You might be Sarri for bitter rant at players
THE GRUMBLINGS have started. There were reports after this game of Chelsea fans on the concourses of the Emirates chanting, “F*** Sarri ball”.
Others took to social media to moan about predictable tactics, predictable team selections, predictable substitutions, predictable football.
But Maurizio Sarri insists he will not be changing.
Perhaps what should be more worrying for the Chelsea manager is the possible consequences of his furious rant at his players after this dismal, punchless defeat. The Italian, unusually in his own language, raged that his players were difficult to motivate and lacked leaders and determination.
Going public may not have been the wisest thing to do – managers who have fallen out with powerful dressing rooms at Stamford Bridge in the past have paid a heavy price. Just ask Jose Mourinho or Andre Villas-Boas.
How Sarri’s players react to his tirade will be interesting. Gonzalo Higuain is expected to arrive tomorrow to strengthen Chelsea’s attack, but the Argentine striker will not solve all their problems. Defeat by Tottenham in the second leg of the Carabao Cup final on Thursday could see the vultures circling.
Sarri will hold an inquest today into the Emirates debacle, Chelsea’s fourth Premier League loss of the season.
He said there was no question of him changing, like his predecessor Antonio Conte did after a 3-0 defeat at Arsenal in September 2016, when he switched tactics and went on to win the league.
“It is different,” he said. “This is the football I have. I am a good teacher of this football. It would not be a good idea to teach my players a different type of football. There will be some changes but no massive upheaval.
“We have leaders. But we need to change the mentality and within the group of players we do have, that ability and the characteristics to change.”
David Luiz said the players are totally behind their manager. “I don’t think players are less sure. Everybody is trusting Sarri’s work, everybody is with him,” he said. “The manager was not happy, but nobody was. It is not impossible to carry on with this philosophy. It is our style. If you asked at the beginning of the season, ‘Can Chelsea keep the ball?’ you would have said no. Now we can do that, like the best teams in the world. But then we have to improve our last 25 metres.
“It is part of the process. If you believe in it, you can arrive there. But if because of results you change, you don’t go anywhere. This is our philosophy. I believe in it, I trust in it, I just know we have to improve.”
Chelsea started abysmally and could have been three down inside the first 13 minutes as Alexandre Lacazette, Sokratis and Laurent Koscielny all missed good chances. So when Lacazette picked up the ball, twisted past two weak challenges and rifled the ball in, it was no surprise.
Had Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga not pulled off two fine saves, it could have been worse. Pedro did clip the post from Chelsea’s best attacking ploy – a long ball from Luiz – but otherwise they were toothless.
Arsenal’s second arrived when Chelsea did not clear a corner, Sokratis put the ball back in and Koscielny guided it home with his shoulder. With Eden Hazard again unhappily playing as a false No9, Chelsea had no focal point. Full-back Marcos Alonso hit the post and was frequently the furthest man up until Olivier Giroud was thrown on. N’Golo Kante again looked uncomfortable on the right.
Chelsea have now lost four of their last 11 games and still have to go to Manchester City, Liverpool and United. Their grip on the top four is loosening.
At the beginning of the week, it was Arsenal in crisis but after this determined display, things look much brighter.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang said: “This gives us a lot of confidence that we can finish the season really well.”
ARSENAL (4-3-1-2): Leno 7: Bellerin 7 (Elneny 69, 6), Sokratis 7, Koscielny 7, Kolasinac 7; Torriera 7, Xhaka 7, Guendouzi 7; Ramsey 7 (Maitland-Niles 66, 7); Lacazette 8 (Iwobi 66, 7), Aubameyang 7. Goals: Lacazette 14, Koscielny 39. NEXT UP: Man
Utd (h), FAC Fri.
CHELSEA (4-3-3): Arrizabalaga 6; Azpilicueta 5, Rudiger 6, Luiz 6, Alonso 6; Kante 6, Jorginho 5, Kovacic 6 (Barkley 62, 6); Willian 5 (Giroud 66, 6), Hazard 6, Pedro 6 (HudsonOdoi 78). Booked: Luiz, Barkley. NEXT UP: Tottenham (h), CC Thurs.
Referee: A Taylor (Cheshire).