Maurizio Sarri endured a tough defeat on Monday night, after Chelsea lost two-nil at home against Manchester United, which is a team heading the complete opposite direction to Chelsea.
Chelsea might have dominated possession, but that has clearly been the case this season, yet they have recently only rarely managed to get the performances and points required to finish in the UEFA Champions League spots and to have a chance of winning a trophy.
Jorginho's effectiveness was completely nullified through Solskjaer's clever deployment of the 4-1-2-1-2 diamond, with Juan Mata sticking closely to Chelsea's summer signing. To make matters worse, Chelsea were completely ripped apart by Manchester United's movement, with Jorginho, Kante, and the defenders not being able to go anywhere near close enough to the United attack that seemed to stream forward at every chance.
However, the main criticism did not fall upon Jorginho and the rest of the players, but on Maurizio Sarri. The Italian angered the crowd the most when he persisted to continue playing through the same system, known as 'Sarri-Ball', and by making like-for-like substitutions. The pinnacle of the frustration was reached when he failed to gamble and go more attacking when he had to take off Cesar Azpilicueta, and instead opted for Davide Zappacosta, when he had players like Callum Hudson-Odoi and Olivier Giroud on the bench.
The club as a whole seems to be on a downwards spiral, with the main problem being that in the past when they changed managers every two seasons, the manager coming in would have instant success, yet this time, the club has invested in the manager by bringing in the players that he wanted, yet the team seems to be getting worse and worse. The sheer lack of consistency from the group of players has often unnerved the managers in the past, with Sarri himself admitting that he does not know if he still has the players playing for him, saying "I think [the players are still with me]. Of course, I am not sure, but I think so."
Manchester United are a team that are on the up, and were clearly very resolute defensively, but with the quality of players that Sarri has to his disposal, it was clear that something could have been done to up the tempo and generate some more exciting football.
Sarri may be to blame for several decisions made, but at the end of the day, the attitudes of the players has to be questioned as well. Eden Hazard, David Luiz, Willian, Cesar Azpilicueta, and several others have all been trusted by the managers that have led them in the past, yet they always seem to crumble when the managers need them to perform the most. While Hazard may still be putting out great performances, the constant transfer speculation surrounding him with a move to Real Madrid has caused great unrest in the dressing room, and will only add to Sarri's troubles.
Sarri has not helped himself by separating himself from the fans, saying that he does not care what the fans say, and that he is only "worried about the results. Not about the fans". This comes after the supporters constantly booed his decisions, whilst also aiming toxic chants towards him.
The Italian may feel that he is not worried about the job, saying that he "was worried when I [he] was in League Two in Italy, but not now", yet there clearly is a lot of pressure on him to provide the results needed, and if that is not done soon, then the board will have to take action.
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