Maurizio Sarri reacts after Chelsea’s stalemate against Manchester United

Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has indicated that he is disappointed with the eventual outcome during the Premier League clash against Manchester United on Sunday. The Blues had the opportunity to bridge a four-point gap between themselves and fifth-placed Arsenal, but they failed to take complete advantage after settling for a 1-1 draw against the Red Devils on the road.

Speaking after the game, Sarri said that the Blues were not in control of the clash with United making things difficult for them. He added that the team were nonetheless impressive through the encounter but ought to be disappointed after squandering a clear-cut chance right before the final whistle.

He told Sky Sports: “We had on the pitch a little problem with the distances. There were too many metres from strikers to midfielders and we had trouble recovering the ball. In the last part of first half we were better and very well in second half. In the end we had a big chance but unfortunately missed it. It is not easy to play here against Manchester United.”

With the result, the Blues have a two-point and three-point advantage over Arsenal and United respectively in the race for the fourth spot, but they can’t afford any slip-ups during the final two games of the season. The west London outfit are scheduled to face Watford and Leicester City before the campaign concludes and dropping points in one of those games could put them under unnecessary pressure with Arsenal and United behind them.

Prior to the next league game, the Blues have to switch their attention to the Europa League where they are scheduled to face Eintracht Frankfurt in the away leg of their semi-final. On paper, the Blues are favourites to progress to the final in Baku, but they need to be wary of threat possessed by the Frankfurt attack across the double-legged tie.