It seems almost too obvious to state, but are Chelsea supporters too stuck in their reactionary ways for a manager like Maurizio Sarri?
Following the loss to Tottenham it was interesting to hear the amount of panic. On the radio, Twitter, blogs and elsewhere in the Chelsea-sphere, fans seemed to be acting as if the whole Maurizio Sarri experiment and everything it means for the club was a failure. He lost one game – admittedly to one of the clubs biggest rivals – and many people felt the entire train had come crashing off the rails.
We have known since Sarri was appointed he was going to be a project at Chelsea. He would need to adapt to the Premier League, where the opponents are all stronger and more well-equipped than in Italy. Serie A has become stronger than it was a decade ago, but it still has a gap between the big and small that is far larger than in England.
For instance, in Italy clubs that have just been promoted do not spend £100 million on World Cup winners and players wanted by Barcelona. Chelsea’s opponents on Sunday, Fulham, did with Andre Schurrle and Jean-Michael Seri.
Therefore, everyone needs to take a deep breath and relax.
Pundits and media outlets were needlessly suggesting Chelsea were going to compete for the title this season. They’re nowhere near good enough for that. But they are still a very good side and Sarri is doing a fine job moving them in the right direction.
For a team lacking a first-choice striker, doesn’t have it’s midfield sorted and has David Luiz in central defense, they’re actually doing quite well.
That is what we saw in the performance against Fulham. Chelsea still have intrinsically more quality than most of the teams in the Premier League. The loss against Tottenham had more to do with Spurs being a very good side, coached by an excellent manager and having been together for a long time together. Chelsea are four months into a three-year transition.
Sarri doesn’t even know exactly what he wants to change yet. He is still coaching the haphazardly assembled team of Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, and Michael Emenalo.
For instance, it has taken him until now to realize one of the problems in the side is the lack of Ruben Loftus-Cheek. It has been painfully obvious the side needs goals from midfield in order to create more space for the forwards and carry more threat moving forward.
His physicality creates a level of chaos on the field the rest of Chelsea’s little men cannot. No one has ever feared a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge with Pedro. The rest of the squad simply doesn’t have his combination of size and technical ability.
Sarri also appears to be riding out David Luiz’s contract, which will entirely limit the quality to which the team can ascend. Such is Luiz’s power in the locker room I imagine Sarri feels the Brazilian has made himself undroppable. The only way the club remedy’s this is by showing restraint and not offering Luiz a new contract at the end of the season.
If Chelsea, for once, aren’t so unbelievably alarmist and reactionary to small things like lone losses to better sides, they’ll begin making more progress more quickly under Sarri.
The best thing Chelsea can do is let Sarri work. He is a slow and detailed man but it is coming together gradually, and it isn’t even Christmas.