Sarri coy on goalkeeper transfer rumours

Maurizio Sarri was hoping to talk about the match, a 0-0 draw against Lyon to finish out a shortened, hectic, non-ideal preseason, but the very first question he faced was about a transfer rumor. No prizes for guessing that it would be the one about Thibaut Courtois and Kepa Arrizabalaga (slowly learning to spell that last name on the first try).

“I don’t know [if Courtois is leaving]. I am here to talk about the match. I don’t know at this moment. I want to speak to the club and then see.”

He may claim to not know, but surely he does. After all, Courtois supposedly called him personally last week to tell him just that. Sarri also surely noticed that Courtois has now missed two whole days of training as well as the match, but I suppose it’s a nicer way to say “no comment” in a situation that’s technically not done and dusted, but for all practical purposes, is.

The corollary to the Courtois situation is the Kepa situation, but Sarri just followed his own logic here, which I appreciate. Once you create your own universe with its own rules and laws, you have to stick to them. Otherwise you end up with Interstellar’s final act, which I still liked but which was not quite in tune with the rest of that masterpiece.

“If I don’t know anything about Courtois, I don’t know anything about Kepa, of course.

“I saw him one year ago for Naples. My first impressions was that he is a very good goalkeeper, very young, but very, very good.”

-Maurizio Sarri; source: Football.London

Of course. Wink wink nudge nudge, say no more.