Chelsea fans slam Maurizio Sarri over his refusal to play Kante in defensive midfield

Maurizio Sarri prefers Jorginho in defensive midfield over Kante
Maurizio Sarri prefers Jorginho in defensive midfield over Kante

Some Chelsea fans are apparently unhappy with manager Maurizio Sarri’s refusal to play N’Golo Kante in his preferred defensive midfield role. The Blues tasted their first Premier League defeat of the season when they were beaten 3-1 by Tottenham last weekend.

However, one of the critical topics that emerged after the game was the positions of Kante and summer acquisition Jorginho. Since the arrival of the latter, Kante has been forced to play in wide positions, with Sarri preferring Jorginho in the defensive midfield role.

In fact, the Blues boss insists the Frenchman is not tactically as good as Jorginho or Cesc Fabregas and, therefore, will not be a good fit for the role.

Ahead of Chelsea’s Europa League game against PAOK, Sarri said, as quoted by The Telegraph:

“I think, as you know, I want to play a central midfielder as a very technical player, a Jorginho or [Cesc] Fabregas. I don’t want Kante in this position.”
“Kante, in the last match, wanted to solve the match after the first 15 minutes but in the wrong way.
“He lost his position. He attacked too much the other box. And I think this is not one of the best characteristics of Kante. Maybe it’s only a question of time. But Kante has to stay near to Jorginho, especially when the ball is on the other side.”

Sarri’s criticism of Kante, coupled with his preference for Jorginho in the defensive midfield role, doesn’t enthuse many Chelsea fans, it seems.

A section of the Blues supporters has taken to Twitter to slam the club’s manager over his decision to constantly play Kante out of position in order to accommodate Jorginho.

Some believe the Frenchman is being wasted on the right side of midfield and therefore deserves to be playing in his accustomed position in defensive midfield.

Here are some of the best tweets:


Quick Links