for Chelsea as Thomas Tuchel hooked Edouard Mendy for the Spaniard despite the Mali international having played the majority of the game.

Liverpool's win over Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final.The Reds emerged victorious after a penalty shootout ended 11-10 following a goalless 120 minutes of action at Wembley on Sunday.All 21 spot kicks found the back of the net before substituted-on goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga fired his over the bar. And speaking after the game, former Liverpool midfielder Jamie Redknapp slated the decision by Thomas Tuchel to bring on Kepa for Edouard Mendy.

Liverpool should have stopped Chelsea from making their substitution in the 120th minute.The thrilling Carabao Cup final was fiercely contested between the two sides, who remained unseparated even after extra-time.With a penalty shoot-out looming, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel decided to bring on spot-kick ‘specialist’ Kepa Arrizabalaga just before the final whistle blew to turn the shoot-out in his favour.And ex-Sky Sports presenter Keys at the time took to Twitter to say Liverpool should have kept the ball and prevented it from going out of play in order to prevent the switch.Keys wrote: “If I’m Liverpool I keep that ball and don’t let Chelsea make the change.”But the beIN Sports presenter was quickly proven wrong as Kepa went from potential hero to villain for the Blues.Mendy, who had enjoyed a sterling performance until the call, made way for the Spaniard in a bold call by Tuchel.Tuchel’s decision at the time seemed a masterstroke due to Kepa leading the side to three penalty shoot-out wins already this season.Do you think Liverpool would have still won the shoot-out with Mendy in goal for Chelsea? Let us know in the comments section.Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.And that's it, job done.

Thomas Tuchel took the brave decision to sub on Kepa Arrizabalaga for Edouard Mendy with the Carabao Cup final heading to penalties on Sunday.However, Kepa failed to stop any of Liverpool's 11 spot-kicks - before the Spaniard blazed his over the bar.Kepa's spot-kick proved to be the decisive one as the Reds won their first Carabao Cup in a decade.While Chelsea's wait for a first Carabao Cup success since their 14/15 triumph against Tottenham Hotspur will go on for at least another year.And fans have been quick to react to Kepa's display at Wembley on social media."I'm not sure anything could be more embarrassing in football than that tbh for Kepa," one fan tweeted.Another joked: "Subbing Mendy whose been class all game for Kepa to not save a single pen and miss the decider like that is quite embarrassing""Kepa didn't save a single penalty and handed the trophy over to Liverpool," a third pointed out.However, a fourth tweeted: "Kepa should not be the one getting all the blame btw." What do you make of Tuchel's decision to sub off Kepa for Mendy? Let us know in the comments section Jamie Redknapp slammed Tuchel's decision to swap Mendy for Kepa."I hope it puts to bed the substitutions now of putting goalkeepers on," he said live on Sky Sports."Edouard Mendy is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and you bring on Kepa instead of him, ridiculous."

Chelsea 's understudy goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga backfired spectacularly. Blues boss Tuchel took off man of the match Edouard Mendy to send on the £71m Spaniard, who has saved a club record eight penalties in shoot-outs. But Kepa failed to save a single one against Liverpool - and then skied his decisive 11th kick as the Reds lifted the Carabao Cup at Wembley.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel's decisions and team selection were crucial to his side's defeat to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final.The two sides played out an enthralling 0-0 draw before the Blues succumbed to an 11-10 defeat from 12 yards in the penalty shootout.Tuchel's goalkeeping decisions proved crucial, with Edouard Mendy producing a string of important saves after starting in place of Kepa Arrizabalaga, who was crucially subbed on for the shootout.So, here is the one thing that the Chelsea boss got right and the two things he got wrong as Chelsea beat Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on Sunday.Prior to Sunday’s final, Kepa had played in each of Chelsea’s five matches in this season’s competition, but Tuchel chose to drop his cup goalkeeper in place of his first-choice keeper.His gamble paid off, though, as Mendy made a fine double save to keep the match goalless during the first half, first parrying a long range strike from Naby Keita before springing up to deny his Senegal team-mate Sadio Mane.The Chelsea keeper then made two more huge saves late on in normal time following chaos in the penalty area.Mendy was, however, denied the chance to perform any penalty heroics as he was replaced by Kepa for the shootout.Despite the decisions Tuchel got right, Chelsea missed a host of chances as they failed to capitalise on their dominance, with Romelu Lukaku left on the bench.Mason Mount was the worst culprit as he squandered countless golden opportunities during the match, including hitting the post.The lack of their £97.5million striker certainly hampered Chelsea’s killer touch in front of goal, with several instances where the ball was put into promising areas with no one there to finish.Tuchel’s side

