Maurizio Sarri has revealed that Eden Hazard caused him tactical ‘issues’ during his time at Chelsea.
Sarri has been appointed as Juventus manager after just one season at Stamford Bridge, with Hazard having also left the club to join Spanish giants Real Madrid.
Hazard was Chelsea‘s standout player during Sarri’s sole season in English football, however, the 60-year-old has revealed that the presence of the Belgian in his side caused his system ‘issues’ from a defensive aspect.
Sarri was famously stubborn in his tactical approach at Chelsea, though the Italian says Hazard’s inclusion in his preferred 4-3-3 formation forced him to alter the tactics that he had previously used at Napoli.
“In recent years, I’ve had 4-3-3, but the 4-3-3 at Chelsea was very different to the one at Napoli,” Sarri said in his first official press conference as Juventus manager.
“We had to accommodate Hazard’s characteristics, as he could change the game, but also his presence caused issues in defending that we had to work on.”
See also – Five of Chelsea’s most bizarre managerial reigns
Maurizio Sarri is on a mission to help Cristiano Ronaldo break more records ???? pic.twitter.com/mPaBLwkhB3
— GOAL (@goal) June 20, 2019
