Thomas Tuchel says Raheem Sterling is a "huge asset" for Chelsea and hopes the forward can shape the team "by just being who he is".
Chelsea confirmed the signing of Sterling from Premier League rivals Manchester City on Wednesday in a deal reported to be in the region of £45million.
Sterling arrives with plenty of pedigree, having won 10 major honours across seven seasons with City, whom he joined after a three-year spell as a Liverpool first-team regular.
He is the first signing of the Todd Boehly era, and Tuchel has high hopes for the 77-cap England international at Stamford Bridge.
"Hopefully he shapes our team by just being who he is," Tuchel told BBC Sport. "He will be a huge asset for us.
"He's a huge player, with a huge influence in the last years in English football and is at a perfect age to now take responsibility around young players we have and be an example.
"Getting what he delivered for years given his age, his hunger for responsibility, and his style of play and his amount of intensity is outstanding.
"It is the benchmark in the Premier League and is exactly what we need."
Sterling, who had just one year remaining on his contract at the Etihad Stadium, has signed a five-year deal with Chelsea.
The 27-year-old scored 17 goals for City in all competitions last season, a tally bettered only by Riyad Mahrez (24) and Kevin De Bruyne (19).
Chelsea's transfer business is unlikely to stop there, with Kalidou Koulibaly and the club's former defender Nathan Ake both expected to join before the window closes.
And Tuchel, who saw his side lose to Liverpool in both domestic cup finals last season, is having a bigger say in transfer activity under the club's new American owners.
"The relationship [with the owners] is very intense, very close, which it has to be," he said from Chelsea's pre-season training base in Los Angeles.
"Without Petr [Cech] and without Marina [Granovskaia], it's a big change in the daily structure and communication. I'm a lot more involved.
"I have to step up in terms of responsibility. I think in the long term or even when the close of the pre-season comes, I will want to be more on the coaching role again.
"But right now it's important to improve our team, to bring players in to stay competitive because we want to compete for a minimum of top four.
"Given the fact that Tottenham, Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal and Manchester United act on the transfer market for weeks and months, we need to be smart, we need to be fast and we need to find solutions. It's my job to help."
Chelsea face Mexican side Club America in their opening pre-season friendly on Saturday, before taking on Charlotte FC, Arsenal and Udinese.
Tuchel: Champions League semi-final defeat 'tough to accept'
Thomas Tuchel reflects on "tough to accept" defeat after Real Madrid came from behind to win 2-1 and knock Bayern Munich out of the Champions League on Wednesday.
After a 2-2 draw in the first leg of the semi-final at the Allianz Arena, Bayern took the lead in the 68th minute through Alphonso Davies.
However, Joselu came off the bench to score twice in three minutes to send the LaLiga champions to the Champions League final with a 4-3 aggregate win over Bayern.
"It hurts. It’ll take a while to recover, but on the one hand, it’s a loss where we left it all out on the pitch,” Tuchel told DAZN after the game.
"Of course, it’s tough to accept. It’s part of reality. No regrets. But on the other, there were too many injuries, a few too many substitutions, too many cramps.
"We started with a front four and by the end they were all off the pitch. And then Manu, who had been exceptional in saving us all night, made a mistake he wouldn’t make in another 100 years."
In stoppage time, Matthijs de Ligt had the ball in the back of the net, but the referee had already blown his whistle after the linesman raised his flag, so VAR could not intervene.
The replays showed that the original decision was closer than first thought, and Tuchel was frustrated with how the situation was handled.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Tuchel said: "We are almost through, it's almost there and there was a very unusual mistake from our best player for the equaliser, then we conceded the second one in stoppage time.
"Then we scored one and there was a disastrous decision from the linesman and the referee. It feels like a betrayal in the end. There was a huge fight, we left everything on the pitch, and we were almost there. Now we say congratulations to Real Madrid.
"The linesman says sorry, but that does not help. To raise the flag in a moment like this... The referee sees we get the second ball, and we get the shot - it's a very, very bad decision. It's against the rules. It's a disaster. It's hard to swallow, but that's the way it is."
Manuel Neuer made five saves in the game and looked equal to Madrid’s threat until he spilled the ball in the build-up to Joselu’s first goal.
"Anyone who’s ever played football knows how I’m feeling right now," he told DAZN.
