LONDON: Thomas Tuchel was appointed Chelsea manager on an 18-month contract on Tuesday, tasked with hauling the underperforming Blues back into the Champions League next season.
The 47-year-old German replaces the sacked Frank Lampard to become the 13th Chelsea boss since Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003.
The London club will allow Tuchel to bring an initial core group of staff with him to operate in the short-term, with further additions to be reviewed as the season goes on.
Initially, the German has signed an 18-month contract but there is option to extend the deal for a further season, should both parties be happy with the arrangement.
The decision to make the change at managerial level comes with Chelsea currently in ninth place in the Premier League table, some way short of pre-season expectations that they would be capable of challenging for the title.
