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Brown leaves Wizards to be Ravens president

Published in Basketball
Friday, 04 February 2022 14:17

Sashi Brown is leaving Monumental Sports and the NBA's Washington Wizards to return to the NFL as president of the Baltimore Ravens, it was announced Friday.

Brown, 45, becomes the third president in Ravens history and replaces Dick Cass, who turned 76 last month and is retiring after serving in that role for 18 years, owner Steve Bisciotti announced.

Brown is expected to start April 1, and the Ravens said he will "oversee every area of the organization," including player and staff personnel, coaching, corporate sales, operations, communications and business ventures.

After spending 12 years in the NFL, Brown has worked the past two years for Monumental Sports and the Wizards. He had been promoted to president and special advisor to chairman Ted Leonsis in November.

The Ravens' hiring of Brown, who is Black, comes amid increased scrutiny of NFL diversity hiring practices following a lawsuit by former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores earlier this week where he claims alleged racial discrimination regarding his interview process.

Brown returns to the NFL and the AFC North for the first time since the Cleveland Browns fired him as their executive vice president of football operations during the 2017 season. The Browns struggled to a 1-27 record with Brown in control of personnel and Hue Jackson as coach, but the team stockpiled picks for future draft and created more salary-cap space than any team in the league.

Jackson told ESPN on Wednesday that the Browns had a "four-year plan" that incentivized losing during that period. A day later, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam fired back, saying the claim that Jackson was paid to lose games is "an absolute falsehood."

In 2019, Brown was hired as chief planning and operations officer for Monumental Basketball -- a group that includes the Wizards, the WNBA's Washington Mystics and the Capital City Go-Go of the G League.

Brown takes over for Cass, the longest serving president in Ravens history. Cass was hired in 2004, becoming Steve Bisciotti's first hire as new owner of the Ravens. Over that time, he oversaw every aspect of the organization, from business ventures to stadium improvements to guiding the committee that hired coach John Harbaugh.

NBA trade season is here!

With just days to go until the deadline (Feb. 10, 3 p.m. ET), and four trades already completed, the Los Angeles Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers have agreed to swap key wing players as both teams enter the second half of the season, sources tell ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Keep this page bookmarked: We'll have a rundown of every trade ahead of the deadline, including grades from ESPN's Kevin Pelton.

MORE: Big questions, draft capital for each team | Potential deals for all 30 teams


Clippers acquire Covington and Powell from Trail Blazers

Los Angeles Clippers get:
Robert Covington
Norman Powell

Portland Trail Blazers get:
Eric Bledsoe
Justise Winslow
Keon Johnson
Future second-round pick


Spurs trade Bryn Forbes to Nuggets in 3-team deal

Boston Celtics get:
P.J. Dozier
Bol Bol

Denver Nuggets get:
Bryn Forbes

San Antonio Spurs get:
Juancho Hernangomez
2028 second-round pick (via Denver)


Nuggets trade Bol Bol to Pistons

Editor's note: The Denver Nuggets-Detroit Pistons trade has been voided due to a failed physical by Bol Bol, sources tell ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Detroit Pistons get:
Bol Bol

Denver Nuggets get:
Rodney McGruder
2022 second-round pick (via Brooklyn)


Thunder add another draft pick

Oklahoma City Thunder get:
Miye Oni
2028 second-round pick

Utah Jazz get:
Cash considerations


    Cavaliers, Lakers agree to Rondo deal

    Cleveland Cavaliers get:
    Rajon Rondo

    Los Angeles Lakers get:
    Denzel Valentine

    West retires, umped MLB-record 5,460 games

    Published in Baseball
    Friday, 04 February 2022 11:47

    Joe West has made it official, retiring from Major League Baseball after umpiring a record 5,460 regular-season games.

    The 69-year-old West worked his first big league game on Sept. 14, 1976, at third base in Atlanta when the Braves hosted the Houston Astros. His finale was on Oct. 6, when he worked home plate at Dodger Stadium for the National League wild-card game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals.

    Known as Country Joe, West set the record for regular-season games May 25, when he worked the plate for a game between the Chicago White Sox and Cardinals. National League umpire Bill Klem had held the record following a career that lasted from 1905 to 1941.

    West's departure came as part of a series of retirements and promotions announced Friday by MLB, including Roberto Ortiz becoming the first umpire born in Puerto Rico to join the big league staff.

