Having hit the midway point in the Premier League season, now is a good a time as any to review how well Maurizio Sarri has done at Chelsea in his first six months at the club.
Maurizio Sarri and his Midseason Report Card: Things Have Started Well; Starting to Hit a Few Bumps in the Road
Premier League
Sarri arrived at Stamford Bridge late in the summer and did not really have a real opportunity to add the players he would have liked.
The arrivals of Jorginho and Kepa Arrizabalaga have been important acquisitions and have played key roles.
He also did not have the longest period of time to start working with his men as they jetted off to Australia prior to the beginning of the campaign.
However, with 19 games having already been played in the Premier League, the Blues have managed to win 12 of those, with four draws and three defeats.
In fact, it was not until the end of November when Chelsea suffered their first defeat, away to Tottenham Hotspur.
Sarri has undoubtedly brought a new style of football to the Bridge with him – which has been dubbed as ‘Sarri-ball’. They now look to play in a more attractive way and their results in games have certainly benefited from that.
However, surprise defeats to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Leicester City will have spoilt the first half of the campaign for Chelsea.
Cup Competitions
Whilst there is still some improvement for the club within the Premier League, they have rather eased their way through the cup competitions.
The Blues are in the semi-finals of the League Cup – with a two-legged affair against Spurs to come.
They coasted their way through the Europa League group stage and await Malmo in the next round of the tournament.
If there could be any argument about how Sarri has approached those competitions, it could be his lack of using youth.
Youngsters like Callum Hudson-Odoi and Ethan Ampadu are considered to be the future of Chelsea.
However, they have had a rather limited opportunity under the management of the Italian.
What Next For Sarri?
With the January transfer window fast approaching, Chelsea need to address one area of concern.
The Blues lack a striker to score regularly, with Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud both struggling. Eden Hazard has been the man that the club have had to rely on to make the difference – a little more than they may have originally wanted.
If Sarri can incorporate youth into his matchday squad more often in the second half of the season, as well as find a striker, things look incredibly bright at Chelsea.
Sarri Grade? B+
Main Photo
Embed from Getty Images
