Crunch Time for Sarri
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When Maurizio Sarri left Napoli to join Chelsea in the summer the fans at Stamford Bridge were set to be in for a treat.
The Italian was known for a pressing style of football during his time in Naples, beginning with the forward line moving in on the player in possession and the midfield cutting passing lanes. The defence pushed up to make things compact in the middle of the pitch and the overall approach to defending was aggressive.
When on the ball at Napoli, the central defenders were happy to keep possession and work the ball to Jorginho in midfield and back again when necessary. The idea was to lure the opposition onto Napoli and then exploit the space left behind them.
This is just a basic overview but Sarri was always going to try and employ the same style of play at Chelsea and to begin with it seemed to be working. Jorginho was enjoying himself in a deep-lying midfield role and his ability to pass the ball and start attacks was a joy to watch.
His positioning meant N’Golo Kante was forced to move forward in the team but Chelsea were winning games so it did not really matter.
However, teams in the Premier League seem to have worked out what Sarri and Chelsea are doing. The opposition is putting a man on Jorginho when Chelsea have the ball and when they win the ball off the Blues, they are using the space around Jorginho to create attacks.
This was evident in the recent 2-0 defeat at Manchester United in the FA Cup. Juan Mata was playing around Jorginho, not allowing him any freedom to play his passes and when Manchester United won the ball they used the space around Jorginho to get forward into dangerous areas of the pitch.
Ahead of the Europa League second leg game against Malmo, Chelsea have lost three of their last five games. They have been defeated by an aggregate of 12-0 by Bournemouth, Manchester City and Manchester United. The only wins during that period have been against Malmo, who were yet to begin their new season and bottom of the table Huddersfield Town.
On Sunday, Chelsea face Manchester City in the League Cup final and there are reports Sarri will be sacked if Chelsea lose the match.
While these reports may be exaggerated, another heavy defeat could signal the end of the Italian. If Chelsea were to win or even lose by a single goal and make the match competitive, it is hard to imagine Chelsea sacking Sarri now.
The question is, will Sarri change his tactics? Even a little change to offer something different and surprise Manchester City. The answer is probably no and it appears Sarri is single-minded in his approach to the game. It’s that single-mindedness which could end up being his undoing at Stamford Bridge and the Chelsea faithful were showing signs of turning against Sarri during the Manchester United defeat.
It is going to be very interesting to see if Sarri changes his approach to the League Cup final, with possibly his job on the line, or opts to stick to his principles knowing the consequences if it goes wrong.
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