David Luiz insists ‘everybody is with Maurizio Sarri’ as Chelsea look for urgent response to Arsenal defeat

Chelsea were comprehensively beaten 2-0 by Arsenal with Sarri coming under-fire for his repeated refusal not to alter his tactics

Chelsea defender David Luiz has stressed that he and his team-mates trust in boss Maurizio Sarri's philosophy and that "everybody is with" the Italian.

The Blues put in a disappointing performance as they were beaten 2-0 at Arsenal on Saturday.

The gap between Chelsea in fourth place in the Premier League and Arsenal, who rose to fifth, reduced to three points, and sixth-placed Manchester United are the same amount behind Sarri's men.

In his post-match press conference, an angry Sarri was critical of his players' mentality, accusing them of being "extremely difficult to motivate".

Luiz said the manager "was not happy" after the match "but nobody was happy, so it was normal."

And regarding the way Chelsea have been playing, he said: "It is our style, it is our philosophy.

"I think if you asked at the beginning of the season, 'can Chelsea keep the ball?' - you would have said no.

"And now we are able to do that, like the best teams in the world, but then we have (to) improve our last 25 metres."

The Brazil international added, when asked if it was harder to trust the philosophy when Chelsea lost: "It is part of the process, when you try to do something and this is inside your mind, if you believe in it you can arrive there.

"Because of the results if you start to change and change, you don't go anywhere.

"So this is our philosophy, I believe in it, I trust in it, so I just know we have to improve, like every team in the world.

"What Sarri (who took charge last summer) has done until now is unbelievable, amazing, because normally (for) a team to understand this philosophy needs one or two years, like Manchester City and Liverpool, who are playing very well with the ball now.

"What he has done has been amazing, so we have to try to improve the details now."

Maurizio Sarri has the full backing of the Chelsea squad, says David Luiz (AFP/Getty)

When then asked if some players were less sure now, Luiz said: "I don't think so, everybody is trusting his job and everybody is with him."

Chelsea, who are being linked with Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain, once again had Eden Hazard deployed as a 'false nine' on Saturday.

They have won only two of their last five games in all competitions and failed to score in three of those.

Saturday's contest saw Alexandre Lacazette and Laurent Koscielny score in the 14th and 39th minutes respectively.

Luiz said of the match at the Emirates Stadium: "The first 25 minutes we did not perform well, after that to control a team like Arsenal here with possession is never easy, especially in the second half we did that.

"But then after that possession and being more dangerous is two different things, so I think we had the possession but we still have to be more dangerous."

David Luiz admitted it's up to the Chelsea players to find a response (PA)

Luiz said the creation and conversion of chances was an area in which Chelsea "have to improve", and added: "When I say that I am not talking about the strikers, I am talking about the whole team.

"The offensive phase starts with (goalkeeper) Kepa (Arrizabalaga), and then with us the defenders, with everybody."

PA