    "I am honored and blessed to have the privilege of becoming the first Puerto Rican umpire to be hired by MLB," said Ortiz, 37. "It fills me with pride to be able to represent my family and my island of Puerto Rico in what I consider the best league in the world."

    Ortiz had worked 411 major league games since 2016 as a call-up ump. He had been a minor league umpire since 2009 and was assigned to Triple-A last year.

    Longtime umpires Gerry Davis, Kerwin Danley, Brian Gorman and Fieldin Culbreth also retired, while Ben May, Ryan Additon, Sean Barber and John Libka joined Ortiz in being promoted to the full-time MLB staff.

    Laz Diaz, Greg Gibson, Marvin Hudson, Ron Kulpa and Bill Welke were elevated to crew chiefs.

    May, 40, has called 650 MLB games as a call-up since 2014. He started in the minors in 2007 and was in Triple-A last season.

    Additon, 36, worked the plate when Corey Kluber pitched a no-hitter for the New York Yankees at the Texas Rangers on May 19. A minor league ump since 2010 and assigned to Triple-A last year, he has called 381 games in the majors.

    Barber, 36, has called 690 big league games since 2014. He began in the minors in 2006 and was in Triple-A last season.

    Libka, 34, has worked 371 MLB games since 2017. He started in the minors in 2010 and was in Triple-A last year.

    Davis worked a combined 5,000 games in the majors, including a record 151 in the postseason to go with 4,849 in the regular season. Davis, who turns 69 later this month, had postseason assignments for 24 straight seasons in his 38-year major league career.

    Danley, 60, in 2020 became the first African American crew chief in MLB history and was a big league umpire for 25 years. In college, he was an All-American at San Diego State and a teammate of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn.

    Gorman, 62, worked three World Series in his 30-year career and represented umps on MLB's Playing Rules Committee. He is the son of former umpire Tom Gorman.

    Culbreth, 58, worked three World Series in his 25-year major league career.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    'Back to the table': MLBPA rejects mediation offer

    Published in Baseball
    Friday, 04 February 2022 13:30

    While Major League Baseball continues to insist that federal mediation is the best route to "break the deadlock," the MLB Players Association on Friday rejected MLB's request for a mediator to negotiate between the parties for a new collective bargaining agreement.

    "Two months after implementing their lockout, and just two days after committing to Players that a counterproposal would be made, the owners refused to make a counter, and instead requested mediation," the MLBPA said in a statement. "After consultation with our Executive Board, and taking into account a variety of factors, we have declined this request."

    The move pretty much eliminates any chance for an on-time start to spring training, unless the owners lift the lockout and the sides continue to negotiate for a new agreement while camps commence. Some in the industry, on both the league and player sides, fear that the March 31 date for Opening Day could also be at risk if no resolution is reached by the end of February.

    "Our goal is to have players on the field and fans in the ballparks for spring training and Opening Day," MLB said in its statement Friday. "With camps scheduled to open in less than two weeks, it is time to get immediate assistance from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service to help us work through our differences and break the deadlock. It is clear the most productive path forward would be the involvement of an impartial third party to help bridge gaps and facilitate an agreement.

    "It is hard to understand why a party that wants to make an agreement would reject mediation from the federal agency specifically tasked with resolving these disputes, including many successes in professional sports. MLB remains committed to offering solutions at the table and reaching a fair agreement for both sides."

    New York Mets pitcher Max Scherzer, a member of the union's executive subcommittee, took to social media to say mediation isn't needed "because what we are offering to MLB is fair for both sides."

    The league believes it committed to responding to the MLBPA but not necessarily to making a counterproposal, sources familiar with the talks told ESPN. In an effort to help resolve the sport's lockout, Major League Baseball on Thursday requested the assistance of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, a governmental agency that attempts to help resolve labor disputes, sources told ESPN.

    The request was made to potentially insert the presence of a neutral party to end a work stoppage now in its third month. Mediation is not mandatory, and the MLBPA needed to agree to the involvement of a third party.

    "We don't think it speeds up the process at all," MLBPA executive board member Andrew Miller said via text. "History tells us in our sport, it hasn't been favorable to reaching a deal. ... Our position is that it is quite the opposite from negotiating and being ready to negotiate."

