Chelsea v Manchester City: Thomas Tuchel has 'highest respect' for Pep Guardiola

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Thomas Tuchel (left), has defeated Pep Guardiola in each of his three matches as Chelsea boss.

Thomas Tuchel, Chelsea's boss, says that Saturday's match with Manchester City champions is not about him and Pep Guardiola.

In their three previous meetings, Tuchel beat Guardiola twice, including in the Champions League final last season.

The League leaders Chelsea will host fifth-place City this Saturday, but the German wouldn't draw any comparisons between the managers.

Tuchel stated that he has the utmost respect for Pep on Friday.

When asked if he was better than Guardiola's coach, Tuchel replied: "This question doesn't even exist for me. I can answer it."

"It's a question that you guys can debate endlessly.

"I admire his impact on the world, at Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City. He is my greatest admiration.

"There's no reason to question myself about whether I'm a better coach. I try my best, I'm happy and a better coach than I was yesterday.

Tuchel stated that he expects a 50/50 contest at Stamford Bridge.

Tuchel stated, "If you look at it honestly, I see the three last games as three 50/50 matches."

"We want to fight for a better outcome.

"We have done it many times with this team, and we also know how hard we suffered in these matches.

"If City wins, they won't be champions. We will not be in despair.

Chelsea have been unbeaten in five of their first five matches, but Mason Mount, an influential midfielder, will not be available.

Tuchel claims he didn't know the England international was injured during their midweek win over Aston Villa at the Carabao Cup.

He said, "He is very disappointed. I didn't feel the pain during the match, because it was in the second half. He played through the injury." "He won the game and was confident that he would take a penalty. It was quite a surprise.

"The huge steps he's taking are amazing. It might have been possible if the game had been played one day later.

It's not a serious injury, but it is disappointing for him and us as he is a player we can rely on.

"But regardless of his importance and no matter how much we rely upon him, the task it to find solutions without him is to bring him back as quickly as possible.