Dutch managerial duo Ronald Koeman and Louis Van Gaal have agreed that Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea are the ‘benchmark’ for how to play the three at the back system in the right way, amid criticism of the Blues’ style being too defensive.

The German has largely adopted 3-4-3 formation since he joined the west London club, culminating in winning the European Champions League less than six months in the saddle as manager.

There have been comments that Chelsea are a defensive team when they opt for the tried and tested three at the back formation.

Koeman explained: “The best Barca last year was in 3-5-2. We managed to maximize Busquets, we had few attackers available.

“Chelsea are the benchmark, they play in 3-5-2 and are not defensive. We must also see in relation to the workforce available.”

Glowing praise from such a reputable manager, who takes inspiration from seeing what Tuchel has done so far in SW6, can only be seen in a positive way.

Koeman’s praise comes after veteran manager Van Gaal has also had to defend the Blues.

“You have no idea at all. I’m sorry to say it, but you’re just a journalist. You want to implement your vision, but you have no vision in football. You have a vision for the newspaper, fantastic. You attract attention, and so on. But with 5-3-2 or 5-2-3 you can attack incredibly well.”

This was former Manchester United boss Van Gaal berating Dutch journalist Valentijn Driessen in his pre-match press conference before the Netherlands World Cup qualifier against Turkey on Tuesday evening.

“It’s what Chelsea do,” journalist Driessen said in response to Van Gaal’s question as to whether the Blues methods were defensive. Van Gaal disagreed. “Not at all, Valentijn.”

“Chelsea show it every time, with different formations. And I take my hat off to Mr Tuchel, because he got in halfway through [last season].”

Ashley Cole has shared a brilliant anecdote from a dressing room row with Zlatan Ibrahimovic during their time at LA Galaxy.

The former Chelsea and England left-back and Swedish superstar overlapped for a short time in 2018 for the MLS club.

And during an appearance on A League of their Own, Cole was asked what it was like to work with Ibrahimovic.

The 40-year-old said: ‘He has two personalities, with us in the dressing room he was brilliant, quiet, very humble but for the media he was God.

“He had moments where he would come in the dressing room and really let people know about their s*** touch, can’t run, you’re slow but in front of the media his persona changed.”

When asked if Ibrahimovic had ever confronted him, Cole added: ‘He tried to once, he did throw his hands in the air.

“And I said ‘Put your f***ing hands down’, I’m deadly serious, honestly. I was thinking ‘you might have a little point, but don’t put your hands up’.”

Cole retired from playing in 2019 after a brief stint at Derby while the 39-year-old evergreen striker is still going strong at AC Milan.

He enjoyed a brilliant short spell up front in the MLS, scoring 52 goals in 56 matches for the franchise.

And the Hollywood backdrop to his career made for the perfect match. Upon arrival, according to the Mail, Ibrahimovic took out a full page advertisement in the Los Angeles Times with the heading ‘Dear Los Angeles, you’re welcome.’

Paris Saint-Germain are reportedly plotting to hijack Real Madrid’s move for Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger.

Rudiger, 28, was the subject of much transfer speculation over the summer transfer window.

And with less than a year remaining on his contract, that is unlikely to change unless he signs a new deal.

His current situation has sparked interest from PSG, who could make a move for the centre-back according to French outlet Le10Sport.

Real Madrid are said to be in the race to sign the Blues star for free at the end of the season.

Chelsea are reportedly yet to open talks with the defender over a new deal.

But Thomas Tuchel is keen to keep Rudiger at the club, and that means negotiations could begin soon.

Rudiger also attracted interest from Real Madrid and Tottenham over the summer.

The Blues have targeted Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde as one of their transfer priorities too.

A plane carrying the German national football team was forced into an unscheduled landing in Edinburgh amid a ‘mid-air emergency’.

The side had won 4-0 in World Cup qualification in Iceland on Wednesday before departing Keflavik International Airport at 1am.

The flight then encountered difficulty while mid-air over Scotland and sent out a Code 7700 distress signal.

The official Twitter account for Germany moved to update fans this morning and explained players will be returning home individually.

A tweet read: “Safety first. Safe stopover as a precaution in Edinburgh.

“From there, individual onward and return journeys are planned.”

Following concern from fans on social media they added: “We are fine. Safety check on the machine is running.”

infotweet Safety first. Sichere Zwischenlandung als Vorsichtsmaßnahme in Edinburgh. Von dort aus individuelle Weiter- und Rückreise geplant.

— Die Mannschaft (@DFB_Team) September 9, 2021

Following a sharp right-hand turn over Arbroath, the German team landed in Edinburgh and safely exited the plane.

The charter flight KLJ2703, operated by Klasjet, was flown by a on a Boeing 737-522 which tracker website Flightradar24 shows carried out eight successful journeys in the past week.

The squad, which includes Premier League stars Bernd Leno, Antonio Rudiger, Kai Havertz, Timo Werner and Ilkay Gundogan, were originally due to land in Frankfurt.