"That we’ve been knocked out in the closing stages, having led 1-0 until the 88th minute, it’s extremely bitter.
"We’d taken one step to London; we saw ourselves in the final, and now I’m lost for words."
Super-sub Joselu strikes again as comeback kings Madrid pounce
Joselu was the hero for Real Madrid as he scored twice off the bench to send them through to the Champions League final.
The Spaniard’s late brace secured Madrid’s comeback after Alphonso Davies had given the German side the lead, securing a 2-1 victory on the night, and a 4-3 win on aggregate to set up a meeting with Borussia Dortmund on June 1.
With only 10 minutes plus stoppage time to make an impact, Joselu made his time on the pitch count.
He scored with both his shots, becoming the oldest substitute to score a brace in a knockout game in the Champions League.
The forward is Madrid’s highest scorer in the competition this season with five goals, netting three of those after coming off the bench.
It is also the second time he has scored a double against a German team in the Champions League this campaign, getting his other against Union Berlin in the group stages.
Bayern were left to rue a late lapse in concentration that saw them concede twice in the space of two minutes and 44 seconds.
After Davies, who has been heavily linked with Los Blancos, became the first Canadian player to score in the knockout stages of the Champions League, with what was his maiden goal in the competition, it was a mistake that led to Madrid's equaliser.
It is the first time since April 2021 against Paris Saint-Germain that Manuel Neuer made an error leading to an opposition goal in the competition.
Bayern have now lost 11 Champions League matches against Madrid, the most one side has lost against another in the competition’s history.
It was always going to be a tough game for Thomas Tuchel’s side even after taking the lead – Madrid have won four matches despite conceding first in the Champions League this season, the most by a side in a single campaign since they won the trophy in 2016-17 (five).
Los Blancos have reached an 18th final in the European Cup/Champions League, but this is the first time they will play the showcase game at Wembley or in England altogether.
Meanwhile, Carlo Ancelotti has reached his sixth Champions League final, two more than any other coach in the history of the competition.
Tuchel wants Bayern to discover their 'inner child' against Real Madrid
Thomas Tuchel wants his Bayern Munich side to rediscover their inner child when they take on Real Madrid on Wednesday.
After last week's 2-2 draw in Munich, Bayern will have to beat Madrid in their own back yard if they are to reach the Champions League final at Wembley.
With Bayer Leverkusen ending Bayern's 11-year Bundesliga dominance by securing the league title last month, the six-time European Cup winners have only one trophy left to fight for this season.
Tuchel spent several minutes talking to his players in an empty Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday and said that he told them they needed to find extra motivation within themselves.
"It is important to connect with your own inner child. When we were little we played these games in the garden. So now we are here and that's our chance to make it true," he told reporters.
"I think both teams have to endure defending and suffering when their opponents have the ball. It is extremely difficult to steal the ball from Real Madrid. Both teams are very, very strong in the transition game. It gets very complex. You need luck and precision. Then everything is possible at this stage."
Bayern were undone by Vinicius Junior's double in the first leg, with the Brazil forward scoring either side of efforts from Leroy Sane and Harry Kane.
However, Opta's win predictor has Madrid as 48.5 per cent favourites to claim the victory they need to progress.
Madrid, the record 14-time European champions, have an aura in the competition, but Tuchel said the Spaniards' record holds no fear for his side.
"Bayern are also one of the most successful and dominant clubs in the world and we have an obligation to do our best when we step on the pitch tomorrow," he said.
"You don't talk about myths, that would make it harder for us. It is already one of the toughest stadiums to win but not impossible. We are not here to enjoy the moment."
Bayern reached the Champions League's last four for the first time since winning the competition in 2020, while Madrid last lifted the trophy in 2022 with an amazing run of comeback wins at home to reach the final.
Carlo Ancelotti's team are bidding to win their sixth Champions League title in 10 years, having clinched a record-extending 36th LaLiga crown on Saturday.
The Bavarians, however, have endured a disappointing domestic run and Tuchel will exit at the end of the season.
"Real Madrid are an amazing team but we need to be confident in ourselves and help each other, we can't be stuck or afraid. We need to make something positive from the pressure," Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said.
"Against a team like Real Madrid, it's the little things that matter. Nobody wants to make a mistake because both teams have very good offensive power."
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