David Luiz has denied rumours of a dressing-room coup at Chelsea and insisted under-fire head coach Maurizio Sarri still has the full backing of the Blues squad.
Sarri has been under intense pressure in recent weeks after the west Londoners have suffered a massive dip in form, dropping out of the Champions League places into sixth while also performing poorly on the pitch, with 13 goals conceded in their seven matches prior to the League Cup final against Manchester City on Sunday.
With the ex-Napoli manager already reportedly nearing the sack, as well as rumours of player discontent swirling around papers, matters came to a head during the Wembley showpiece when nearing the end of extra-time with the score still goalless, Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted by Willy Caballero, a specialist in penalty shootouts, leaving Sarri in a state of simultaneous combustion.
While Sarri and Kepa has attempted to play down the incident owing it to a “misunderstanding, many pundits believe that such an act of defiance has spelled the end of the 60-year-old’s control over the dressing room – something that may already spell the end of Sarri’s tenure at the Stamford Bridge dugout.
However, Luiz has quickly shut down these rumours, insisting that the beleaguered ex-Napoli manager remains in control of the Chelsea squad. The Brazilian international aso added that they are fully behind the Italian’s preferred footballing approach.
“No. The coach has the power over the group. He has our respect. For me there is not a problem here for that. We all believe in his philosophy, we all believe in the way he wants us to play,” said the 31-year-old centreback. “That’s why we did a great game against the best team in Europe at the moment. It was a misunderstanding and we all want to do what is best for Chelsea.”
