Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has hinted that Olivier Giroud will return to the bench for Monday's meeting with Burnley, despite his impressive form in the Europa League.
Both Alvaro Morata and Gonzalo Higuain have struggled in front of goal during their respective times at Stamford Bridge, but Sarri has continued to leave Giroud out in the Premier League, even though he is the Europa League's top scorer this season.
Speaking ahead of the game, Sarri insisted that Giroud has played more than his fair share of games this season, and continues to be dropped for fitness reasons.
He said: "
"He played really very well but he needs to recover more than the other players because he is 90kg and so after the match he needs time to recover, only for this."
ℹ️ Giroud is only the 3rd player to reach double figures in a #UEL season 👏 pic.twitter.com/v63PByHC3Y
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) April 18, 2019
In the Premier League this season, Giroud has made just seven starts, as Sarri has preferred Alvaro Morata, Higuain and even Eden Hazard in a central role. He has been forced to settle for minutes in the Europa League, in which Giroud sits atop the scoring charts with ten goals from 11 outings.
By contrast, Morata managed just nine goals in 24 appearances before his January loan move to Atletico Madrid, and Higuain has found the back of the net three times in 13 matches, all of which came against opposition who have since been relegated from the league.
Giroud recently suggested that he may be forced to leave the club over concerns about his game time, saying:
Source : 90min