Should Chelsea Manager Maurizio Sarri Be Sacked?

With just 7 matches remaining in the Premier League season, Chelsea sit in 6th. Maurizio Sarri has come under fire for his stubbornness – should Chelsea sack him and start over next season?

When Chelsea went out and signed Matteo Kovacic and Jorginho in the summer from Real Madrid and Napoli respectively, many expected them to have one of, if not the strongest midfield’s in the entire Premier League. Of course, their lack of a striker was always an issue, but with Kepa Arrizabalaga expected to impress and Eden Hazard as dangerous as ever, people had high expectations for Chelsea this season, especially with new manager Maurizio Sarri bringing his famous brain to Stamford Bridge.

Unfortunately for the Blues, none of this has worked out. Kovacic has been uninspiring, and Jorginho has failed to adapt to the speed and strength of the Premier League. Kepa Arrizabalaga has made plenty of mistakes in net, while plenty of their regulars from recent seasons have failed to impress. Maurizio Sarri has come under fire for being stubborn with his formations and lineups, and for not handling the Callum Hudson-Odoi situation well enough.

Now, Callum Hudson-Odoi has everything required to be a world-class player in the future. He’s fast, he’s strong with and without the ball, his decision making is absolute class, and he has shown the ability to produce goals and assists as well. So why Maurizio Sarri refuses to give him minutes in the Premier League is beyond anyone, especially with Willian and Pedro both struggling this season. Hudson-Odoi has also become a full England international despite only really featuring for Chelsea in the Europa League, where funny enough, he has been probably the best player this season.

https://twitter.com/DZKurtisss/status/1112384406767968256

At Napoli, Sarri preferred a 4-3-3 formation, and that has carried over to Chelsea this season. However, their midfield has looked weak at times, and the formation has not worked on many occasions. Despite this, Sarri has refused to revert from the formation throughout the season, even in mid-match. Against Arsenal in January, the Blues had no final third presence and it would have been wise to shift to a 4-2-3-1 in order to have a body up in the 10 position to create problems for Granit Xhaka, who had space to weave his superb passes all game long. This was clear to anyone who was watching the match, but Sarri stuck to the 4-3-3 and his side stumbled to a 0-2 defeat, after hardly getting a glimpse at goal. It’s been situations like this all season, where Sarri has earned the ‘stubborn’ nickname.

If Chelsea did not have Eden Hazard, they would certainly be even further behind the top 4. Although the Blues are still very much in the race for Champions League football, they certainly aren’t favoured the way things are going. Maurizio Sarri must show more in these final 7 matches in terms of flexibility and open-mindedness if he is to keep his job next season. The way things are heading right now, he is probably going to be sacked, and might even deserve it too.