Thomas Tuchel has blamed a lack of competition in the squad for Chelsea’s recent run slump in form.

He noted that while he does have players to use, without strong competition forcing them to fight for their places, they can let their levels drop.

“At the moment it’s like, ‘OK I have a negative test so I play’,” he explained.

He emphasised that those guys would still give you a good performance, but it was difficult for anyone to go above and beyond without being pushed.

You can see the manager speaking in the clip embedded here, with this answer coming after 2 minutes:

More must-reads:

TODAY'S BEST
Two young stars get hefty bonuses for making All-NBA teams
Mavericks star duo joins exclusive club with Game 1 win
Mavericks ride 'Luka Magic' on both ends late to win Game 1
Panthers shut out Rangers 3-0 in Eastern Conference Final opener
NBA announces 2023-24 All-NBA teams
Star Padres infielder to miss significant time with shoulder injury
LeBron James, Charles Barkley passionately defend Caitlin Clark from 'petty' haters
Roger Goodell discusses factors for possible 18-game NFL season
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott has intriguing comment on his contract situation
Celtics toying around with surprise Jayson Tatum move in conference finals
Former teammate warns Tee Higgins about pitfalls of playing on franchise tag
Watch: Timberwolves and Mavericks trade dunks in third quarter
Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner tempers expectations for Juan Soto extension
Canucks' Rick Tocchet wins 2024 Jack Adams Award
Incredible Orioles streak finally comes to end against Cardinals
Raiders QB shares surprising reason for switching jersey number
New Jersey Devils to hire just-fired head coach to lead bench
Latest announcements show how deep Knicks' injury issues ran
Veteran WR announces retirement after nine seasons
Eagles stars defend new DC following criticism

Want more sports news?

Join the hundreds of thousands of fans who start their day with Yardbarker's Morning Bark, the best newsletter in sports.