The 2021-22 Premier League season will be a shock to the system – and Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea might be the biggest surprise of all. Over the last 18 months, the pandemic made football into a sluggish, soulless version of the sport we love, as empty stadiums, a congested fixture list, and the psychological impact of lockdowns dulled the spectacle. Clubs were forced to adapt and few made as sharp a left turn as the Chelsea manager, whose trademark tactical flexibility and hard-pressing, fast-transition football was traded in for a slow and steady 3-4-3 defined by calm possession and elaborate building through defence and midfield. Like Pep Guardiola, Tuchel knew to control the chaos of pandemic football by calming things down; through deep breaths and a steady rhythm. And so it is understandable that some Chelsea fans are unsure whether new £98 million ($136m) signing R...