Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri is becoming very popular among the squad after he decided to relax another of predecessor Antonio Conte’s strict rules, according to reports.
Conte upheld a strict regime during his two seasons at Stamford Bridge, putting restrictions on what the players could eat and demanding they report to training early in the morning. Sarri has already relaxed several of those old rules, unbanning the likes of tomato ketchup and HP sauce, as well as scrapping Conte the need to stay at a west London hotel the night before home games.
Now The Sun report that Sarri has moved some training sessions to the afternoon so his players can spend the mornings at home with their families. The Italian still conducts double training sessions and is working his players hard, but is equally keen to reward them with more time off in the mornings.
Sarri is far more conscious of his squad’s happiness and well-being than Conte, who demanded that his players ‘suffer’, and has deliberately taken a gentler approach. A number of banned substances are back on the lunch menu at the Cobham training base, while players are now allowed to stay at home the night before matches at Stamford Bridge.
Sarri’s attitude is part of a wider plan to energise a group of player who had become worn down by Conte’s methods, and they are constantly being consulted on changes.
Chelsea hope their new manager’s approach will persuade the likes of Eden Hazard to spurn a move to Real Madrid and commit his future to the Blues, especially after making such a promising start to the new season.
