Ashley Cole believes that Maurizio Sarri's Chelsea squad have to buy into the Italian coach's tactical philosophy if 'Sarri-ball' is ever going to be a success at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea thrashed Huddersfield Town 5-0 at home on Saturday to bring an end to a dramatic week which saw the Blues stunned in a 4-0 defeat at Bournemouth in midweek.
Following Wednesday's defeat on the south coast, Sarri cleared the Chelsea changing room of his backroom staff before conducting a near hour-long post-mortem with his players following the game.
Sarri has freely admitted that he is struggling to motivate his players, and held an extraordinary press conference after a meek 2-0 loss at Arsenal on January 19 during which the coach questioned whether his squad had the desire to compete at the top level of football.
Gonzalo Higuain's brace against Huddersfield suggests that Sarri's decision to bring the Argentine striker in on loan to lead the line was the right call, with the forward and the coach reuniting after a fruitful spell together at Napoli.
In Pictures | Chelsea vs Huddersfield | 02/02/2019
Sarri's tactical philosophy - dubbed 'Sarri-ball' - of a high press and attractive, fast-paced attacked football has had mixed reviews since his arrival in England, with Chelsea sitting fourth in the Premier League table.
Former England left-back Ashley Cole spent eight years at Staford Bridge, winning the Premier League title, Champions League, Europa League and four FA Cups.
Cole was coached by nine different managers while at Chelsea, and believes that Sarri's players need to take the coach's message to heart if the Italian is to prove a success in west London.
Asked whether Sarri is uinder pressure regarding his job, Cole told Sky Sports' Monday Night Football show: "I don't think just yet, he's come into a team and tried to put his philosophy there and I think it's down to the players as well, they've got to react, they've got to understand how he wants them to play.
"I watched ['Sarri-ball] it in Italy when he was with Napoli, and the football they played from the back from the goalkeeper was amazing. Now, all the players have got to get on board with that.
"It's different but it boils down to confidence. The Napoli players knew how they wanted to play, they had the confidence to play out from the back and they went with the philosophy.
"I think some of the Chelsea players have to get with it sooner rather than later."
