Sarri already noticing Fabregas absence

Sarri said the 31-year-old Spanish World Cup-winning midfielder, who left for Ligue 1 strugglers Monaco last Friday, would have been a natural replacement for Jorginho. The Italian international -- a lynchpin of Sarri's midfield this season -- lost possession on several occasions against Newcastle.

"After 20 minutes he lost a lot of balls. It's unusual and I think he was in trouble," said Sarri. "Maybe he was tired, I don't know. But if Fabregas was on the bench I think that in the second half he would have been on the pitch instead of Jorginho."

Sarri is keen to recruit an experienced midfielder as back-up to Jorginho, who has displaced N'Golo Kante from the pivotal central role, but also praised the potential of 18-year-old Welsh international Ethan Ampadu. "In the future, maybe," the Italian replied when asked about Ampadu's prospects of filling the back-up spot. "Playing as a central midfielder in our team is not easy. We need to try and try and try in training. But I think he is able to do it."