The Spaniard, who joined the Blues for a world record goalkeeper fee of £71 million last summer, resisted Sarri’s attempts to substitute him shortly before a penalty shoot-out against Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
Reserve stopper Willy Caballero was primed and ready to come on, but the 24-year-old refused to leave the pitch and remained in place for the shoot-out, where he saved Leroy Sane’s penalty but couldn’t stop City triumphing 4-3.
Sarri insisted after the game that there was a “misunderstanding” about the condition of Kepa, who had gone down with cramp shortly before the incident, but Terry was left unimpressed by a moment that tarnished an encouraging display from Sarri's team.
“Once your number goes up you have to come off and show a bit of respect," Stamford Bridge great Terry told Sky Sports.
“Deal with that after. That’s the last thing the players want.
"It leaves Sarri in a tough place - I'm surprised he didn't force him to come off.
"It's a cloud over a really good Chelsea performance especially with what's happened of late, as the results and performances haven't been good enough. It's disappointing - let's see what happens now.
"If I was in there [dressing room] I'd be expecting the manager to come in and deal with it instantly."
