Jorginho receives chorus of boos from Chelsea supporters

Maurizio Sarri defended Jorginho after Chelsea supporters booed the midfielder when he came on against Malmo.

The Blues boss brought on the Italian, who is seen as the centrepiece of ‘Sarriball’, in the 76th minute and some jeers rang round Stamford Bridge.

Sarri claimed after their 3-1 win that the first 30 minutes highlighted the importance of Jorginho to his system. 

Jorginho came on during the second half but received boos from the Chelsea supporters

Jorginho spent the majority of the match on the bench, but came on for the last 15 minutes

Jorginho was swapped for Ross Barkley, who has often been subbed for Kovacic this season

‘In the first 30 minutes we understood why Jorginho is very important for our team,’ Sarri said.

‘We were in trouble to exit from our half, on pressing. With Jorginho, it’s easier I think.

‘I hope that our fans will be able to understand that Jorginho, for us, is really a very important player.’ 

Manager Maurizio Sarri defended his player after the match, saying Jorginho is very important

Jorginho came on for Ross Barkley in the 76th minute, who has been much more accustomed to swapping with Mateo Kovacic. So far this season, Sarri has made this swap 20 times. 

Sarri has come under fire for his stubbornness in his tactics this season, especially after it seemed Premier League teams were starting to figure out his systems.

A 2-0 loss to Arsenal, a 4-0 loss to Bournemouth, a 6-0 defeat to Manchester City, and a FA Cup exit at the hands of Manchester United turned the fans against him.

Opposing teams would start to target Jorginho, who was having a much more productive time during Chelsea’s unbeaten start to the season.  

A routine 5-1 aggregate win over Malmo in the Europa League might have appeased a few fans for now, but a League Cup final against Manchester City on Sunday and a visit from Tottenham a few days later will be a much bigger test for Chelsea.