Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has not spoken to Roman Abramovich since thrashing at Manchester City

Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Malmo in the Europa League, Sarri insisted his previous comments about 'never' speaking to the club's owner were mistranslated

Lawrence Ostlere
Wednesday 13 February 2019 21:29 GMT
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Maurizio Sarri says he is 'always at risk' of being sacked by Chelsea

Maurizio Sarri has not spoken to Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich since his team’s thrashing at the hands of Manchester City.

Following the humiliating 6-0 defeat at the Etihad Sarri was asked if he was expecting a call from Abramovich, and said that he never speaks to the Chelsea owner. “If the president calls, I’ll be happy, seeing as I never hear from him,” he told Italian TV. “To be honest, I don’t know what to expect.”

But speaking ahead of Chelsea’s trip to Malmo in the Europa League, Sarri insisted those comments were mistranslated.

“No, not this week – not in the last three weeks,” Sarri said. “It depends on the president, I think. I didn’t say never. Not very often, but not never. The interview was in Italian and in Italian I am better than you.

“I’d like to speak with somebody in the club, not necessarily the owner. I usually speak with Marina (Granovskaia, a club director) and for me it’s enough.”

Chelsea now face a testing run of games, playing Malmo either side of an FA Cup fifth-round meeting with Manchester United, before the Carabao Cup final against Manchester City and a Premier League match against Tottenham, all before the end of February.

“We need short-term targets, and then a dream in the long-term,” Sarri said. “Tomorrow is the most important. Then, on Monday, the FA Cup will be the most important.

“It’s not easy to play tomorrow after a 6-0, but we have to play and we have to play well. We want to win and react immediately.”

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