“New manager came in”- 26-year-old French ace claims Tuchel is the reason for his Chelsea exit this summer

Kurt Zouma has said that Thomas Tuchel influenced the reason for his departure to West Ham United

Talking to The Evening Standard (h/t Football.London), Kurt Zouma has revealed that Thomas Tuchel is responsible for his departure from Chelsea. Zouma spoke on the subject ahead of his match against Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

The centre-back left Stamford Bridge for West Ham United for a fee of £25 million. The Frenchman was a regular starter for the former Blues coach Frank Lampard but was allowed to leave after the arrival of Tuchel.

It is claimed that the German, made his intentions clear to the 26-year-old that he is not in his plans. However, since moving to West Ham, he has been great for the Hammers with his commanding performances.

“Things happen. A new manager came in and he made choices and everything was working well for us. I wasn’t in the starting XI as often as I would expect to be. This is the manager’s choice and he made them right, obviously.”

His words indicate that he has no grudges towards the German international. He fully acknowledged what happened is normal in football and accepted it as a professional.

Earlier, the 48-year-old coach admitted that it was unfair to the defender that he chose Antonio Rudiger but it had to be done. Speaking on the issue via Metro (h/t Football.London), Tuchel said:

“Since day one we chose him in the first match, it was an unfair decision against Kurt, but he is German and I had a clear picture of what he can do because I followed him a bit more than Kurt Zouma,”

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Both Tuchel and Zouma have agreed on what the reason for the defender’s departure was. And they also have made the point in a professional manner showing there is no feud between them. With life seemingly happy in East London, the French centre-back has accepted that it was beneficial for both parties.