Maurizio Sarri will have to tap one of his three most under-used players for Chelsea’s matchday squad against Slavia Praha. With a bit of foresight over the past six months, this could have been a non-event.
Alvaro Morata left Chelsea about three months ago, and he still has nearly three times as many minutes for the Blues as Gary Cahill. Cesc Fabregas, who also left Chelsea in January, was even further out of favour than Morata. Maurizio Sarri felt he had no choice but to play Morata, but he was certainly not going to let Fabregas take too many minutes from the player Sarri treats like a son, Jorginho. Yet Fabregas still has nearly twice as many minutes as Cahill, and almost five times as many minutes as Ethan Ampadu.
But with Antonio Rudiger all but ruled out for Thursday’s second leg against Slavia Praha, either Cahill or Ampadu will be in the matchday squad. The Evening Standard reports Cahill will likely sit on the bench for the first time in 2019.
Losing Antonio Rudiger is a significant blow for Chelsea, but should not weigh too heavily on Thursday’s tie. Andreas Christensen has played every minute of the Europa League this season, with Antonio Rudiger and David Luiz sharing the responsibilities as his partner. Rudiger was probably in line to start, but starting Luiz will be a seamless change.
The question of who will be in reserve on the bench should be a non-event, but the complete exile of Gary Cahill and Ethan Ampadu brings past decisions to the surface.
Antonio Rudiger’s injury puts the spotlight on how thin Sarri has made the squad. They can handle one injury, but two at the position would initiate a full-on crisis. If something were to happen to Luiz or Christensen before Rudiger recovers, the Blues would be in their final battle for the top six and the final rounds of the Europa League with players who have not played in six months.
Chelsea’s defence has been repeatedly exposed this season, and that is with a corps of players who have trained together and played together consistently. Introducing Gary Cahill or Ethan Ampadu into a shambolically porous zonal marking scheme would invite pressure from every direction. And if Christensen and Cahill were paired together, Maurizio Sarri would face the reality of not having a single “ball-playing centre-back.” That would motivate opponents to double-mark Jorginho and swarm the centrebacks, giving the Blues no good options for playing the ball out. They would undercut the early steps of “Sarriball,” and as we know, there is no Plan B.
Sarri’s reported preference for Cahill over Ampadu is also another part of his “experience over youth” mantra. We have been among the biggest fans of and advocates for Gary Cahill throughout his career, particularly in the last few years. Sarri’s treatment of him this season has been an absolute disgrace, and Cahill’s inclusion in the squad at any point this season would have helped Chelsea immensely defensively and in the messages and identity it would convey.
But at this point in the season, Cahill is a short-term play. Bringing Ethan Ampadu into the squad would give the tiniest hope that Ampadu has a future at the club under Maurizio Sarri, assuming Sarri thinks he himself has a future at the club. Giving Ampadu the slightest exposure or experience – simply acknowledging his existence as a Blue – would show Sarri is looking beyond his own immediate needs. But we know that is not what Sarri does.
Sarri sees in Cahill a player who has won every club trophy but is so unfit for his vaunted Sarriball system that Cahill does not even deserve a place in the matchday squad for even cup games.
Until, that is, Sarri’s back is against the wall and he has no other options. Then he values Cahill’s service and experience over the perpetually not-to-be-trusted youth of someone like full international Ethan Ampadu.
This situation is of a piece with many others around Chelsea this season. Maurizio Sarri was content to leave Callum Hudson-Odoi on the fringes of the club until Bayern Munich came knocking. Sarri played Hudson-Odoi regularly in January until the transfer window closed, and then sent Hudson-Odoi back to the bench. There Hudson-Odoi stayed until fan outcry made its way to Stamford Bridge and Cobham, and Hudson-Odoi returned to the lineup, this time with Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Sunday’s loss to Liverpool will be a test of Sarri’s commitment to these young players and the principle they represent.
Meanwhile, Thursday’s tie against Slavia Praha will be a test of Sarri’s priorities and vision and Gary Cahill’s commitment and professionalism. We have no doubt about the latter. We have never been less sure of the former.