Chelsea lost at home 2-0 to Manchester United tonight in a FA Cup fifth round match that serves as a paradigm of two managers headed in opposite directions. For the visitors, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has now won 11 of the 13 that he has been in charge. For the hosts, it looks their head coach, Maurizio Sarri, is at the beginning of the end of his stint.
Some Chelsea fans were calling for his head, while others were signing/chanting expletives directed at him. When you look at the outcome tonight, plus the lack of patience Chelsea has demonstrated with their managers, plus the very stubborn nature that Sarri is famous for (and therefore not likely to change or adapt), and well you can see where this story is going.
https://twitter.com/TheSwypeSports/status/1097611252791209984
Sarri asked if he's ever had "fuck Sarri-ball" chanted at him before?
"No."
— Sam Cunningham (@samcunningham) February 18, 2019
After the match though, Sarri said he was only concerned about the results, not what fans think, feel or chant.
“No, I was worried when I was in the second division in Italy, not now,” he told reporters in his post match news conference at Stamford Bridge.
“I am worried about the result, not about the fans. I can understand the situation because the result wasn’t good. We are out of the FA Cup so I can understand [fan reactions]. I am worried about our results.”
While Chelsea are out of the FA Cup and not a factor in the Premier League title race, they are still alive in the Europa League, where they are currently up on Malmo 2-1 on aggregate, having completed the road leg last week. On Thursday, they will stage the home leg of the round of 32 tie.
Then on Sunday, they’ll face Manchester City in the EFL Cup final at Wembley.
That's it from Maurizio Sarri, after a jaw-dropping press conference.
After chants of 'Fuck Sarriball' and 'You're getting sacked in the morning', from Chelsea fans, he responded: "I am worried about the result. Not about the fans."
That, I fear, will be his Chelsea epitaph.— Dan Levene (@danlevene) February 18, 2019
A trophy might be the only thing that could save Maurizio Sarri’s job right now. However that looks like a long shot at best given their current form. The Blues, who have lost three of their last five across all competitions, have now fallen out of the top four.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.