Jorginho warns Sarri against massive betrayal and staining his legacy

Chelsea midfielder Jorginho claims Juventus managerial target Maurizio Sarri would betray supporters of his old club Napoli if he took the head coach role at the Serie A champions.

Sarri’s future as manager has been the subject of much discussion during the end of a campaign in which Chelsea secured a return to the Champions League by finishing third in the Premier League and then won the Europa League.

However, reports this weekend claim Sarri has formally asked Chelsea to let him return to his homeland with Juventus, as the eight-time defending Serie A champions look to appoint a successor to Massimiliano Allegri.

News that Sarri could be abandoning Stamford Bridge for the Allianz Stadium, however, has not gone down well with Jorginho; the Italy midfielder having played under his coach at both Chelsea and Napoli.

Napoli were locked in a furious battle for Serie A dominance during the pair’s time together at the Stadio San Paolo and while the Old Lady ultimately prevailed, Sarri left Napoli as a huge cult hero.

But Jorginho claims that Sarri would jeopardise his legacy with his old fans by returning to Italy with the eight-time defending champions.

“He did a good job for Chelsea,” Jorginho said.

“There was some criticism, but ultimately we finished third, won a cup and lost another in a final.

“I think it was a great season, and I’d hate to see him go.”

He continued: “The Napoli fans still have him in their hearts, it’s normal that they could get angry.

“They’re passionate, they can give you everything. They could treat it as a betrayal, they’re like that. We’ll see what happens.”

While Sarri is understood to be keen to bring Jorginho with him to Juventus, Chelsea will not allow the deal to happen. However, the departing Chelsea manager does look set to bring two players with him from west London to northern Italy.

Reflecting on the criticism he has received at Chelsea, Jorginho concluded: “The criticism was probably because of the football culture in England. People weren’t used to seeing a player like me in front of the defence.

“I read the game more and have less physical presence. For the fans, it was all very different and then they blamed me when the results weren’t coming.

“But ultimately I proved that they were wrong about me.”

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