Maurizio Sarri has suggested that Andreas Christensen’s much-publicised visit to the toilet during Chelsea’s defeat at Arsenal was linked to the defender suffering from anxiety on matchdays.
It follows reports that Chelsea boss Sarri was furious that Christensen left the bench at the Emirates Stadium after the Blues’ final substitution and did not return, missing the remaining 15 minutes of the game.
But Sarri, who has previously referred to the defender coming off because of stomach pains, played down the issue when asked about it at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
He said: “In the matchday Christensen always has a stomachache. I don’t know the reason but I think he is very nervous. He needed to go to the toilet.”
Sarri also confirmed that Chelsea were in the process of finalising striker Gonzalo Higuain’s move to the club.
Higuain, who played under Sarri at Napoli, has been on loan at AC Milan from Juventus this season, scoring just once in his last 12 appearances for the Rossoneri.
“We hope he’ll bring goals, he’ll start scoring for us,” Sarri said.
“It’s very difficult in January to find one of the most important strikers in the world. So I think the club is working very well because it’s not easy to get a new striker.”