Maurizio Sarri has not spoken to Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich since his team’s thrashing at the hands of Manchester City.
Following the humiliating 6-0 defeat at the Etihad Sarri was asked if he was expecting a call from Abramovich, and said that he never speaks to the Chelsea owner. “If the president calls, I’ll be happy, seeing as I never hear from him,” he told Italian TV. “To be honest, I don’t know what to expect.”
But speaking ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Malmo in the Europa League, Sarri insisted those comments were mistranslated.
“No, not this week – not in the last three weeks,” Sarri said. “It depends on the president, I think. I didn’t say never. Not very often, but not never. The interview was in Italian and in Italian I am better than you.
“I’d like to speak with somebody in the club, not necessarily the owner. I usually speak with Marina (Granovskaia, a club director) and for me it’s enough.”
Chelsea now face a testing run of games, playing Malmo either side of an FA Cup fifth-round meeting with Manchester United, before the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City and a Premier League match against Tottenham, all before the end of February.
“We need short-term targets, and then a dream in the long-term,” Sarri said. “Tomorrow is the most important. Then, on Monday, the FA Cup will be the most important.
“It’s not easy to play tomorrow after a 6-0, but we have to play and we have to play well. We want to win and react immediately.”
