Thomas Tuchel has said Antonio Rudiger’s response to last Sunday’s training-ground row with Kepa Arrizabalaga was “brave”.
A late challenge by Rudiger incensed the Spanish keeper and the pair had to be separated by the Blues boss.
Tuchel said he would not give all the details of the bust-up but praised Rudiger for the manner in which he dealt with the incident.
“Toni sorted out it directly, which was necessary,” Tuchel said at a press conference. “It was a strong and brave thing to do and the right thing to do.
“There is no punishment, because of the way they dealt with it. The reaction was immediate, they made it clear for everybody what happened.
“These are things we don’t like to accept but for this situation there’s no further punishment.
“It was serious – we needed to interfere in the situation. But how the guys handled the situation was impressive.”
Tuchel said the altercation had “nothing to do” with the humiliating 5-2 home defeat against struggling West Brom – a side who had won only three Premier League games all season before their thumping win at Stamford Bridge.
“It was just an incident in training that got heated up,” Tuchel added.
“We calmed it down immediately. These are things we don’t want to accept but they can happen. They are all competitors in training matches.
“The reaction was not OK but the reaction to the incident has been amazing. Kepa and Rudiger have sorted it out and they have cleared the air.”
