Chelsea's Maurizio Sarri believes his side are not on the same level as title rivals Liverpool and that they have a lot of work to do after their 0-0 draw with West Ham. Stewart Robson explains why Maurizio Sarri's side struggled to come away from the London Stadium with a victory over West Ham. Andriy Yarmolenko had a painful miss in front of goal which could have given Manuel Pellegrini's West Ham their statement win of the young Premier League season. Andriy Yarmolenko had a painful miss in front of goal which could have given Manuel Pellegrini's West Ham their statement win of the young Premier League season. Andriy Yarmolenko had a painful miss in front of goal which could have given Manuel Pellegrini's West Ham their statement win of the young Premier League season. Craig Burley isn't interested in hearing about how the Europa League affected Chelsea's play after they dropped points for the first time this season. Craig Burley isn't interested in hearing about how the Europa League affected Chelsea's play after they dropped points for the first time this season.
There is no doubt among Chelsea supporters that under Maurizio Sarri's management their team is playing a more entertaining and enterprising brand of football. An unbeaten start to the season with six wins from seven matches in all competitions has brought Sarri plenty of praise, but the last two matches, a 1-0 away win against PAOK in the Europa League and a 0-0 draw at West Ham in the Premier League, saw the first serious questions being asked of the Italian's strategy.
Although both games were notable for Chelsea squandering chances to score, the debates about misfiring strikers are not new. The key concern for Blues fans now relates to the way Sarri deploys N'Golo Kante in order to accommodate summer signing Jorginho -- his go-to playmaker at Napoli.
Jorginho's arrival at Chelsea was crucial for Sarri to rapidly implement the high-press football philosophy he honed in his time in Serie A. There is no disputing the fact that Jorginho has facilitated this, but it has also led to Kante toiling with increasing degrees of ineffectiveness in the new system.
Stationed at the base of Chelsea's midfield, in Kante's natural position, Jorginho has been the give-and-go hub of Sarri's passing game and records have tumbled as the number of touches of the ball the 26-year-old has enjoyed has seen the Blues monopolise possession stats in every game they have played this season.
Asked to played a more advanced role by Sarri, Kante scored the Blues' first goal of the campaign, a miss-hit shot which squirmed into Huddersfield Town's net to set Chelsea on their way to a 3-0 victory. Against limited opposition the France international foraging forward with Jorginho spraying balls left, right and centre drew gasps of admiration.
Unfortunately, the Blues can't play Huddersfield every week and it's become clear that diminutive Kante doesn't have gung-ho attacking swagger or physique to profit from Chelsea's pretty build-up play. The sight of the 27-year-old improbably trying to get his head on the ball in the West Ham penalty area was as frustrating as Chelsea's defence being exposed when the Hammers counterattacked.
Jorginho simply doesn't offer the same degree of shielding cover to Chelsea's defence that Kante does. Had West Ham's finishing been more clinical they might have won the game.
Kante is the Rolls Royce of defensive midfielders. Few would argue that he is the best in the Premier League at what he does. No player in the English top-flight has recovered possession more than he has in the past three seasons and Leicester City's unlikely title triumph in 2016 owed much to his ability. A move to Chelsea brought with it another Premier League winners' medal in 2017 and then came the ultimate prize in football -- Kante a key star in France's World Cup victory.
It's an evolving dilemma for Sarri. Squandering the unique talents of Kante in pursuit of his own vision is fine providing victories are secured. Kante is a humble man who loves playing for Chelsea and is revered by Blues fans because of this, but he is no fool and frustration will be followed by temptation if the usual suspects Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain make a move.
Saturday's game with Premier League leaders Liverpool, who come to the Bridge looking to maintain their free-scoring, 100 percent start to the season, will provide a greater insight into how flexible Sarri is with his system. Should he stubbornly persist with Jorginho lying deep, Chelsea could easily be exposed if Kante is unable to cover the ground quick enough to get back when Klopp's side counter -- which they inevitably will.
For now, Sarri enjoys the support of Chelsea supporters. Under his guidance, the Blues are clearly a work in progress and there is plenty of promise in what has been achieved so far. That said, should the Italian ignore what appears to be blindingly obvious and waste the true talent of a player of Kante's calibre and results take a turn for the worse he will have only himself to blame for the criticism.
Comments
Use a Facebook account to add a comment, subject to Facebook's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your Facebook name, photo & other personal information you make public on Facebook will appear with your comment, and may be used on ESPN's media platforms. Learn more.
Source: espn.co.uk