PURPLE HAZ
Sarri tells hat-trick hero Eden: I expect 40 goals & Golden Boot from you..
FIVE wins out of five, but Maurizio Sarri still refuses to see Chelsea as title contenders.
Nevertheless, he told Eden Hazard, in a heart-to-heart chat last week, that he expects him to win the Golden Boot award for top Premier League scorer this season.
As a result, the Chelsea manager insists Hazard’s stunning hat-trick was a sign that his player has got the message.
“I think he can win the Golden Boot,” Sarri said. “I talked with Eden on Friday and told him that for me he can score 40 goals. He has to improve but he can do it.
“Did he believe me? If you have seen the match against Cardiff, you will say yes.”
Hazard skipped away from a rash challenge by Joe Bennett to equalise, after Sol Bamba had raised hopes of an upset by converting a set-piece orchestrated by Cardiff assistant manager Kevin Blackwell, into whose arms he ran to celebrate.
Another swift interchange between Hazard and partner Olivier Giroud turned the game on its head before half-time, after which the Belgium international completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot, and substitute Willian added extra gloss with a sublime long-range fourth.
Team-mate Marcos Alonso certainly can see no reason why Hazard cannot challenge Liverpool’s Mo Salah, who won the award with 32 goals last season, for the 2018-19 trophy.
“Eden’s one of the best, for sure,” Alonso said. “He has started very well after a very good World Cup. He’s playing awesome football and I hope he keeps this up. We all have to help him score goals and help him to continue like this.
“We saw last year Salah fight for the Golden Boot and they play more or less the same position – as a winger coming inside the pitch. If he keeps playing this way, why not Hazard?”
Individual honours are one thing, but Neil Warnock believes Chelsea may ultimately struggle to compete with Manchester City and Liverpool.
“I think the top teams would find a little bit of a weakness in certain areas at the back,” said the Cardiff City manager.
Sarri agreed with his opposite number. “He is right because we are very dangerous in the offensive phase but, in the defensive phase, we need to improve and we need to improve very quickly,” he said.
“Eight players arrived for training at the beginning of August, so I think it is normal that, in this period, we have some defensive problems.
“I have to organise better the defensive phase and the players have to understand that.
“Liverpool and Manchester City are better than the others. We have to improve step by step.
“My target is to become the best team in England in one year or in 18 months. That is the target.”