Liverpool and Chelsea have performed a pre-match tribute for Ukraine ahead of the Carabao Cup final at Wembley.The two sides expressed their support for the war-torn country following the invasion launched by Russian president Vladimir Putin this week.Captains Jordan Henderson and Cesar Azpilicueta lead out their teams holding blue and yellow wreaths, the colours of the Ukraine flag.A minutes applause was then held, during which time Liverpool supporters belted out their anthem 'You'll Never Walk Alone'.After the national anthem was sung both sets of players posed for a picture with the wreaths. It comes after several other protests in the Premier League against the military operation over the weekend.Everton players entered the pitch draped in Ukraine flags in support of team-mate Vitaliy Mykolenko before their clash with Manchester City.Manchester United and Watford players urged peace with a sign ahead of their fixture.And Aston Villa's Matty Cash displayed a message of support for his Poland colleague Tomasz Kedziora who is caught up in the crisis.Chelsea have been impacted by Putin's military operation, with Russian owner Roman Abramovich handing over control of the club in recent days.The Russian billionaire announced he has handed over 'stewardship and care' of the club on Saturday.However, he remains owner of the club.Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel admitted earlier this week that the whole situation had impacted his side's preparation.He said: "We should not pretend that this is not an issue and I agree."The situation for me and for everybody here, for the players, is horrible.

Chelsea are said to have made 'no formal approach' to the Premier League over a potential change in ownership after Roman Abramovich's 110 word statement over his stance at the club.The Russian businessman told supporters that he had handed 'stewardship and care' to their charitable foundation - but insisted that he remained committed to the club.Following that update, The Telegraph reports that there has been no formal legal approach to the Premier League - meaning that Abramovich remains in full control.They add that any chance in ownership has to be approved by the league executive, who would have to look at the owners' and directors test'.Abramovich's Fordstam Limited company remains the controlling party of Chelsea, which means Chelsea would still be affected should the Government impose sanctions on the billionaire.His statement on Saturday (February 26) read: "During my nearly 20-year ownership of Chelsea FC, I have always viewed my role as a custodian of the Club, whose job it is ensuring that we are as successful as we can be today, as well as build for the future, while also playing a positive role in our communities."I have always taken decisions with the Club’s best interest at heart. Will Chelsea win more major trophies under Thomas Tuchel? Give us your thoughts in the comments section"I remain committed to these values.

Ukraine.There is no suggestion Abramovich is in any way involved, but this week Labour MP Chris Bryant had called for him to be banned from owning the club.Despite the gravity of the statement, huge questions remain over how exactly Chelsea will be run moving forward.It is not known if the move will be permanent or temporary, nor is it clear if he will consider selling his stake in the club.Blues boss Thomas Tuchel had earlier addressed the situation.The German said: "We should not pretend that this is not an issue and I agree."The situation for me and for everybody here, for the players, is horrible. Nobody expected this.

Luis Diaz has been wowing fans ever since he made his £37.5 million switch from Porto last month and was at it again during Liverpool training this week.The Colombian was spotted executing a mid-air 'rainbow flick', which supporters on social media rightly labelled "pure tekkerz".Diaz plucked the ball effortlessly out of the sky before sweeping it up over his head from behind, catching it, and knocking it back to his partner in one smooth motion."I literally can't stop watching this," wrote one Liverpool fan on Twitter."This man just rainbow flicked a ball out of the air.

Should Chelsea sell Romelu Lukaku? Have your say in the comments section.Now he's out of the team and I can't see him getting back in against Liverpool at Wembley.At times the other day against Lille in the Champions League, when he was on the bench, some of Chelsea's football was outstanding.The movement from Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic and Hakim Ziyech was absolutely outstanding. I haven't seen that from Chelsea for a while - and I don't think Thomas Tuchel will play Lukaku now against Liverpool. Virgil van Dijk had Lukaku in his pocket when they played at Anfield, and it was Havertz who scored in that game.Havertz brings a lot more to the party at the moment.

