Chelsea remain unbeaten on the season and yet still very much a work in progress in most phases of Sarri-ball. That need to improve is most obvious in defensive transition and speed of play, but as the struggles of the club’s two main strikers can attest to, it’s also something that needs to be paid attention to in attack.
According to assistant manager Gianfranco Zola, this need to break old habits and learn new ones was one of the main contributing factors to why neither Alvaro Morata nor Olivier Giroud were finding the back of the net at the start of this season.
“You probably expect the main strikers to be the main scorers but sometimes that’s not the case, especially if you play differently. Sarri asks the strikers to do a lot of work for the team, and even if they don’t score, they are very important for the team. I think they are learning about this.”
Slowly but surely, they seem to be learning and the goals are starting to flow once again. Morata has 5 in his last 6 games in all competitions and on Thursday night, Giroud finally opened his account for the season as well.
“At the moment they are busy doing this and have less attention for scoring. But it will come. I’m 100 per cent it will come. Also they have a good attitude on the pitch and in the week. The strikers for Maurizio, they always score a lot of goals. Maybe not at the beginning, but in the end they score. That’s what I’m hoping is going to be the case here as well.”
-Gianfranco Zola; source: Sky Sports
If the duo is able to maintain a good goal ratio, perhaps Chelsea can avoid having to dip into the transfer market once again in January to attempt to solve the problem, like last season when Giroud himself arrived.
The former Arsenal man is keenly aware of this possibility, but instead of worrying about it, he’s focusing on improving his own contributions.
“All the speculation is part of the sport, part of the job. We must expect good players, good strikers at big clubs. But the both of us just need to carry on and show the team is doing well with us.”
“We are fully committed to Chelsea. Even if sometimes it wasn’t perfect, I will always give my maximum.”
“I’m not worried about the future and I’m sure we will score more goals for the team. [The talk of Chelsea signing another forward] doesn’t trouble me, no. I am a competitor and I will do my best until the end of my contract.”
Giroud’s approach is slightly less complicated than Morata’s introspective, overly analytic pontifications, but they track along similar lines. Work hard, believe in yourself, and the rewards will come.
“It is always difficult when you’re a striker and don’t find the net. In my head I wasn’t very, very well.
“Sometimes there are periods when you struggle: the goal feels like it gets a bit smaller; you have less luck; your team-mates choose another option or you don’t make a good run. It is a combination of things that goes wrong.”
”But you just need to keep the faith. I have always scored goals so I knew they would come back. I want to carry on like this, I hope it is the first of a long series of goals to help the team reach our targets.”
-Olivier Giroud; source: Evening Standard
We certainly hope so, too.