Maurizio Sarri hardly hid his frustration after Chelsea were held to a 1-1 Premier League draw by Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday.
You could certainly understand where Maurizio Sarri was coming from after Wolves held Chelsea to a 1-1 draw on Sunday.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side certainly went on the defensive at Stamford Bridge after all. Wolves managed just 24 per cent possession and two shots to the hosts’ 22 – a point Sarri was keen to make after the game.
“We have to do better against a team who don’t want to play. They didn’t want to play,” the former Napoli boss, an apparent proponent of free-flowing attacking football, told Sky Sports.
But, while Wolves certainly employed a defence-first game plan, centre forward Raul Jimenez often sitting just 25 yards from his own goal, Sarri is wrong to deny the visitors any praise.
As an Italian, he should be fully aware of the benefits of organisation and team-ethic. Defending is an art form after all and Wolves deserve some praise for a modern-day embodiment of that old catenaccio style.
Willy Boly, Joao Moutinho, Connor Coady and co were superb in breaking up play and starting attacks, and Wolves always carried a threat on the counter as Raul Jimenez’s second half goal, via a wonderful interchange with Diogo Joto, showed.
In fact, only a 92nd-minute Eden Hazard stunner saved Chelsea from defeat. And Wolves fans were quick to hit out at Sarri for refusing to pay any sort of tribute to a classic away-day performance against one of the Premier League’s established giants.
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