WTF is going on at Chelsea?

The London team played pretty well against Man City but near the end, their goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted, in open defiance of his coach Maurizio Sarri.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ-1G_bfKbs]

WTF?

Some players can be spoilt brats but this is a new level. I've seen some players sulk or roll their eyes after being substituted but I've never seen this before. Also notable is that the rest of the Chelsea team didn't try to force Kepa off.

Clearly, Sarri has problems and his days are numbered at the club. Sarri hasn't done well because his ultra-tactical inflexibility has seen him use the world's best defensive midfielder in attacking mid just so he could stick to his favourite formation.

There is no excuse for what Kepa did though and it speaks to deeper problems at Chelsea beyond their coach. Its always been the Premiership club where player-power is the biggest issue. John Terry effectively sacked coaches in his day and even now, Chelsea is a team which play at 50% if they don't like their coach. This is unacceptable and its a big problem for them in its own right. It's also gonna put off coaches from coming there because the place is known to be a coaches graveyard.

Chelsea is heading for the second successive season outside the Champions League places and it's doubtful they will be able to stop Hazard leaving in the summer. They won the league title just eighteen months ago but they now look absolutely miles away.

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Nyloncapes · 61-69, M

Yes it's a disgrace what players do now to get managers sacked they did it at man utd, and hazard at Chelsea, don't give a shit about the fans who pay out money to watch them, I know how Brian Clough would have handled them

amenforanthony · 36-40, M

I'd hate to see my favorite team implode. Hopefully this is just an isolated incident.

TheCensoredBrot · 31-35, M

The wheels on the bus have truly come off

thatscottishguy · 26-30, M

Disgraceful what players can get away with now.

MethDozer · M

That's a problem in all sports these days. It just seems to be what happens when player who reaches star level is idolized and washed in ridiculous endorsement deals and royalty treatments. It makes being a selfish player a good business move.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@MethDozer It really does. Neymar at PSG is perhaps the worst.

MethDozer · M

@Burnley123 I don't know how you fix it either in fair manner. Like how to you tell players who is doing most of the work to draw the crowd " You're getting too much of the pie you bake?" Especially at the level athletes are at these days. They are litterally destroying themselves at the levels competition is at now. Yet the games are suffering and so are the teams. It's literally like how a cancer works.

It's in all sports like I said but seems even worse basketball, soccer, and even hockey. And in reality they all are kinda the same game so that kinda makes sense they suffer similarly. In grid iron, baseball, cricket, rugby.. those games the positions are much more specialized and that seems to mitigate it slightly

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@MethDozer Good point about that. It would never ever happen like this in rugby. The specialisation means everyone has a specific job for the team so it builds a culture of mutual dependency and brotherhood. Football is a more fluid game where you can be more individual. Stars make a big difference and have a lot of power so they are indulged.

Also, the best premiership football players earn between two and three thousand pounds a week. A good rugby player earns a little over that in a year.

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