Chelsea players are loving life under new head coach Maurizio Sarri, that much has been evident since day one of the Italian’s reign, but Cesc Fabregas has upped the lovey-dovey feeling by a few notches with a hilarious Instagram post that co stars Antonio Rudiger.

The Blues were edged 6-5 by Arsenal in a penalty shootout at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, but that didn’t sap their morale.

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Rudiger found the back of the net in the 5th minute itself and Fabregas’ post was of them celebrating the central defender’s strike:

I love you too @toniruediger 😂💙

A post shared by Cesc Fàbregas (@cescf4bregas) on Aug 2, 2018 at 5:51am PDT

The Blues almost held out for the win, but with Alvaro Morata missing a penalty at 1-0, Arsenal clawed their way back into the tie with Alexandre Lacazette popping up with an injury-time equaliser.

The ensuing penalty shootout was intense, with the first eight spot-kicks being put away before Ruben Loftus-Cheek missed his and Alex Iwobi then dispatched the 10th one to give the Gunners some bragging rights.

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Sarri’s men don’t have long to ponder the loss in Ireland, for they now shift their focus to Sunday’s Community Shield with Manchester City.

The former Napoli boss has vowed to bring exciting football back to Stamford Bridge and his duel against Pep Guardiola promises to be an riveting one.

Chelsea have been impressive in pre-season, with new recruit Jorginho the standout performer along with youngster Calum Hudson Odoi, but City are the best team in England and will not go down easily.

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And with a cloud hanging over three of their players, namely Eden Hazard, Willian and Thibaut Courtois, the club have a lot of work to do before the transfer deadline shuts on August 9.