And how his team proved him right on a chastening night at Wembley.
When Sarri claimed earlier this month that his first task was simply to close the yawning 30-point gap that separated the Blues from champions Manchester City at the end of last season, it sounded over-cautious.
Especially as so many players had played well below their potential in the now-traditional meltdown that seems to follow a title-winning year at Stamford Bridge.
But although Chelsea should be much closer next May than they were six months ago, they look a long way off being a side that can challenge City.
To be fair, so does everyone except, arguably, Liverpool.
What was alarming was just how off the pace were against another pretender in the shape of Tottenham.
Chelsea could have been five down at half time and had no complaints. When Son Heung-min made it three with his wonder goal, the game was over with more than 35 minutes to go. By the end 5-0 or more would not have flattered Spurs.
With the top five beating the lesser teams even more regularly these days, the scramble for the Champions League places may well come down to the mini-league of big clubs.
This defeat means that Chelsea, in four meetings with fellow members of the big six (which generously includes Manchester United), have a record of won one, drawn two, lost one (Tottenham are now W2 D0 L2).
When you bear in mind that the Blues’ solitary victory was the 3-2 win on the second weekend against an Arsenal side still struggling to get to grips with new manager Unai Emery’s methods, then their ability to land big punches on their rivals looks even more stark.
Even more so when you remember that Arsenal recovered wellfrom a desperate start, could have been 6-2 up at half time with better finishing, and were a bit unlucky to lose.
So City’s visit to Stamford Bridge on December 8 now looms even larger. A Chelsea win then, or at least a convincing performance, could yet open up the title race just enough for the Blues to be a (very) dark horse.
Right now, though, they look like also-rans.
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