Maurizio Sarri wants to remain as Chelsea boss beyond summer despite Roma link: ‘If I can, I like to stay here’
- Maurizio Sarri has been tipped to leave Chelsea when the season ends
- Roma are keen to bring him back to Serie A to replace Claudio Ranieri
- Sarri said at a press conference on Wednesday that he wants to stay at Chelsea
- He joked that he could ‘try with another English club’ if Chelsea sack him
Maurizio Sarri has quelled speculation about an imminent exit from Chelsea by insisting he wants to stay beyond the summer.
Chelsea confirmed their place in next season’s Champions League with a victory over Watford on Sunday, but there have still been whispers of discontent from the stands.
The Blues have also had their two-window transfer ban upheld meaning they cannot sign any players, but Sarri says he wants to remain at Stamford Bridge regardless.
Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri insists he wants to stay at the club beyond this season
The 60-year-old Italian has steered Chelsea into next season’s Champions League
‘I like to stay here. If I can, I like to stay here. I want to stay in English football,’ he told a press conference when asked about interest from Roma in his services.
He then joked that he could stay in the Premier League and ‘try with another English club’ if Chelsea were to sack him at the end of the season.
As reported by Sportsmail, Roma want Sarri to replace Claudio Ranieri in the top job with club sixth in Serie A, three points from fourth with three games to play.
If Sarri is to stay at Chelsea, he will likely have to contend with big bids for some of his top players, like Eden Hazard, without being able to replace them in the window.
Sarri believes Chelsea cannot catch runaway Premier League pacesetters Manchester City and Liverpool if their FIFA transfer ban stands.
‘It’s very difficult to cover the gap at the moment; we need to work, probably we need to do something from the market,’ said Sarri.
Chelsea may lose Eden Hazard this summer and be unable to replace him in the window
Claudio Ranieri is struggling at Roma and the club are keen to replace him with Sarri
‘So it’s not easy, because the level of the top two is very, very high. As we can see in Europe so it’s not easy.
‘Of course we have to work and we have to try. In my opinion we can reduce the gap.
‘I don’t believe when you buy 10 players, I think that we have to buy only one, two players. Otherwise it’s very difficult to improve immediately.
‘I think we are a very good team, so we need only one, two players, no more.’
Sarri is not widely loved by Blues fans despite steering them back into the Champions League
Sarri said that Chelsea cannot catch Man City and Liverpool if their FIFA transfer ban stands