Maurizio Sarri justified his decision to drop Kepa Arrizabalaga as payback for the goalkeeper’s petulance during the Carabao Cup final, with the world’s most expensive goalkeeper far from guaranteed a return for Sunday’s game at Fulham.
Arrizabalaga, who had apologised and been fined a week’s wages, sat out Chelsea’s excellent victory over Tottenham after refusing to be substituted at Wembley. He remains Sarri’s first choice but, with Tottenham unable to muster a shot on target to unsettle his replacement, Willy Caballero, Arrizabalaga may have to wait for a return to the first team.
The youngster had learned of Sarri’s decision in the pre-match tactical team meeting on the day of the game. “It was the right decision: Kepa made a big mistake and paid with the club, so then he had to pay with the team,” said Sarri, whose side play Dynamo Kyiv at Stamford Bridge in the Europa League next week. “But now I think we have to stop.
“Kepa, from tomorrow, will be with us. I don’t know if he will be on the pitch in the next match or not, but in one of the next two, for sure. When you are young, you can make mistakes. The most important thing is that you need to understand very well, after every mistake. So now, for me, the issue is closed.” Asked whether the £71.6m signing from Athletic Bilbao remained his No 1, Sarri said: “Of course.”
Chelsea’s victory maintained their pursuit of the top four, with Spurs’ advantage over fourth-placed Arsenal – whom they play on Saturday – trimmed to four points. More significantly for Sarri, this victory healed some of the wounds inflicted by poor results over recent weeks, and staved off what had been the very real possibility of the sack.
The two-way gallop to the line
Liverpool
3 Mar Everton (a)
10 Mar Burnley (h)
17 Mar Fulham (a)
31 Mar Tottenham (h)
6 Apr Southampton (a)
13 Apr Chelsea (h)
20 Apr Cardiff (a)
27 Apr Huddersfield (h)
4 May Newcastle (a)
12 May Wolves (h)
Manchester City
2 Mar Bournemouth (a)
9 Mar Watford (h)
16 Mar Man Utd (a)
30 Mar Fulham (a)
6 Apr Cardiff (h)
13 Apr Crystal Palace (a)
20 Apr Tottenham (h)
27 Apr Burnley (a)
4 May Leicester (h)
12 May Brighton (a)
“In this job, you are under pressure every week,” he said. “If you’re lucky, every six months. It’s normal if you lose two or three matches in a row that you’ll be under pressure, but that’s the same for every coach. We hope this is the turning point. It was really very important to win because we are fighting for the top four. Maybe, with this result, we can involve Tottenham in this battle. The gap is very large, seven points, but maybe.”
