Last season we crammed in 63 matches between August and May, the fixture schedule intensified not only because we reached both domestic cup final but also because of our participation in the Super Cup and the Club World Cup.

To kick off 2022/23, however, there is no midweek football until the fifth match of the campaign. Then the Champions League begins in earnest and with all six matchdays squeezed in before the World Cup, the Blues will not have a clear midweek before the action begins in Qatar.

‘We are trying new exercises, we are preparing for matches over three or four days which is very unusual for us,’ said Tuchel of the extra build-up.

‘The team is very responsive. I am very grateful and it is pure joy to have this. We are enjoying it a lot.

‘When the game comes it’s pure joy to have the matches, but it’s nice we have a kind of extended preparation coming from where we come from. It’s very important and we’re trying to make the most out of it.’

The Blues certainly did that on matchday two of the Premier League season, excelling against Tottenham despite the dropped points, and proving to some who had doubted our credentials the capabilities of this team.

Tuchel was impressed with what he saw, and wants his side to build on the promising platform we have set.

‘It sent a message to me. It’s a bit hard to have a clear view on where we are at this moment in time, with the sanctions and so on, so I was also not sure.

‘It was very impressive to see us perform like this. Even in the data and the review of the match it was also important for me to see we can reach this level that early. We have set the bar high.

‘It’s one thing to perform in one match, and a derby and emotional match at that, and now to repeat it. These are the next steps we have to do, for the guys that did play and the guys who didn’t play so much.

‘Let’s see where we are tomorrow. It’s not finished because we did one good performance, but it was very good to see and it gave all of us a lot of confidence.’