    MLB locked out players on Dec. 2 after the sides could not reach an agreement on a new CBA. Since then, the sides have met four times. None of the sessions has provided significant traction toward a new CBA after more than a quarter-century of labor peace.

    Mediation, a process by which an outside party intervenes during labor strife, has been commonplace throughout the history of sports labor relations. The role of mediators is more to bridge communication issues between sides and help find middle ground than to offer mandates or implement solutions. The process was used during MLBPA strikes in 1981 and 1994 -- the latter of which did not wind up with a resolution.

    The issues at hand mostly revolve around the game's core economics. The players, disgruntled because their average salaries have dropped for four consecutive seasons, have said their largest priorities are getting players paid at earlier ages; removing artificial restraints from the market, such as draft-pick penalties for signing free agents and draft-pick penalties for exceeding the luxury tax; fixing service-time manipulation; and disincentivizing tanking. The league, which wants to keep player salaries flat, has sought expanded playoffs and the preservation of current rules governing free agency, arbitration and revenue sharing.

    There have been areas of progress. The league agreed to remove direct draft-pick compensation and offered a universal designated hitter. The union said it would expand the postseason to 12 teams, short of the 14 MLB is seeking, and proposed allowing advertising patches on uniforms. Both sides are open to a draft lottery, with MLB proposing non-playoff teams be eligible for the top three picks and the union countering with the top eight picks being part of the system. MLB agreed to consider a bonus pool for non-arbitration-eligible players that would be for $10 million. The union, in its latest proposal Tuesday, countered at $100 million, down $5 million from its previous offer.

    "The clearest path to a fair and timely agreement is to get back to the table," the MLBPA said in its statement Friday. "Players stand ready to negotiate."

    ESPN's Jeff Passan contributed to this report.

    With the MLB lockout started by owners on Dec. 2 now in its third month, Major League Baseball requested the help of federal mediation Thursday, which would have potentially inserted a neutral third party in negotiations. The MLB Players Association responded by declining the request, stating that "the clearest path to a fair and timely agreement is to get back to the table."

    Where does the attempt at mediation leave negotiations? Could this create even more hostility between the two sides? And what does it all mean for the big question: When will we actually see Major League Baseball players on the field? We enlisted ESPN MLB experts Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers to sort it all out.

    The league reached out to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service on Thursday. What does that mean?

    A mediator is a neutral third party whose goal is to help two sides in a labor dispute reach common ground on issues that are preventing a deal being reached. The FMCS is the governmental arm that can help manage labor disputes like MLB's lockout, but necessitates both parties agree to mediation. A mediator's job is not to negotiate a deal or impose any specific conditions. Mediators are not arbitrators, who hear each side of an argument and deliver a ruling. The most effective mediation helps guide two parties to places they have not been able to get themselves.

    Has this happened before?

    It happens quite often in labor disputes. MLB used a mediator during its 1981 and 1994 strikes. In 1981, the mediator, Ken Moffett, worked with both parties during the 50-day strike -- and wound up being named executive director of the MLB Players Association before being fired less than a year later. During the 1994 strike that wiped out the World Series, mediator Bill Usery was unsuccessful in bringing the parties to a resolution.

    For all of the times a mediator hasn't led to an agreement -- before the 2011 NFL lockout, 16 days' worth of mediation wound up with the union disbanding and the players suing the league in federal court; later in the same year, three days of mediation in NBA talks did little to change an impasse -- there have been successes. After FCMS mediator Scot Beckenbaugh worked with the NHL in 2013, owners and players praised him publicly for his work. Beckenbaugh, who remains in a high-profile position at the FCMS, could serve as the mediator if the sides ever enter the process.

    Why would the league seek a mediator when it's the one that implemented a lockout?

    There could be several reasons. One could simply be that MLB is frustrated. If the league believes it has addressed most, if not all, of the union's concerns, but has found little progress through regular negotiations, it could enlist a third party to help. If the union accepts and the mediation fails, it could bring the sides closer to the regular season without a deal -- and perhaps sow doubt in the minds of players who begin getting paid on Opening Day. At that point, the league may hope some in the union push its leadership to make a deal.

    The move could also be more tactical. Players have pointed out that this came only a few days after the league promised to provide another proposal to the union. Instead, MLB offered mediation, which the MLBPA rejected. If the public interprets declining third-party help as a sign that the players are being obstructionists, it could help the league in the lockout's PR battle.

