After dropping their first points of the season on Sunday, Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri has insisted that his side still have some way to go to compete with Liverpool.
The Reds continue to lead the way in the Premier League after picking up six wins in six, while Chelsea and Man City are two points adrift in what is shaping up to be an intriguing title race.
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However, based on his comments below, Sarri doesn’t believe Chelsea are quite ready to compete with their rivals just yet, as having not had a great deal of time to work with his players over the summer, he evidently feels as though there is still a lot of room for development remaining.
“[Liverpool] are a step forward than us in this moment,” he said, as per Sky Sports. “We have started to work all together 35, 40 days ago.
“So for us I think it’s a bit early. We have to work. We need to improve and then maybe in one year we will be at the same level of Liverpool.”
In fairness, it could also be interpreted as a clever strategy to ease the pressure on his players with expectations rising to start the campaign after their winning run.
Following the disappointing draw with West Ham, it undoubtedly would have tempered those expectations, but suggesting that his side perhaps aren’t ready to launch a title bid will take the pressure off slightly as they look to bounce back against Liverpool this coming weekend.
Given the quality and depth at his disposal, the Italian tactician will surely believe that a top-four finish is certainly an achievable objective, but the coming weeks and months will reveal whether or not Chelsea are in a position to kick on and challenge for major honours or if Sarri’s timeline is accurate and a title challenge will have to wait until next season.
Having ultimately transformed the way in which they play compared to predecessor Antonio Conte’s approach, time and patience is certainly needed to see the best of Sarri’s Chelsea.