On Saturday, Kalidou Koulibaly made his English Premier League debut for Chelsea FC. The central defender played 75 minutes in the 1-0 victory, before leaving the match with what appeared to be a cramp. In his post-match interview with Chelsea TV, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel praised the defender’s performance and attributed the injury to a lack of fitness.
“Very happy, verry happy. Kouli simply showed his quality, his experience and his courage and today struggled physically. Raheem (Sterling) played the whole match, looked very sharp until it got a bit too tough for him, also physically. He came late, like Kalidou as well, but looked very sharp and very happy.”
Koulibaly lined up on the left side of Chelsea’s back three, a position he rarely played in during his time at Napoli. Despite the change of system, the Senegal international had a typically dominant performance: perfection positioning, efficient movement, clean tackles, important clearances and the occasional professional foul.
Koulibaly also played a role on the lone goal, making an incisive pass to Ben Chilwell who was subsequently fouled in the area. Another ex-Napoli player and close friend of Koulibaly, Jorginho, converted penalty to put Chelsea ahead. The Blues would go on secure all three points.
