SARRI SEEMS TO HAVE THE HARDESTJOB
Chelsea boss admits it will be tough to topple Guardiola and Klopp but will fight to the very end
MAURIZIO SARRI has vowed to “fight to the end” to lead Chelsea to Premier League glory this season.
But he admits he has a much tougher task replacing Antonio Conte than his successor Carlo Ancelotti has at Napoli.
Sarri has made a perfect start to life at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have laid down a marker in the race for the title, which many expected to be a straight fight between Manchester City and Liverpool, by winning all four of their opening league games.
The Blues’ start has given them the perfect platform to build on as Sarri has set his sights on making Chelsea champions again.
He said: “Manchester City are in their third year with Pep Guardiola and can aim not only to win the title again but also the Champions League. And then there’s Liverpool who have made great progress with Jurgen Klopp and I will fight until the end for the English title.
“I am lucky to have a great squad. Little by little, I have spoken to the players, given that because of the World Cup the last ones arrived in the week before the opening game against Huddersfield.
“But the credit for this efficiency goes to them because they are excellent players. What makes champions is their willingness to work and their humility.”
Chelsea won their most recent title in 2017 under Conte whose last act as Blues boss was to win last season’s FA Cup.
Sarri has yet to win a trophy as a manager and when asked whether his shoes or Conte’s were harder to fill, he said: “I won nothing with Napoli. Conte, on the other hand, won here and it is difficult to take his place.”
Sarri was eventually released to take over at Chelsea after Napoli replaced him with Ancelotti following his request for time to think about his future at the Italian club.
He revealed in Italian paper Il Mattino: “I was having dinner and discussing whether or not to stay and turned on the TV and saw the entrance of Ancelotti, What did I think? I will keep that to myself.”
Despite a number of public spats with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, Sarri insisted: “I’m grateful because he gave me the opportunity to coach the team in my heart. I am here at Chelsea it is because I coached at Napoli.”