Chelsea’s boss opted to car share with one of his assistants rather than take the team bus home after the 4-0 humiliation at Bournemouth on Wednesday.
It was so the pair could plan yesterday’s training session when Sarri hoped he could start — once again — to educate the players in the style of passing football that takes his name.
But the view from above at Stamford Bridge is that while the Italian is not in imminent danger of getting the bullet, he also needs to demonstrate he is ready to learn a thing or two.
Sarri is adamant he will not change his philosophy but the Chelsea hierarchy want the team to have different options.
That means switching the gameplan when the circumstances demand.
Such as Wednesday night, when anybody with an ounce of football intelligence could see Sarri’s team pinging the ball about in pretty patterns — with absolutely no threat to the Bournemouth goal.
It may take some time for new striker Gonzalo Higuain to settle in.
And while that process takes place, Chelsea need to be versatile enough to switch tactics and personnel to take difficult games by the scruff of the neck — and win them.
Everywhere around Sarri at the top of the Premier League, Chelsea’s rivals have an alternative when the going gets tough.
Up at Liverpool Jurgen Klopp is at pains to discuss ‘development’.
The German declares that his players must be ready to switch tactics to be consistently successful.
He has said: “That’s how you develop, by doing different things.”
Over at Manchester City, Pep Guardiola has a revolving door policy on his starting line-ups. It keeps the enemy guessing. He is well known for getting more out of already supremely talented individuals.
Unai Emery makes bold choices with his Arsenal substitutions and is ruthless with certain individuals who he feels do not fit in.
Sarri is pretty much restricted to choosing his team from 14 players and you can virtually name his starting XI before a Premier League match.
Starting Emerson instead of Marcos Alonso at left-back against Bournemouth was inflexible Sarri’s idea of a wild night out in the stag party capital of the south coast.
And it’s not rocket science to work out that at some point it’s going to be Willian coming on for Pedro, or vice versa, with maybe the odd dash of Ruben Loftus-Cheek and even less of Callum Hudson-Odoi.
In midfield, Jorginho was hailed as one of the signings of the summer in August, but his position has affected the form of N’Golo Kante.
Kante — widely accepted as the best holding midfielder in the world — has seen his form dip after Sarri moved him to a more attacking role on the right of the midfield three.
Sarri is under increasing pressure to make his 4-3-3 football work every week or sometimes abandon it, stick a big man up front and go for it.
If he does not, then chairman Bruce Buck could be making the fateful training ground visit sooner than you think.
Chelsea crumbled in the second half to counter-attack specialists Bournemouth. And at one point the visiting fans sang ‘you don’t know what you’re doing’ to Sarri as Bournemouth’s fourth goal sent the Blues tumbling out of the top four.
They have the same goal difference as Arsenal but have scored ten fewer.
Captain Cesar Azpilicueta said: “Conceding four goals is unacceptable, and we are very angry with that.
“Afterwards we spoke as men between the manager and the players. It was a very tough result after two wins in the cup. To lose 4-0 as Chelsea players is unacceptable.
“We have put ourselves at risk. We are in trouble after dropping six points in the last two games.”
Chelsea face the Premier League’s bottom club Huddersfield at Stamford Bridge tomorrow.
Defender Azpilicueta added: “We have to push and look at ourselves.
“We still have 14 games to go. The minimum we should do is qualify for the Champions League.”
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