Erratic would be a good way of describing Chelsea’s form this season under Maurizio Sarri. The Blues win one and falter in another so quickly, at times, they look like they’re playing confused tactics.
It all came to a crescendo when Sarri’s boys lost 4-0 to Bournemouth and the historic 6-0 defeat to Manchester City barely a few weeks after. The pressure was mounting on the former Napoli boss and he needed to do something quickly before the clock ticks out on him.
He indeed did something. The famed Sarriball that accompanied the hysteria upon his arrival in England was dying and the creator-in-chief needed to do something immediately to save his job and an expiring reputation. The lessons from the Etihad Stadium where he was reduced to near nothingness in the Premier League by the seasoned Pep Guardiola were grave.
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So Sarri adapted and revised his notes he served his players when preparing for games, according to Antonio Rudiger.
“I think everyone has adapted to new things — also the coach. You saw the way we played against Tottenham and Manchester City [in the past week]? It was different to the way we played in the first three months. Everyone needs to adapt. Have we found a good balance of how to play? Definitely. In life, you need to adapt to things. This League is different to Italy, you have to adjust a bit.
Of course. He learned from that game against City. There we went high, we went to press, we wanted to win the ball and everyone knows what happened. We can play both [styles]. But it is always good to find the golden middle. It depends on the coach. He gives the tactics and the players follow.”
Antonio Rudiger, Evening Standard
