Tuchel imitated Louis van Gaal in the goalkeeper rotation before the penalty shootout. The move worked for both of them

Chelsea beat Villarreal 2-1 in the UEFA Super Cup final after a penalty shootout. Although only two goals were scored after 90 minutes, one on each side, it was not a bad game of football. But the most talked about change was the unexpected one made by Blues coach Thomas Tuchel just before the penalty shootout. The last time Louis van Gaal substituted a goalkeeper just before a penalty shootout was at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

When Dutch coach van Gaal substituted Tim Krul for Jasper Cillessen in the World Cup quarter-final against Costa Rica, it was more of a spur of the moment idea on the Dutch bench.

“We all thought Tim was the best choice for penalties. He’s taller and has a longer reach,” he later explained to the BBC when he was coaching Manchester United in the islands.

Tim Krul, who currently plays in Norwich colours, is 193cm, while Jasper Cillessen, who wears the Valencia jersey, is 187cm.

“It worked out. That was beautiful. I’m proud of it,” added the former Red Devils manager. The Netherlands then beat Costa Rica on penalties when Krul grabbed two penalties to steer his team into the semi-finals.

The situation in the Chelsea team for Wednesday’s final match was different. Thomas Tuchel and his coaching staff knew before the game that if there was a penalty shootout, there would be substitutions.

Even before the first cup game in which Tuchel coached Chelsea in February against Barnsley, he was said to have agreed with his assistants that Mendy would be only the third choice. Kepa, who replaced Mendy, should have been given priority. Willy Caballero was supposed to be the number one choice, but he is no longer at the club. They’re reportedly basing it on statistics.

So the goalkeeping line-up also went to Tuchel after van Gaal. Kepa, like Krul, grabbed two penalties to secure Chelsea’s 6-5 win on penalties. Chelsea won 2:1 on aggregate.

Source: BBC, Chelsea FC