LONDON • Much has been said of Chelsea's lack of a clinical forward but manager Maurizio Sarri said that was not the main reason the Blues fell to a shock 1-0 defeat by Leicester City in the Premier League on Saturday.
Instead, the Italian tactician was left scratching his head why his players did not react to Jamie Vardy's 51st-minute goal at Stamford Bridge which eventually condemned the Blues to their first home loss of the season .
"I was really very happy at the end of the first half - we played very well. We were dangerous, we gave the opponents nothing," said Sarri.
"After the goal, the reaction was, for me, a strange reaction, not in the right direction, not as a team, but as 11 different players.
"There was time to score, without reacting as a team shocked, as a team in mental confusion."
With Alvaro Morata fighting his way back to fitness from a knee injury and Olivier Giroud struggling for goals, Sarri deployed Belgian winger Eden Hazard up front in a "false nine" position flanked by Willian and Pedro.
Chelsea enjoyed a lot of possession but could not convert it into clear-cut chances, with Hazard missing the two chances which came his way.
In the first half, he struck Kasper Schmeichel's crossbar with a powerful drive and the Danish goalkeeper pulled off a fine save to tip another Hazard effort to safety after the break.
Giroud was thrown on for the final half an hour but the French striker could not find an equaliser for the Blues.
"I was really very happy with the team, the use of Hazard like a striker. Then, after the goal, the position of Hazard was not important," said the 59-year-old.
Chelsea, fourth in the table, have struggled to get goals from their attackers all season, with the exception of Hazard, who has eight Premier League strikes.
Morata has just five league goals in 14 appearances and is set to return from injury when Chelsea face Watford on Boxing Day, but Sarri may persist with Hazard up front.
Sarri cannot comprehend why the issue of the Blues not being able to take advantage of their possession keeps recurring and he wants a response at Watford on Wednesday.
"If I knew, I (would have) solved the problem before this match," he said. "It's difficult to understand, because we have players with long experience, so it's very difficult to understand.
"In the match, we had a bad reaction. Now it depends on our reaction in the next three days."
REUTERS
Pack sizes vary, most packs have 6 or 7 members, although some may include as many as 15 wolves. The size depends on many variables including the current numbers of the wolf population, the abundance of food, and social factors within the wolf pack. Within each pack is an elaborate hierarchy.
adaptations - Gray Wolf
graywolves.weebly.com/adaptations.html
The Gray Wolf has many adaptations that help it survive. It has teeth and claws for hunting. The fur of the gray wolf is a great insulator and it can keep out moisture. The hearing and their sense of smell are a lot better than humans have. The fleshy paws they have are better for traction in the winter.
Wolves and moose on Isle Royale - Wikipedia
Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino says "we are still in a dream, a bubble" after his side's stunning 4-4 away-goals win at Manchester City to reach the last four of the Champions League.
Mauricio Pochettino says Tottenham 'still in a dream' after
Aaron Ramsey reportedly agrees to five-year, €40m deal with Juventus The Welshman will leave after 10 years with Arsenal According to Sky Italy, Aaron Ramsey has agreed to join Juventus at the end of the season on a free transfer.
Atlas Professional Movers | Full Service Packing & Moving
AD
McGeeney rues missed Orchard chances in replay defeat. McGeeney's team will be the hat for Monday morning's draw for the second round of All-Ireland qualifiers. Share. Share this post on.
Atletico Madrid left it late to see off Girona 2-0 at home on Tuesday as strikes from Diego Godin and Antoine Griezmann kept up their faint hopes of catching La Liga leaders Barcelona, trimming
Late Godin and Griezmann goals keep Atletico in title chase
Leicester axe Puel, target Rodgers as successor Wilfried Zaha scoring the second goal for Crystal Palace who beat Leicester 4-1 on Saturday. The Foxes dismissed manager Claude Puel after the club
Claude Puel sacked by Leicester as club target Brendan
Barca put one hand on title after edging past Sociedad. Barca put one hand on title after edging past Sociedad. Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - FC Barcelona v Real Sociedad - Camp
Barca put one hand on title after edging past Sociedad
LYON (France): Barcelona were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Olympique Lyonnais in their Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday as both sides remained undefeated in this season's
Football: Solskjaer 'confident' of Man United Champions
The Netherlands will not be lulled into a false sense of security when they face a struggling, new-look Germany in their Euro 2020 qualifier in Amsterdam on Sunday, captain Virgil van Dijk has said.
Dutch not favourites against struggling Germany - Van Dijk
Liverpool laying groundwork for sustained success, says Klopp
0 comments:
Post a Comment