Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has become the latest Blues player after Pedro to critisize Maurizio Sarri’s tactics ‘Sarri-ball’ as he compared Sarri to a school teacher.
Sarri has introduced training on a match day, with Germany defender Rudiger downplaying the physical effects of the additional session, while admitting to the psychological challenge.
Rudiger said: “It’s not like we are doing box to box runs. It’s not physical. It’s just the tactical things he likes to do.
“It’s the same if you sit in the school the whole time listening to someone. Of course, sometimes, it gets mental, but at the end of the day you have to do your job.”
Asked about the rumours around the head coach’s future, he said “I make nothing of that. At the end of the day, this is not my thing. I’m a football player, and that’s it.
“I’m not the coach. I’m a football player. [The system] is something the coach has to decide and we have to follow.
“You always play for your manager, but you want results. You want to win. No player on Earth likes to have the kind of run we’ve had.”
“First of all, let’s speak about the game tomorrow [Thursday] because it’s important for us to stay in this competition and fight to win it,” he added.
“Then, on Sunday, a big game against City at Wembley. That will show the truth. That will show our way this season.
“The truth in terms of keeping up with opponents like City, and also Liverpool and Tottenham.
“You always play for your manager, but you want results. You want to win. No player on earth likes to have the kind of run we’ve had.”
Fans’ scepticism was voiced with an expletive-laden critique of ‘Sarri-ball’ – the possession-based style Sarri favours – in Monday’s FA Cup loss to Manchester United.