Chelsea team-mates with an incredible reaction to Kai Havertz’s goal against Lille.Mount suffered an ankle ligament injury in the Club World Cup final, which saw him miss Saturday’s win over Crystal Palace.He had recovered enough to feature on the bench for the first leg of the Champions League last 16 clash against Lille, though he did not come on.But it was his actions on the bench that caught the eye as he celebrated Havertz’s header that opened the scoring just eight minutes into the game.Havertz had forced Lille keeper Leo Jardim into save, before heading into the resulting corner from Hakim Ziyech.As he saw the goal go in, Mount leapt in the air before turning his face to the sky and roaring in delight.He continued to roar and scream as he turned back down towards Havertz, who himself was celebrating.Mount was one of the first on Chelsea’s bench to jump up and celebrate, though not everyone else was quite as excited as the Englishman.Should Mason Mount start against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section...Trevoh Chalobah, Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner all also got to their feet to applaud Havertz’s goal.Mount has clearly shaken off his injury if his lightning-fast reaction to the header was anything to go by.He could be in line to feature against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday, having also returned to full training.Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this

Romelu Lukaku should be “going nuts” at his Chelsea teammates over a lack of service.The Belgian has struggled massively this season for the Blues and only managed seven touches of the ball in their Premier League clash with Crystal Palace on Saturday.Lukaku’s non-existent performance prompted former England strikers Lineker and Shearer to come to his defence on Match of the Day by arguing that Thomas Tuchel’s side were not creating enough opportunities for him.And Ferdinand has now also taken to his Vibe with Five podcast to slam Lukaku’s team-mates for his lack of service and goals.Ferdinand said: “I agree with Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer by the way, if anyone saw their comments. If I’m Lukaku I’m going nuts."[I would be saying] get me that ball, get wide and cross me the ball, play the ball in behind when you get the opportunity, play to my strengths."I think that’s probably the biggest issue you’ve got with Chelsea at the moment - what’s their best team? I don’t think Tuchel knows his best team at the moment."He wants to get a £100million player in - which is understandable - in Lukaku and he’s hit a bit of a bad run in terms of goals.”Do you think Romelu Lukaku was the wrong signing for Chelsea? Let us know in the comments section.Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox - don't miss a thing.It only takes a matter of seconds.Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.And that's it, job done.

Chelsea have taken a big step towards the next round of the Champions League after they beat Lille 2-0 in the first leg of their knockout tie.It took Kai Havertz just eight minutes to open the scoring after he headed home from Hakim Ziyech's corner to put Chelsea ahead, and Lille were fortunate to go into the break just a goal down.Injuries dominated the early stages of the second half as Mateo Kovacic and Ziyech limped off down the tunnel, but Christian Pulisic alleviated the pressure by adding a second after 63 minutes to give the home side some breathing space.It was a comfortable night for Chelsea, and it could have been a more convincing win if their flow wasn't disrupted early in the second half, but Thomas Tuchel will feel confident heading to Lille with a two-goal advantage against the French Champions.As Chelsea take control of their Champions League knockout tie, here Daily Star Sport takes a look at what Tuchel got right at Stamford Bridge...It was a huge decision by Thomas Tuchel to leave Romelu Lukaku out of the starting line-up against Lille, but it paid off as Chelsea looked fluid in attack in the absence of their summer signing.It was a game to forget on Saturday for Lukaku, who touched the ball just seven times against Crystal Palace, and Tuchel pulled him out of the line-up after vowing to 'protect him' following the backlash from the fans.Although on his day he is their best centre-forward, it provided a lift for the whole team, who seemed to play with more freedom.It appeared to catch Lille off guard too, as centre-back pairing Jose Fonte and Sven Botman were likely preparing to face Lukaku all week, but took time to adjust to the agility of Chelsea's font-three.In the absence of Lukaku from the

