Maurizio Sarri has revealed his thinking behind whether or not Kepa Arrizabalaga will start against Tottenham tomorrow but has said we ‘don’t want to kill him’…
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The boss answered questions from the media at Cobham this afternoon and stressed he wanted to draw a line under Sunday’s events at Wembley after he and Kepa released statements last night. He thinks the goalkeeper is fully fit but he will be assessed today.
‘I spoke with Kepa of course, then we spoke all together, because he said sorry to the technical staff,’ Sarri said of what happened following the Carabao Cup final.
‘He said sorry to his team-mates, to the club. He made a big mistake but we don’t want to kill him.
‘After yesterday, the situation is finished. He is a young player, he made a mistake, but stop. If I am sure he understood he made a big mistake, it is finished.’
Sarri was asked if he was disappointed by his other players’ immediate reaction to the incident
‘It was a really unusual situation. The players were very shocked. It was impossible to react immediately I think.
‘The captain spoke to me immediately after the match. He spoke with Kepa. Yesterday we spoke all together. The situation is very clear in the dressing room.’
Sarri is yet to decide whether Kepa will start against Tottenham but he will make the decision in the best interests of the team
‘Maybe yes, maybe not. I have to decide for my group. I want to send a message to my group. The message could be [for Kepa] to be on the pitch or out of the pitch. I have to decide what is better for my group.
‘He made a mistake, a big mistake. There are some consequences. If the consequence is he plays, he has to be ready to play. If the consequence is he is on the bench, he has to be ready to go to the bench.’
