The experienced trio, who have all lifted an array of silverware in their careers, were selected by Tuchel in a back three for our opening Premier League game of the season against Everton, keeping a clean sheet as the Blues left Goodison Park with a 1-0 victory thanks to Jorginho’s penalty.

Despite the trio all being north of 30 years of age, Tuchel feels having the experience – and quality – of Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Koulibaly is vital to the team as shown in Saturday’s win, as well as believing they can help some of the younger players too.

‘It’s very reassuring to have players with so much experience as these guys have,’ said Tuchel, when reflecting on Saturday’s win on Merseyside.

‘They have so much experience, which could be another word for age! But in all seriousness, they have so much experience and so much quality in their work.

‘We are so happy to have players such as Azpi, Thiago and Kalidou but it is also important that we have the next generation coming through to eventually take over from them in future years.

‘These guys are strong performers for us though and it is why we have them under contract. I’m very happy with them.

‘The game is very physical and very demanding, this is the situation, so we do need other players to rotate with these guys. We are not complaining, we know the situation and when you are at a club like Chelsea, you expect this because we have to have players at the top, top level to fight across many competitions.

‘Azpi, he is a legend of this club. Thiago, in the moment he is still a very strong performer and is very important for us, and then with Kalidou, when the opportunity came for us to sign him it was something we wanted to do because we still feel he has many good years ahead of him.

‘In general, it is a fact that we have the back three, the goalkeeper and the double six today in Jorginho and N’Golo [Kante] that are all in their thirties. That’s the way it is and while we are so happy with these guys, we also need to consider the future.’