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has asked that fans stop mocking Romelu Lukaku as the Belgian's miserable form continues.The German has asked fans to stop joking about Lukaku's form as he looks to defend the £97.5million summer signing, following a quiet display against Crystal Palace.Lukaku registered an unwanted stat on Saturday as he touched the ball just seven times throughout 90 minutes against Palace, with one of those being from kick-off in the first half.It was the fewest number of touches in 90 minutes since the statistics began to be observed during the 2003/04 season, and Tuchel has been quick to back the striker.Tuchel wants the fans to support their striker rather than mock him as Chelsea prepare for an important Champions League clash against Lille, and the German explained: "Sometimes it's like this with strikers if they struggle a little bit with self confidence and find the space to get involved with a good defensive side."It can be like this, of course it's not what we want and what Romelu wants but it's also not to the time laugh about him and make jokes about him."He's in the spotlight and we'll protect him."Has Romelu Lukaku justified his price-tag at Chelsea this season? Comment belowLukaku has scored ten goals for Chelsea since his return to the club, but his second spell has been dominated by injury and also controversies stemming from off the field.But the Belgian seems to be suffering from the 'curse of the Chelsea no.9', as high-profile signings such as Andriy Shevchenko and Fernando Torres also struggled when making emphatic moves to Stamford Bridge.Tuchel was rather tight-lipped on this comparison, but did add: "There's a history of strikers struggling at Chelsea.

Chelsea are targeting a summer transfer move for Wolves defender Max Kilman, according to reports.Kilman, 24, has been a key player for the Midlands side this season and is reportedly on the verge of a first England call-up.The boyhood Blues fan has been one of the standout stars for Bruno Lage's side in a season that has seen them defy expectations and challenge for the Champions League.Wolves are six points off Manchester United with two games in hand on the fourth-place side. Kilman's performance have been a big part of their recent success, and he is now attracting interest from Chelsea, with the European champions prepared to move for the centre-half when the transfer window reopens.

Thomas Tuchel's damning verdict on Chelsea flop Romelu Lukaku has been challenged by Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer.The Blues edged to a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace, but Lukaku was once again anonymous for most of the match.The striker touched the ball just seven times during Saturday's derby clash - the lowest of any Premier League player to complete 90 minutes since data was first collated at the beginning of the 2003/04 campaign.However, Tuchel denied after the game that Lukaku's ineffectiveness was down to Chelsea's system - a claim that both Lineker and Shearer refuted.The former striking duo hinted that the Blues should do more to get the best out of their club-record signing.But Tuchel was defiant after the match, insisting: "No, no, it's not about the system."Well, it is what it is. But for him, there is no change of system because it's the same attacking structure."But that didn't wash at all with Shearer, the Premier League's all-time leading goalscorer, who leapt to Lukaku's defence.He told Match of the Day: "It's clear that they [Chelsea] aren't working on things on the training ground as they are not doing it during the game for him [Lukaku] or for the team."Do you think Chelsea should be doing more to get the best out of Lukaku? Let us know in the comments section. And Lineker, the show's host, went one further by insisting that he'd be "hammering people" if he were in Lukaku's position.

Chelsea fans want "virus" Romelu Lukaku sold after he produced a shockingly bad performance against Crystal Palace.Thomas Tuchel's side were 1-0 winners in the Premier League clash but the result was in no part thanks to Lukaku, who had just two touches of the ball in the first-half.And one of them came from kick-off.The striker finished the game with a total of seven touches, while he was twice flagged offside and also committed two fouls throughout the 90 minutes.Having already rubbed the club's fanbase up the wrong way with his bombshell interview earlier this season, his latest outing was the final straw for many Blues supporters.One tweeted: "Lukaku should be sold tbh . Cut our losses."Another claimed: "Literally everyone has become worse thanks to Lukaku.

Chelsea's trip to take on Crystal Palace on Saturday was their first Premier League game for 27 days since beating Tottenham - and Thomas Tuchel was left with mixed emotions.The Blues, on the back of their Club World Cup triumph, struggled for long periods as Patrick Vieira's men held firm while creating chances of their own.Although the away side did steal all three points thanks to Hakim Ziyech, there wasn't an awful lot to be positive about for their manager.Daily Star Sport have taken a look at three things Tuchel got wrong on the day and one he got right, one of which involves a player who touched the ball only twice during the opening 45 minutes.