'He already understands' - Liam Rosenior not surprised by Chelsea defender's display vs Hull
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Mamadou Sarr's full Chelsea debut in the 4-0 FA Cup fourth-round win over Hull City explained why head coach Liam Rosenior urged the club to recall him from his loan in January.
Pedro Neto and Liam Delap's outstanding performance on the attacking end aside, this was Chelsea's first clean sheet in seven games, which is arguably just as important to the team's confidence.
Sarr, who played alongside Wesley Fofana and later Tosin Adarabioyo, clearly played a big part in preventing the hosts from scoring at the MKM Stadium.
The 20-year-old made two blocks, a tackle, four clearances, and six recoveries in the game.
However, the most impressive part was his ball-playing capabilities.
He completed 98 per cent of his passes in the game, 101 out of 103, managed to create one big chance, and two passes into the final third overall.
This is something that Chelsea have often missed a lot throughout the season amid Levi Colwill's injury.
Rosenior, who clearly has a lot of faith in Sarr, was not surprised by the defender's strong display.
"Mamadou was everything that I expect," the Chelsea head coach said in his post-match press conference.
"I know Mamadou so well, and I think his acclimatisation and adaptation process will, hopefully, be fast because he already understands how I want to play.
"He already showed that today."
Obviously, it was only a cup game against a Championship side, so Sarr still has a lot to prove ahead of his eventual Premier League debut.
It remains unclear whether he will keep his starting spot for the upcoming league fixture against Burnley next Saturday, but he will have another week to prepare for that.
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.