    Why did the union say no?

    For a union seeking significant change, there could be a feeling that the mediator would use the last collective bargaining agreement as a baseline and lean toward suggesting something closer to the status quo. The owners would be fine with that.

    Also, if the union feels progress isn't likely with a third party, then wasting valuable time might not be in its best interests. The history of mediation in baseball isn't exactly fruitful, either, leading to doubt about a mediator's ability to bridge what's currently a massive gap between the sides.

    Does the union rejecting a mediator set negotiations back even further?

    Not necessarily. It could actually be a good thing if one party -- the union, in this case -- believes a mediator won't be helpful. The process could easily turn out to be wasted time -- from waiting to schedule the mediation to the sessions themselves. Could the rejection raise animosity between the parties? Maybe, but it's not like there isn't rancor already. Rejecting the use of a mediator is well within the rights of either party.

    Where does this leave the sides?

    The same place they've been for almost a year of negotiation now: nowhere good. The frustration from both parties is evident -- and was made clear in the last two bargaining sessions. Ten days ago, the league said it was open to a pre-arbitration bonus pool proposed by the union -- except instead of the $105 million the players sought, the league offered $10 million. In a counter a week later, the union amended its offer ... to $100 million.

    With spring training set to begin in 1½ weeks, moving $5 million or $10 million at a time on one issue with at least a half-dozen other major ones unresolved is no recipe for a resolution. Perhaps there will be a time for a mediator to intervene, but the union believes that time is not now, and that belief is enough to scuttle the possibility.

    New York in the spotlight for the New Balance Indoor GP

    Published in Athletics
    Friday, 04 February 2022 14:28
    Jake Wightman, Amy Hunt and Jazmin Sawyers are among a number of Brits at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting on Sunday

    Usually held in Boston, the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix will once again be temporarily relocated and held at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex on Staten Island, New York. There are a number of British athletes in action too on Sunday (Feb 6).

    Jake Wightman, Andy Butchart and Tom Mortimer face a 3000m field that includes Adel Mechaal, the former European indoor champion at that distance from Spain, plus Luis Grijalva of Guatemala.

    Lorraine Ugen and Jazmin Sawyers go in the long jump, while Erin Wallace is in the women’s 1500m and Kyle Langford and Guy Learmonth in the men’s 800m.

    Issy Boffey, who looked strong in her season’s opener in Manchester last month, faces Olympic finalist Natoya Goule in the women’s 800m.

    Amy Hunt tests herself over 300m after showing good early season form over 60m last month.

    Elsewhere the men’s 60m is one of the tastiest events with Omar McLeod, the 2016 Olympic sprint hurdles champion, taking on world 200m champion Noah Lyles and in-form Ronnie Baker.

    World 60m hurdles record-holder Grant Holloway, meanwhile, takes on Devon Allen in the sprint hurdles, while Trayvon Bromell goes in the 200m and Millrose Games 3000m winner Geordie Beamish is in the mile.

    Another exciting event on the programme is the women’s 3000m featuring another Millrose Games winner, Elle Purrier St Pierre as she takes on Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, Emma Coburn and European indoor champion Amy-Eloise Markovc, plus fellow Brit Jenny Nesbitt.

    Now in its 27th year, the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix has played host to nine world records and 16 American records.

    The timetable and results can be found here.

    For fans in the UK the meeting is streamed on the World Athletics YouTube page from 5-7pm GMT.

    World Player of the Year Antoine Dupont will captain Six Nations favourites France against Italy on Sunday, while coach Fabien Galthie has Covid-19.

    Flanker Dylan Cretin and hooker Julien Marchand's inclusion is the only change to the starting XV which beat New Zealand in November.

    Wing Tommaso Menoncello and number eight Toa Halafihi will make their debuts in a youthful Italy side.

    Gloucester's Stephen Varney will start at scrum-half for the Azzurri in Paris.

    France had a chance to win the title in 2021, but finished second after they were agonisingly beaten by Scotland in their final game.

    The 2023 World Cup hosts look even stronger this year after a historic 40-25 victory against New Zealand - and Galthie has largely kept faith with the side that earned that win.

    Dupont captains in the absence of Charles Ollivon, who has a long-term knee injury, and the scrum-half will play only his second game since 11 December after contracting coronavirus and having his own knee issue.

