New Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has left Mason Mount out of his first starting XI as Blues boss for his side's Premier League clash with Wolves on Wednesday evening.
The former PSG manager takes the Stamford Bridge hot seat for the first time on Wednesday for the visit of Wolves, having been announced as Frank Lampard's replacement on Tuesday.
Lampard was dismissed on Monday after a year and a half in the Chelsea job following a tricky run of results either side of the new year.
Mount was ever present for Chelsea under Tuchel's predecessor Lampard, but the new Blues boss has left him on the bench for his first Chelsea starting XI in one of nine changes from the side that beat Luton in the FA Cup in Lampard's final game in charge - as revealed by the club on Twitter.
The midfielder has featured in 18 of Chelsea's 19 Premier League matches this season, scoring twice and providing two assists.
Reece James, another firm favourite under Lampard during the 2020/21 season, also drops to the bench, with Cesar Azpilicueta captaining the side.
Here is the first Chelsea team of the Thomas Tuchel era! ??#CHEWOL pic.twitter.com/cqHQXUUmyK
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 27, 2021
It's mixed success for big money summer arrivals Timo Werner and Kai Havertz, who have both struggled to hit their stride thus far in English football. Werner is named among the subs, while Havertz starts. Olivier Giroud leads the line for the Blues, having been used sporadically under Lampard.
The starting XI could easily line up with a back four or a back three - as had been rumoured to be the case earlier today.
According to the Athletic's Simon Johnson, Chelsea will line up with a back three of Thiago Silva, Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger, with Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ben Chilwell operating as wing backs.
Source : 90min