Chain-smoking Sarri might temporarily give up smoking

Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri gets through approximately 80 cigarettes per day – four to five an hour according to those close to him, but since UK law does not allow smoking in public places like stadiums, not sparking up is going to be a test for the newly-arrived manager in the Premier League this season.

Indeed, he was seen resorting to chewing unlit cigarettes on the touchline during Chelsea’s opening fixture in the league against Huddersfield. After a tantalizing game against Arsenal at the Stamford Bridge on Saturday, which Chelsea won 3-2, the question was put forward to the Italian manager whether he wanted to light one up due to the sheer tensions running through the game.

"No I needed half-time and the first half to end, not a cigarette," Sarri told reporters. "I am going to stop for just one or two years then I will start again.

"Inside there were 15 minutes that were horrible. We lost ground, we were not able to press, we were not able to defend, we were really in trouble. I think in the second half, we did very well from our mental point of view.

"It was really very hard to answer about the last part of the first half. I prefer to speak about the other 75 minutes, it is better. I remember better the good things instead of the worst."

Chelsea have seen consistent managerial changes since Russian oil billionaire Roman Abramovich took over the club. Whether or not Sarri was joking about quitting or whether he believed that the Chelsea hot seat is short-term project for him remains to be seen.

Sarri had chomped on some unlit cigs on the side of the pitch as he watched his team get off to a very impressive start. Sarri is known as a real character in the game and hit headlines last season for smoking in the tunnel while accompanied by personal bodyguards while at Napoli.