Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
MY OLD CLUB’S A SARRI MESS
Jose praises Kepa for showing ‘personality’ but insists his act of rebellion leaves the shaky Blues boss in a ‘very fragile situation’
JOSE MOURINHO has backed Kepa Arrizabalaga and claimed Maurizio Sarri has been left in a “very fragile” situation.
Former Chelsea boss Mourinho PRAISED Kepa for showing “personality” but admitted that his Wembley rebellion had undermined Sarri’s authority as manager.
Mourinho’s verdict came after it emerged Chelsea’s players had actually backed Sarri in the wake of the cup-final bust-up which saw
DAVID LUIZ has delivered a remarkable show of support for under-pressure manager Maurizio Sarri.
Sarri, battling to keep his job, had his authority questioned by the Wembley mutiny of keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga on Sunday.
The Chelsea boss has been under scrutiny for much of the season but Luiz insisted that the players produced a performance at Wembley at the weekend that proved they still believe in him.
Luiz, an influential figure in the dressing room, was the one Chelsea player who urged Kepa to go off when his manager wanted to replace him.
And the Brazilian international believes Chelsea’s gutsy display in taking Manchester City to penalties in the Carabao
Cup final proved that
Sarri still has the respect of the dressing room.
Luiz said: “We have a great team, a great coach, and great players. It is up to us to find the balance and perform every single match. Chelsea are a team that should be fighting for the Premier League.
“We can finish the season strongly and that is our goal.”
And Luiz said there is still plenty for Chelsea to aim for this term.
“We have the Europa League and the Premier League top four to fight for,” he said.
“After the tough few weeks we’ve had, we gave a very good answer against Manchester City because we showed what Chelsea are about.
“We played against the best team in Europe at the moment and we controlled the second half and could have won.
“Yes (we are still behind the manager), that’s why we played an amazing game against City. He can lift everyone for the rest of the season.
“He deserves our respect, he deserves the respect of everybody.” Luiz (with Sarri, below) claimed the players still believe in “Sarri ball” and the manager’s possession-based approach.
“There’s complete confidence,” he said. “You have a long way to go to be the best team but to be the best team you have to start somewhere and that’s what we are trying to do. There’s confidence in the system.
“When we hurt, everybody hurts. But everybody has now seen a great spirit from the team.”
The 31-year-old said the improvement Chelsea showed on Sunday from the 6-0 defeat by City a fortnight earlier highlighted their inconsistency.
“After the 6-0 defeat we had to recognise what we did badly and try to improve. I think we did that,” he said.
“That has been our problem this season, consistency. We have had some great performances, like on Sunday and against City at Stamford Bridge when they were unbeaten. I think it is up to us to find consistency for every single match.”
Chelsea are at home to Spurs tomorrow and on Sunday travel to relegation-threatened Fulham, meaning they will have played five consecutive matches in London.
Luiz, out of contract at the end of the season, believes he is playing as well as he’s ever played. “I think it’s one of the best seasons I’ve had individually but, for me, that doesn’t count because I want my team to win,” he said. “I’d rather my team wins 5-4 and people criticise me than do a great job individually and yet not be on the winning side.
“Last season was so difficult for me because for six months I was not playing football so playing every match now and playing well is just great.”