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Sarri & Chelsea season 'successful' if they win Europa League - Hasselbaink

The former Blues forward feels the Italian has provided a platform to build towards a Premier League title challenge next season

Maurizio Sarri’s first year as Chelsea manager will have been ‘a successful season’ if they win the Europa League, according to the club’s former striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

After joining from Napoli last summer, Sarri has received criticism from some sections of the Chelsea fanbase because of his tactical stubbornness and previous reluctance to use academy graduates Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

But the Italian has guided the Blues to the EFL Cup final - which they lost on penalties to Manchester City - and the Europa League final - their first European final since 2013 – and, if they were to win beat Arsenal in Baku, Hasselbaink thinks this season would have been a success for Sarri.