    Assistant coach Raphael Ibanez will take the reigns at the Stade de France, with Galthie isolating.

    Cameron Woki has been declared fit to start alongside Paul Willemse in the second row and props Uini Atonio and Cyril Baille join Marchand in the front row.

    Dupont will partner fly-half Romain Ntamack and Jothan Danty joins Gael Fickou in the midfield, with Damian Penaud and Gabin Villiere on the wings.

    For Italy, who have finished last in every Six Nations since 2016, Montpellier's Paolo Garbisi will start at fly-half and Michele Lamaro will captain from the back row.

    Australia-born Monty Ioane is on the left wing and English scrum-half Callum Braley is on the bench.

    Prop Tiziano Pasquali will make his first international appearance since the 2019 World Cup, while flanker Manuel Zuliani and fly-half Leonardo Marin await their debuts on the bench.

    Line-ups

    France: Jaminet; Penaud, Danty, Fickou, Villiere, Ntamack, Dupont (capt); Baille, Marchand, Atonio, Woki, Willense, Jelonch, Cretin, Alldritt.

    Replacements: Mauvaka, Gros, Bamba, Taofifenua, Cros, Lucu, Moefana, Ramos.

    Italy: Padovani; Menoncello, Brex, Zanon, Ioane; Garbisi, Varney; Rischetti, Lucchesi, Pasquali, Cannone, Ruzza, Negri, Lamaro, Halafihi.

    Replacements: Faiva, Nemer, Zilocchi, Fuser, Pettinelli, Zuliani, Braley, Marin.

    Defence coach Anthony Seibold has told England that stifling 'super-talented' Scotland fly-half Finn Russell is key to winning at Murrayfield on Saturday.

    "We need to make sure we go after Finn Russell," said Seibold.

    "You need to take time and space away from him. That is easier said than done of course."

    Seibold, who took on his role in September after coaching rugby league in his native Australia, admitted he had been impressed by 29-year-old Russell's game-breaking ability.

    "He is a super-talented player. If you watch his club form [for Racing 92] over in Paris, he has been outstanding," Seibold added.

    "We want to make sure we put pressure on him. We need to take away that home advantage and make what people see as an advantage into a burden."

    England head coach Eddie Jones has already said he expects Scotland's defensive plan might be similar, with fly-half Marcus Smith, who is making his first appearance in the Six Nations, expected to be in the home side's sights.

    "I'm sure Scotland are going to come at him," Jones said of his 22-year-old stand-off.

    "Scotland brag about being able to get into the psychology of England, don't they? So let's see on Saturday."

    Seibold added England are ready to adapt their style if the forecast wind and rain arrives in the Scottish capital on Saturday afternoon to make it harder for both Russell and Smith to move the ball.

    "We plan for different scenarios," he added.

    "We have a Plan A, a Plan B and sometimes a Plan C as well. Tactically, we think we have covered off the different weather contingencies we need to."

    England are hoping to improve on a disappointing fifth-place finish in last year's tournament. They will travel to Italy and then entertain Wales at Twickenham in the following two rounds, before a home match against Ireland and a trip to Paris on the final weekend.

    Simmonds 'very proud' of Test start

    The match will also mark a first international start in nearly four years for Exeter back row Sam Simmonds.

    The 27-year-old has won a Premiership-Champions Cup double, set a top-flight try-scoring record and toured with the British and Irish Lions since he last appeared in a Test starting line-up against Ireland in March 2018.

    He was part of England's autumn set-up but made only a couple of late cameos off the bench - totalling less than 15 minutes - against Australia and South Africa.

    "It was a great feeling," he said of his selection. "I'm very proud. It is something I have worked hard for the last few years; first to get named back into a squad and then to push on and try to get a starting position."

    With Courtney Lawes one of several high-profile injured players, Simmonds will pack down between 23-year-old stand-in skipper Tom Curry and Lewis Ludlam, who has 10 caps.

    Simmonds believes it is a back-row blend that can thrive no matter what Murrayfield may bring.

    "It is an all-action back row. The boys alongside me love to carry, love to tackle and love to get over the ball and I think that is something we are going to need against Scotland, especially away.

    "It is going to be a tough game in the wet and you are going to have to have people who want to get up, kick chase and do the bits others probably don't want to do. I think we complement each other quite well as a three."

