Gianfranco Zola has accused former club Chelsea of getting rid of Maurizio Sarri too soon and believes the Italian coach needed time to win over the Stamford Bridge fans.
Sarri only arrived at Stamford Bridge last summer as a replacement for fellow Italian Antonio Conte after spending three years at Napoli.
He guided Chelsea to a third-placed finish in the Premier League and won the Europa League. The Blues also reached the Carabao Cup final, losing out to Manchester City .
But Sarri still endured a tough campaign at the London club as fans were not convinced by his style of play, while he sometimes appeared to be at odds with his players.
Sarri eventually quit Chelsea to sign a three-year deal to become manager of Juventus while former Blues star Zola left his role as assistant manager soon after Frank Lampard was confirmed as the new Stamford Bridge boss.
And the Italian has defended Sarri for his short tenure in west London, telling talkSPORT : "I think the best of Maurizio’s work comes not in the first year but more from the second year onwards.
"Looking at the way he works, it takes a little bit of time to put in place what he wants to do and also he is very demanding on the players.
"But, after the players get used to it, they get better and better and the work becomes more effective.
"It’s a pity, because I think it would have been good for the club if Maurizio stayed and it would have been good for Maurizio as well."
Zola earned legendary status at Stamford Bridge during seven years as a player and he opened up on his 'painful' departure from the club last week.
He added: "Obviously it’s painful because you’re in a place where you like to be and it means a lot to you.
"Of course, it’s always painful, but we have to be professional and I think Chelsea are looking forward, they made other choices and I respect them, I have no problem with that."
