Tony Cascarino believes the imminent signing of Gonzalo Higuain is Maurizio Sarri’s ‘last throw of the dice’ at Chelsea.
The Italian was left infuriated after watching the Blues fall to a 2-0 defeat to London rivals Arsenal at the Emirates on Saturday night.
Sarri launched an extraordinary attack on his players after the game – accusing them of being difficult to motivate in league games.
The race for the Champions League is now wide open and former Blues striker Cascarino believes Higuain has to be a success for the sake of his manager.
He said on the Weekend Sports Breakfast: “I don’t think the Chelsea system suits everybody at Chelsea and that is the reason I think players are not buying into the way he wants to play.
“Because he is very determined that he is only going to play this way.
“But unless he has got time – and Chelsea are not a club that will be patient – I think Higuain is going to be his last throw of the dice.
“He has to come in and work.”
Failure to beat Tottenham Hotspur at home in their Carabao Cup semi-final second leg will end the Blues’ pursuit of a trophy – leaving the Europa League and the FA Cup as the only serious alternatives of silverware this season.
The lack of goals up front is a real worry for Chelsea – hence the decision to bring Higuain in from Juventus on a loan deal.
The introduction of ‘Sarri-ball’ seemed to be an instant success at Stamford Bridge, but teams are content to simply leave men behind the ball and wait for their moments on the counter or at set-pieces.
If the signing of Higuain does not solve the goalscoring situation, Cascarino believes Sarri will pay for it with his job.
“No, you don’t get many chances,” he said when talking about the Blues’ style of play.
“And I have said that Chelsea fans will know what I am saying. I’ve been to games and I have watched them.
“We had that joke with Dan Levene yesterday and he said that the bars around Stamford Bridge are very busy.
“Chelsea fans know this has been coming – look at their goal return in recent weeks. They just don’t look like a side that’s going to create.
“So the last throw of the dice is Higuain because otherwise I don’t think he will last until the end of the season.
“And if he gets to the end of the season, he won’t get into next season.”