    There’s been a snag in the grand experiment.

    All that has gone into Bryson DeChambeau’s distance explosion over the past two years – those marathon range sessions, that maniacal speed training, the weight-room grunting – has taken a toll, and now his body is revolting.

    Wrist soreness has plagued him for months. Last week he clutched his back in pain. And on Friday, he cited a left hand and left hip injury as the reason for his withdrawal before the second round of the Asian Tour’s Saudi International.

    Everyone on the internet cracked the same joke – that he must have pulled a muscle reaching for his wallet, in the wake of the reported $135 million offer from the Saudi-backed Super Golf League. DeChambeau claimed that was “wrong,” though he didn’t specify which part, the nine-figure amount or the offer to be the rival tour’s poster boy. Whatever the case, the drama is never-ending.

    After a turbulent 2021, DeChambeau seemed energized last fall, first by the Ryder Cup (where he was the Americans’ most entertaining player), then with an impressively deep run at the World Long Drive, and finally at The Match when he buried the hatchet, at least publicly, with longtime nemesis Brooks Koepka. But all those good vibes appear to have worn off; his body language this year has been sullen and brooding. His mind is always working in overdrive, but now there are new variables to consider: poor play, an uncertain future, mounting injuries.

    Many predicted a transformational shift at the 2020 U.S. Open, when DeChambeau bashed his way to a dominant victory at Winged Foot. But rather than maintain that clear edge, he kept pushing further. On Instagram and on his own personal YouTube channel, he showed the world how he was hitting the gym with more intensity, gaining weight, then losing it. He showed us how he was swinging the club faster, intent on a cruising 200-mph ball speed in competition.

    He was going harder.

    Getting stronger.

    More. More. More.

    And now his body is begging for mercy. The told-you-so! crowd is having a moment.

    Bryson DeChambeau may not be talking to reporters, but he still has a voice on social media.

    Last month, after withdrawing before the Sony Open, DeChambeau declared himself fit and healthy – and even plugged a new video he had coming out on how to fix his wrist.

    “The one thing you don’t want to do is push your body when it’s saying no, don’t go,” he said. “You don’t want to do that in recovery. I’m happy to have it all taken care of.”

    Apparently, that was wishful thinking.

    It’s unclear the extent of his current injuries, plural. He isn’t talking to reporters; the only media availability he has had this year was a preview call ahead of the Saudi event, for which he was paid a handsome appearance fee. Silence is probably the best PR strategy given last year’s gaffes, but that only leads to more questions:

    Does he need to shut it down for an extended period?

    Must he dial back his speed training?

    Does his grand experiment need re-imagining?

    He’s likely pondering all those thoughts as he makes the long flight home to Dallas, three days early. DeChambeau’s value – to the PGA Tour, to any potential rival league, to his online audience – is tied to his on-course performance. That competitive aspect has never been more uncertain.

    Tuchel: Pulisic hampered by bloated schedule

    Published in Soccer
    Friday, 04 February 2022 07:23

    Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel said Christian Pulisic and other international stars are hampered by the sheer volume of matches asked of them by the football calendar.

    Pulisic scored in the United States' 3-0 win over Honduras in the World Cup qualifiers on Wednesday and played in the 2-0 defeat against Canada on Sunday. However, the 23-year-old has yet to return to training with his Chelsea teammates.

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    Defender Thiago Silva, who appeared for Brazil in a pair of World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay in the past two weeks, has also yet to rejoin Chelsea training.

    When asked about the absences of Pulisic and Silva, Tuchel called on football's governing bodies to introduce a "leaner schedule" to help players who appear for their countries.

    "It's about quantity and not quality," Tuchel said at a news conference on Friday.

    "The people want to see quality football, the quality players, and for this they need rest, not injured and healthy. We need a leaner schedule.

    "In one year now, we've had 67 matches or something like this, and then you have European competitions, World Cup qualifiers, and more, the effort is huge."

    Chelsea face a busy schedule in the coming weeks, starting with an FA Cup fourth round clash against Plymouth Argyle on Sunday. That match is followed by the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, with Chelsea's first match scheduled to take place on Wednesday.

    Chelsea are in third place in the Premier League, 10 points behind leaders Manchester City, who hold a game in hand over Tuchel's side.

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