Sarri plays dodgeball as Blues win it
As Chelsea fans filtered into the Malmo squares in the early hours, the theme of the conversation would be clear.
Did this victory represent a blanket over the flames? Or is there life yet in the ailing reign of Maurizio sarri?
The manager, too, seemed perturbed by a team who remain a riddle of contradictions. sarri was pleased by the football that produced a 2-0 lead but exasperated by how David luiz lost possession in the lead- up to Malmo’s late goal.
sarri said: ‘If we concede a goal like this to Manchester City or United or Tottenham, then you risk conceding three goals in 10 minutes.’
after City’s balletic exhibition at the etihad, another side in sky blue threatened to deepen the malaise inflicting sarri.
as arsenal showed earlier, there are no walkovers in the knockout stages in europe. In these lessvaunted parts of the continent, matches like this do not come along very often and Malmo responded to the occasion.
Their manager Uwe Rosler set the tie up with much bravado. The former Manchester City striker spoke of his joy at Chelsea’s 6-0 defeat and warned the ‘stadium would be cooking’.
The locals did not disappoint. They ignited red flares and a smoke enveloped their sold-out home. The two sets of fans hurled beer back and forth during the first period and a line of swedish police intervened. Chelsea, already facing a partial stadium closure due to alleged antisemitic chants, may face another UeFa charge.
amid the latest bout of pressure overwhelming their manager, Chelsea’s second half improvement offers hope ahead of matches against Manchester United in the Fa Cup and City in the Carabao Cup final that will go a long way to defining sarri’s tenure. Chairman Bruce Buck, who sat in on sarri’s pre-match press conference, took in a pitchside view of the players going through their warm-ups.
File this away, therefore, as a result urgently required for sarri. There are caveats. Malmo finished third in the swedish league last season and they sorely lack quality. They are also out of practice. Their domestic campaign ended in November and a training camp in Marbella, plus a handful of friendlies, was not ideal preparation.
sarri felt it necessary to demand further improvement from his team. he said: ‘We need consistency, in the mental condition to approach every match with the same application, determination and attention. If you are in bad mental condition in england, in 10 days you can lose three or four very important matches.’
Yet Chelsea secured their win and in one sweeping move in the second half sarri’s vision came to life. Chelsea were already leading through a Ross Barkley goal but they were under the cosh.
The Chelsea breakthrough, when it came in the 30th minute, was their first shot on target and Barkley seemed surprised as he initially stumbled when Pedro’s cross landed at his feet. The midfielder settled himself and slipped the ball under the goalkeeper. Remarkably, Chelsea’s first away goal of the calendar year had arrived only on Valentine’s Day.
after the opener, Chelsea should have asserted their authority. Yet instead the more compelling reaction came from Malmo. anders Christiansen’s long- distance strike dipped over and Chelsea rode their luck as soren Rieks and Markus Rosenberg came close to an equaliser.
The second goal began with sarri’s essential figure, Jorginho, who was harried in central midfield, but he hoodwinked his opponents, threading a pass that broke the lines and saw Barkley running over halfway with menace. Barkley carried the ball and teed up Willian, who crossed low, and Olivier Giroud turned in the crucial second.
Yet even when Chelsea looked safe, sound and sailing into the next round, angst crept in. N’Golo Kante and eden hazard were by now on the field as substitutes but, with a 2-0 lead, suddenly the Chelsea defence parted and Christiansen sped through to cut the deficit and offer hope to the home crowd.
There was always the suspicion Malmo may tire and so it proved. Chelsea should have added more goals, first when Barkley was denied by Johan Dahlin, then when Pedro curled wide.
But for sarri, this was welcome respite. how long it will last is another question entirely.