Sarri sets record for most Premier League matches unbeaten at start of a Chelsea tenure

It needed almost all six minutes of added-on time — thanks for all the time-wasting, José! — but Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea remained unbeaten in the Premier League and unbeaten in all competitions since losing the Community Shield at the start of August, which may or may not count as a real game anyway.

As it turns out, those nine games are a new Chelsea record, one better than what Mourinho managed in 2004 and Scolari managed in 2008. Both José and Big Phil had the same record as Sarri through their first eight games in the Premier League — 6 wins, 2 draws — but then lost the ninth: José to a pre-big-money Manchester City, 1-0 away and Big Phil to Liverpool at home, also 1-0.

Mourinho’s Chelsea would go on to not lose another Premier League match that season, but Scolari’s team soon imploded and he was out of a job by early February. Hopefully Sarri’s season will turn out more like José’s first than Scolari’s only.

Sarri’s unbeaten start — 6-3-0; 20:7, +13 — is tied for the 6th best start in Premier League history for Chelsea, level on points with (but better on goal difference than) Ancelotti’s start to the 2009-10 season.

1. 2005-06: 27 points (9-0-0; 23:3; +20) — A draw followed, but Mourinho’s second season saw us go on a 10-match winning streak later as well.
2. 2014-15: 23 points (7-2-0; 24:9; +15) — Chelsea remained unbeaten through the first 14 games as Mourinho waltzed to a title.
3. 2010-11: 22 points (7-1-1; 24:2; +22) — A win came next, but Ancelotti’s “bad moment” soon derailed the whole season.
4. 2012-13: 22 points (7-1-1; 21:9; +12) — The ultimate cautionary tale, i.e. Roberto Di Matteo; we went winless in seven straight starting with match #9.
5. 2006-07: 22 points (7-1-1; 15:5; +10) — A win followed, but we’d drop to second and stay there the rest of the way in Mourinho’s third season.
6. 2018-19: 21 points (6-3-0; 20:7; +13)
7. 2009-10: 21 points (7-0-2; 19:8; +11) — Five wins in a row followed as we won the title in Ancelotti’s first season.
8. 2008-09: 20 points (6-2-1; 19:4; +15) — Big Phil Scolari was impressive at first, unsustainable later.
9. 2003-04: 20 points (6-2-1; 19:9; +10) — New big boss Abramovich would see five straight wins follow, but Ranieri and Chelsea eventually failed to take their chance at domestic (and European) glory.
10. 2013-14: 20 points (6-2-1; 16:6; +10) —- A loss and a draw followed before we ultimately conspired to lose out on the title in Mourinho’s first season back.