Head coach of Chelsea Maurizio Sarri has revealed the options available to him when it comes to adding depth in Jorginho's position.
When interviewed after his side's 5-0 win over Huddersfield Town, Sarri considered the merits of Ethan Ampadu and Mateo Kovacic as options to take on the responsibilities of Cesc Fabregas following the Spaniard's move to Monaco in the January transfer window.
“Then, we can play sometimes with Kovacic as a central midfielder and then Jorginho will be able to rest. We are trying in training with two players; the first is Ethan Ampadu and the second is Kovacic,” he told Goal.
The Italian experimented with Ampadu in the Jorginho role against Sheffield Wednesday only for Sarri to send on Kovacic in the second half to send the Welshman further forward into the sort of position N'Golo Kante has been taking up as more of a box-to-box player.
“As you know, Ampadu is more defensive. Kovacic is really close to Jorginho in moving the ball really fast at one-touch. In the future, I think he will be able to do this position well,” added Sarri.
“Could Kante play in the Jorginho role? Only 20 minutes if I have to defend a result,” he said.
“Jorginho is very able to move the ball, to build up the action, but Jorginho usually plays at 40 metres from the opposition goal, so it's impossible for him to make the last pass.”
This article was most recently revised and updated 4 years ago
