EPL 2021-22: Tuchel impressed with Pulisic following Chelsea winner vs West Ham

Third-placed Chelsea continues to remain faintly in the title race. On Sunday, it edged past seventh-placed fellow London rival West Ham United 1-0 at Stamford Bridge in London, with Christian Pulisic scoring the lone winner. Meanwhile, The Blues' head coach Thomas Tuchel was impressed by the American striker following his prolonged stay on the bench.

Pulisic's goal was vital for Chelsea as it halted its consecutive home defeats. It was a stoppage-time winner from the American, while he termed it a massive goal. It was his first start for The Blues in five weeks since its 1-0 win against Newcastle United at home last month, and he made the opportunity count.

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"It was a massive goal. It feels good. We want to be secure in the top four. There are still some matches left, which was a good step in the right direction. It was terrific. We needed a home win. It feels great in front of our fans. Some big league games, then the FA Cup final, so this is a good boost for us," Pulisic said.

Meanwhile, Tuchel lauded Pulisic's work and addressed his extended stay on the bench, saying, "[Pulisic] had a period when he was on the run, had the confidence, was heavily involved upfront and Timo had to wait for many, many weeks. Puli struggled a little bit since coming back from the international break where he had three matches, an incredible amount of joineries and time zones to cope with."

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"From there, he [Pulisic] struggled energy-wise. We have tried to bring him back in full confidence from the bench, and I am happy with the effort today. I am happy he had the chance to have this big impact with Romelu and Hakim. It was super important," concluded Tuchel.