Maurizio Sarri believes Chelsea are better than the England national team while also revealing that he didn't bother watching any of the World Cup because "there isn't anything to learn".
The 2018 World Cup in Russia was widely lauded as a great spectacle with England having their most successful tournament in decades, making their first semi-final since 1996.
But Sarri thinks that the standard of international football is limited by the inability of the managers to work with their players for a long periods time.
As a result, Sarri doesn't just think England would fall to his Chelsea side, but that any international team would struggle to find a way past top club opposition.
And Sarri believes he is not alone in that opinion.
"I think so. Why not?" Sarri replied when asked if Chelsea would beat England. "I didn't see anything of the World Cup. I didn't see a match in the World Cup. I don't like the national teams because there isn't anything to learn.
"It is a usual position, every coach thinks like me. It is just unusual to say it. It is impossible to arrange a team very well in 30 days. Every team in the World Cup will lose against the top level club teams in every match.
"I think also that is normal because in a club you have time to organise a team but in the national team you have no time so it is very difficult to see an organised team in the Euros or World Cup. It is only a matter of time [with your players]."
Sarri also noted his that while he gets more time with his players than a national team does, he has not received enough of late thanks to the festive period to set up his side the way he wants.
"I think our level is not less than the England national team," Sarri said. "We can draw, we can lose, we can win.
"Maybe because we have more time than a national team but not enough to organise the team as I want. The next week will be the first week without three matches in it since August 20, so the time is not enough."
Given his frustration with lack of time with his future, it is no surprise to hear Sarri, who was presented with a chocolate cake on Thursday for his 60th birthday, say he is not quite ready to make his way into international management.
"When I am tired and older than now maybe I will change my mind but at the moment now [I don't want to move into international football]."
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Sarri arrived at training with a fresh look following Chelsea's 1-0 defeat to Tottenham in the Carabao Cup thanks to a deeply held superstition of shaving his haircut after every defeat.
And Sarri remained in a good mood despite being in the midst of a transfer window, which he admitted he doesn't like, his side's faltering form over the winter period, as well as that first-leg semi-final defeat to Spurs, which featured controversy.
The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) awarded Spurs a first-half penalty, after overuling the linesman's decision to flag Harry Kane offside. Chelsea attempted to show from their own cameras that the decision was wrong.
Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the body that manages referees in the Premier League, stand by the decision and the decision to award Kane the penalty.
Sarri still thinks that it was a mistake but he doesn't blame either the referee Michael Oliver, or the VAR Chris Kavanagh, who will be back in action refereeing Chelsea's game against Newcastle on Saturday.
However, the Blues boss used the opportunity to voice his opposition to the VAR and his problems with the system.
"It was a mistake but it wasn't really very important," He continued. "We are talking about 10 seconds of the match we have to think to the other 89 minutes. It is not important. It is only a referee decision but I have to analyse the full match and we need to think how to solve our problems.
"We don't need to think about the referee. It is not important for us. The problem is not the referee or one or the other. The problem is they are not ready to use the VAR. It is not easy because if you look at the linesman he stopped his run and for the player this is a signal of offside.
"But it is normal. They use the system for the first time in the League Cup and so they need only to get used to using the system. I don't like the VAR but it is only my opinion because we risk to change the atmosphere in the stadium.
"You score but have to wait for 30 seconds to celebrate. It is negative for the atmosphere in the stadium. I am used to playing with the system because in Italy we used it starting 3 years ago. I don't like but it is only my opinion. I prefer like now in England."
Chelsea's upcoming match against Rafael Benitez's Toon side will not have VAR, as they return to Premier League action at Stamford Bridge.
