We must kill off our rivals, insists Sarri
M AURIZIO SARRI has warned his ‘superficial’ players of the perils of switching off in matches ahead of their vital clash with Arsenal this evening.
It has been a bugbear of his at times during this season and it flared up again in the 2-1 win over Newcastle last Saturday, in which Chelsea struggled after taking an early lead.
The accusation was that his players have occasionally become complacent after taking a lead in games and the message in training this week has centred on their need to ‘kill’ opponents when they have the chance.
‘I know very well that we need to improve a lot,’ Sarri said. ‘We need to improve from the tactical point of view and mentally.
‘We had problems with reactions to difficulties in the beginning and now we react very well to a difficulty.
‘Now we have to show we can react from a positive situation. In the last matches, when we scored, we lowered the application and attention. So now we have to work just to avoid this.
‘We were superficial I think (against Newcastle) because we thought the match was won. Being superficial is one of the biggest problems a team can have, so we have to counter the superficiality.
‘If you are winning 10, you cannot think that the match is easy. So you have to kill the match. Then you have to manage the match.
‘The players know very well my opinion. I told them very often my feeling, sometimes, after the goal was that we were sometimes superficial.
‘They know very well the situation, I think.’
It is a timely reminder, perhaps, considering Chelsea gave up a two-goal lead before eventually winning 3-2 in the reverse fixture against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in August. Both teams had barely started to find their feet under their new managers in that game. However, this next encounter feels more significant than that early-season skirmish, with Unai Emery accepting that defeat will most likely end Arsenal’s hopes of finishing in the top four. Chelsea are currently their direct opposition for the spot and would go nine points clear of the Gunners with a win today. Arsenal come in with the poor recent record of three defeats in six, a struggling defence — which shipped five goals against Liverpool — and a manager whose frequent tweaks to personnel and shape would suggest that five months into the season he is not yet sure of his best configuration. But Chelsea are not at full tilt themselves, with a reduced rate of 13 goals over the past 11 games and delays in the deal to sign their solution, Gonzalo Higuain. It is also noticeable that Jorginho has become less effective in central midfield, with Sarri admitting the Italian is tired. ‘He played very well for 20 matches,’ Sarri said. ‘Now, maybe, in the last two matches he was a little bit tired. He moved the ball a little bit slowly than before. ‘But I think that it’s normal. You cannot stay at the top for 60 matches. ‘It’s the reason I said we needed a replacement for Cesc Fabregas. But it’s not a big problem,’ added the Chelsea boss.