Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri is predicting his side will find the first part of the new Premier League season difficult.
The 59-year-old Italian coach has only had a few weeks to work with his Chelsea players and due to the shortened nature of pre-season and the unavailability of several of his key players because of the World Cup, and he does not seem to entirely happy with his side’s preparations for the new campaign.
Sarri also revealed his dislike for how Chelsea’s pre-season was organised and the former Napoli boss admitted that he will be working with his clubs board to try to improve preparations next summer.
“For sure, in this moment, we are not at the top of our potential. We did a preseason… what can I say… unusual, maybe. So now we are not at the top,” Sarri told a press conference.
“I hope to be at the top of the potential of the squad in one or two months, but I don’t know.
“I hope that the second part of the season, for us, will be very good with a lot of points. But I expect in the first part of the season some problems.
“What kind of problems? On the results. Maybe the performances in the first part of the season will not be in line with the potential of the squad. Maybe, in the first part.
“They (the board) know it. They know it very well.
“Will I change pre-season next year? Completely, I think. I arrived in the middle of July, so the problem was there. I have to accept it completely, but I think, for the future, it will be better to change it.
“I think that my perfect programme of pre-season is not completely in line with the programme of the club. So we have to arrive at a compromise.”
Chelsea begin their Premier League campaign away to Huddersfield at 3pm today.
