Can
we start with the team news and what is the situation with Thiago Silva?
"Thiago will be back in the afternoon, hopefully safe from his match in Brazil. We had our
talk today about Brentford, had our tactical training today, and he missed all that.
"He played 90 minutes and he has 12 hours of travelling, so that's the answer maybe
about his available. He is not. Toni Rudiger is injured, he came back injured from national
team, so not available.
"Christian Pulisic is still injured and we have doubts with Hakim Ziyech, he missed the
last two training sessions with a headache and it seems he won't be with the squad tomorrow.
"Romelu is fine, doing all the training sessions and doing okay for tomorrow."
Are you annoyed with the situation with Thiago Silva?
"Well, we knew before when he would come back and when he would travel, so, nothing new.
I've got used to a lot of things in national breaks, this is how it is nowadays.
"Are we happy about it, all the coaches with the amount of games our players play for their
countries? No, we are not. Does anybody ask us if we want to change anything? Also, not.
So it's nothing new.
Newcastle takeover, concerns where the money is coming from"
"In general yes, in general yes, and I think it's normal to have
concerns. But we trust the Premier League and they have accepted – they are the authorities
in this case.
"This is a fact now that they allowed it, they have new owners, the new owners seem
to be very promising for the fans and for a famous club here in England. And it seems
that we have a new competitor for titles and for places in the top ranking, and this is
what we are here for.
"We are playing in the toughest league, and it seems to get tougher."
Is the biggest challenge for the players to regain focus after the international break?
"Absolutely. To recreate the feeling, momentum and energy that every team needs to wins games
is the big challenge. It's always difficult after travelling and games for different teams,
in different countries and different styles of play.
"It's always a challenge to restart the engine and the momentum. We can call it mentality
or whatever, it's not so easy but, on the other hand, we are used to it and it's good
that we are aware things can be difficult
"Nobody expects an easy game tomorrow, this is very clear for us and it's a good first
step that we arrive with that expectation. We face a tough opponent at a difficult moment
because they are in a good moment, deserve their points, and will play with a lot of
enthusiasm.
"This is what we have to face and we have to face it with only two training sessions
together. This is the challenge and we will see how good we are."
Clearly frustrated with the international break, is it something that the coaches can
do something about?
"We speak about it at the UEFA coaches meetings, we speak about it. And the calendar is the
calendar and after that you have to accept. I'm not too frustrated about it but I don't
like it, I think it's too many games and competitions for the top players.
"The game is for the players and spectators and the spectators want to have the top players
on the pitch, want them healthy, fit, in shape and hungry, and you can't always provide it
if you play so many games in so many competitions.
"Given the fact we only have three changes in the Premier League and not five like the
other leagues is a big thing we have to cope with. I'm not too frustrated and sorry if
I have given that impression. Maybe it's my body language.
"I know another international break is coming and I know we have seven games in between.
We try to do the best during every international break. This international break was a little
better for us in terms of minutes and management of players.
"We had the chance to give some of our players two days off to rest and recharge. So this
one felt a bit better at least than the last one, but then the next one is on the horizon
and will come. We have seven matches to play and then the guys will go away and keep on
playing."
What do you think of Arsene Wenger solution of a World Cup every two years?
"I don't know about it and I trust Arsene Wenger that he thinks about football first.
Is it worth to discuss anything with him and to listen to him, yes absolutely. But I have
not had the time to dig in and to be well informed to speak about it."
Just how tough will tomorrow's game be for your side?
"They will be up for it but we will need to be. They will play with a lot of enthusiasm
and they caught momentum already after getting promoted after so many years when they were
trying hard. Finally, Chelsea comes not for a cup or friendly game but one in the Premier
League.
"They have so many points and such good results. They are doing a fantastic job and the atmosphere
will be like this. They will play with a lot of courage and confidence but we cannot be
surprised. We know all of this and it is up to us to adapt to it and to accept the situation
like it is. They will not gift us a single inch on the field and we have to be ready
mentally, physically and tactically.
"This is not just a match about knowing the solutions and outskilling the opponent, this
is also a match where we have to match the mentality and attitude. This is exactly what
we did against Southampton. We accepted the role that the other team is the underdog and
we are maybe the favourites and we accepted it. But it didn't keep us from playing like
underdogs.
"We played a very, very intense game and a nice game of football against Southampton.
We will try to do the same thing tomorrow. There are of course some obstacles to overcome
and it is never easy after an international break but I hope that we will be prepared
and so far we feel that we have done everything to arrive in the best shape possible and we
give it a go."
Ballon d'Or, you have five players nominated, who is your pick?
"If I tell you I don't even know who is on the list, what would you say? I am not into
individual awards. It is a team effort. What we did last season was a team effort. We were
more than just single players. We were a team and a group of friends almost.
"We felt like a strong club, the guys were a strong team in every single game. That gives
us the possibility to reach a big final and to win it and gives us the possibility to
have some players on this list of famous 30 names.
"I'm happy when there are five names from us because it shows that it is valued and
that the guys did a good job and are in the spotlight. I hope that one of our players
gets it because then it will increase the confidence and everything you need to become
a good players.
"I don’t even know which five players are on the list and I will not judge anybody over
another. They have done an incredible job last season. It is about last season.
"Since many weeks I am into the future and into the present. We have to forget all of
this and don’t put too high what happens last season or these awards."
You have, on paper, a run of matches now against 'easier' opposition. How important will this
period be for you in the Premier League and Champions League?
"I cannot agree less with you because you used the word easier. I can agree if you mean
like that we have seven games where we are seven times the favourites and we have seven
times to prove we are the better team because we want to be the better team.
"I think we should not be shy to acknowledge that. We should not make us smaller than we
are. We want to prove seven times in the next spell that we deserve to be the favourites.
We need a certain mentality to do so.
"If favourite means things will be easy, we cannot be more wrong and this is the toal
wrong path to go. If being favourite means we still expect a tough one tomorrow at Brentford
then this is a good one to accept.
"In the end, we have to take all the pressure off our shoulders and take risks in the game,
play with a certain freedom because with a fear of losing a status you can win absolutely
nothing. That’s why if you sign for Chelsea, if you work for Chelsea, if you play for Chelsea
then you play to win. You cannot be surprised if you are the favourites in a game against
Brentford, but does this change any expectation? Hopefully not.
"One we have our expectation right, what we expect from tomorrow’s game, once we have
the attitude right, we have the attitude right, we hopefully get the result right. This is
what we are doing and this is where the focus is. Then we know we have spell of seven games.
"It is seven different ones and tough ones and I have coached an underdog team long enough
in Germany to know how capable you can be as a group to close the gap in modern football.
It is possible in modern football. Now we are on the other side and I try to make a
point in every single game and it starts with tomorrow."