Tim Sherwood thinks the introduction of Mason Mount on 65 minutes helped "change" the game for Chelsea in their 3-1 win against Southampton on Saturday afternoon.
Thomas Tuchel has been praised in recent weeks for making big decisions at pivotal times in games, in terms of substitutions, and the Blues boss did so again against the Saints.
Mount came on the pitch for Callum Hudson-Odoi when the game was level at 1-1 and the England midfielder helped Chelsea secure a crucial 3-1 victory to lift them to the top of the Premier League table.
The 22-year-old was sidelined for the two games before the Southampton clash after picking up a slight muscular injury against Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup.
However, Mount returned to the side on Saturday after being introduced in the second-half and made his influence known, especially to Sherwood.
“Mason Mount is a huge player for them,” the former Tottenham boss told Premier League Productions (via Optus Sport ) after the game.
“When he came on to the pitch today, he changed it — everything changed.
“He looked to play progressively forward, and he would look for [Romelu] Lukaku.
“When he was fit in the early part of the season, Lukaku was scoring. A few games out and I think they missed him.
“They’ve missed [Christian] Pulisic [as well] and they need to get him back, because [Hakim] Ziyech and [Kai] Havertz just haven’t done it.”
These comments from Sherwood come just a few days after Paul Merson called the midfielder Chelsea's "unsung hero".
Merson wrote his column for the Daily Star: “It will help when Mason Mount comes back. It’s no coincidence they’ve lost both the games he’s missed. He’s Chelsea’s unsung hero and makes them tick.”
Mount will now join up with the England squad for their upcoming fixtures before returning to Chelsea for their Premier League clash with Brentford on Saturday, October 16.
