The Mourinho Thread

[Roquila 1,335]

People don't understand Jose's logic for fuck sake.

I will mention one exeample, when we won at City in 2013/2014 with an absolute masterpiece by José.

Matic-Luiz-Ramires, very solid midfield.

Willian and Hazard behind Eto'o.

Ivanovic on his prime, brilliant Cahill-Terry partnership etc.

We had the best defense in the league at the time.

I remember one particular interview, when Eden was speaking about that game, he said José told him for that game especially : "Go and play, don't worry about defending, just play and do what you do best".

Why did José say that to him ? Because we had a solid defense and midfield, and because we were the in-form team of the moment ( that game was the part of a serie of wins that put us top of the table ).

Why did José tell Eden to defend in the start of his second reign ? Because we didn't have that balance yet ?

Why is he making adjustments and thus dropping Hazard and/or asking him to defend more ? Because we lost that balance once again, because we really are on a bad moment, and because we are putting in Baba who is no Azpilicueta defensively.

Dave covers pretty much all the left flank by himself when he plays, he is the one piece in the team that lets Hazard free from defensive duties without compromising the balance of the team.

I saw Hazard defend really good in the start of José second reign, when Azpi came in and showed he was a beast, I saw Eden defending less, the optimum is last year, Hazard defending more or less but having enough freedom to do what he did, you know, POTY stuff all season long.

I have no problem with Mourinho trying bold choices to momentarily fix our team balance and grind us results, even if it's by dropping Hazard, so be it, he won, you can barely criticize him on this one, when he drops Hazard and loses, come running at him ( and I will be too ).

And who's fault is it ? It's his fault.

Since January we are shit and he didn't try to fix anything. He only made the situation worse.

Please stop trying to justify his actions. He has lost it completely. On and Off the pitch.

[Fernando 6,585]

FA releases written reasons behind Jose Mourinho's £50,000 fine http://espnfc.com/chelsea/story/2671497/fa-releases-written-reasons-behind-jose-mourinhos-fine

-via ESPN FC http://es.pn/fcapp

Pretty much the fine and ban is coming because he is a repetitive offender which in truth make sense.

[Jokesy 53]

How does a manager take a public dig a player that he considered top 3 in the world and said he was better than Ronaldo last season... For not defending enough?

Meanwhile, others have been a steaming shower of shit and yet simply don't get benched. Way to go, this man has turned into a professional troll. We're fucked really, the board won't fire him because they'd have to give him around 50M euros + pay the next coach.

Wait....

I believe Hazard has been one of the worst three or four performers for us this season so far. His offensive play has been unbelievably bad. He's become very lazy too. If his attacking play is bad then he has to help the team defensively. It's a collective effort.

We should not forget than Under Jose Mourinho;

1. Arjen Robben tracked back, and his game wasn't terrible during his time with us if not for the injuries.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo also tracked back. He went on to score way more goals than he did under the "entertaining" Pellegrini.

3. OZil tracked back. He's never had a better season under any other manager. Remember, he's also benched for this same reason at a particular time.

4. Samuel Eto sacrificed himself for the team when he wasn't scoring much at Inter.

5. Last season, Hazard became more hardworking, tracked back very well when he lost possession. He had his best season IMO.

For other players like him,

6. Sanchez tracks back every time.

7. Ribery tracks back.

8. Even Messi tracks back. So what's Hazard's excuse?

A team is always more important than any individual player. That's why Messi hasn't won jack with Argentina for instance, or why Chelsea of 2012 won both the Champions League and the FA cup.

Hazard is a very gifted player and I am surprised at his lack of desire to push himself a step further. He really needs to up every part of his game this season. The last time he was criticised publicly for similar reasons, he only came back stronger and I strongly believe this time won't be any different.

If Ivanovic or Matic is indefensible this, then Hazard is not.

[Jase 43,479]

On the team, Hazard is the weakest defender IMO.

That's your view and so, fair enough. But Fabregas is the certainly the worst for me if we exclude defenders. That guy can't even tackle or bother to put in the shift to save his life.

Yes, Mourinho asks more from his attackers in terms of defense, but that's who he is. If you're not putting in defensive effort, you're not going to play. Hazard wasn't doing enough offensively to justify having him in the squad.

The thing is, are others even doing enough offensively to justify their place in the squad? No. The fact that we're currently winning based on luck (almost) and we leaving our best attacker out is daft. I also don't buy this nonsense that just because Mourinho is our manager, we have to accept the fact he asks our attackers to defend a lot. In a way, yes simply because he's in charge at the moment but with a mindset like that (preference of defending more than attacking), we'll never progress to the next level and be alongside the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich etc.

There's no facts that say he's even waging in personal battles. That's all created. Has any player come out and say they disagree with what Mourinho has said about them? Did we see Hazard throwing a fit? Did we see Baba crying because Jose has no confidence in him? Do we see Loftus-Cheek say he's being treated unfairly? Maybe, just maybe, Hazard will work harder to prove to Mourinho that he's better. Maybe we'll see Baba working harder to be a more solid defender. Maybe we'll see Loftus-Cheek track back more.

No one will be daft enough to come and criticize Mourinho but that doesn't mean the players are happy behind closed doors. Mourinho's obsession of always taking the aggressive approach in handling players (or even the referees, the club etc) is tiresome, predictable and history has shown that approach does more harm than good to the team/club.

[CurlyHairLikeLuiz 1,625]

Willian has been our best attacker this season.

Hazard has been shit for 2 months and counting. Where do we draw the line and decide when it's no longer worth trying to play him into form? I'd rather Kenedy be afforded a chance now.

[Ainsley Harriott 2,732]

@Jokesy, don't get me wrong, I know Hazard has been poor this season (the team's inability to attack doesn't help). But why does José publicly criticise him, while coming up with excuses for Ivanovic or not even metioning Cesc? How many games since Mourinho has arrived did we see him as the only one who tried to play football?

What I want is fairness and for him to stop being a hypocrite, to treat everyone the same. To take the blame for this run, not to come up with excuses or deflect everything on to the others.

Oh, and for the team to start playing football for the first time since the end of 2014. I'd really love that.

[Jase 43,479]

FA releases written reasons behind Jose Mourinho's £50,000 fine http://espnfc.com/chelsea/story/2671497/fa-releases-written-reasons-behind-jose-mourinhos-fine

-via ESPN FC http://es.pn/fcapp

Pretty much the fine and ban is coming because he is a repetitive offender which in truth make sense.

To be fair, even though Mourinho repeatedly commits the same offence, to give him a 50k fine is still a joke. Did Fergie even receive that amount of fine before? On top of that, the suspended stadium ban is also a joke. Alan Pardew got a stadium ban 2 seasons ago for headbutting David Meyler and the FA is practically saying Mourinho's criticism of the referees is as bad as Pardew's actions.

Willian has been our best attacker this season.

Hazard has been shit for 2 months and counting. Where do we draw the line and decide when it's no longer worth trying to play him into form? I'd rather Kenedy be afforded a chance now.

But in general, Hazard is the best attacker in the side. The fact that we're saying Willian is our best attacker right now says a lot more about our current predicament than his ability because we all know Willian is very average going forward. Besides, we're only saying Willian is our best attacker because of his free kick goals. Otherwise, he himself hasn't done much either going forward.

[CurlyHairLikeLuiz 1,625]

To be fair, even though Mourinho repeatedly commits the same offence, to give him a 50k fine is still a joke. Did Fergie even receive that amount of fine before? On top of that, the suspended stadium ban is also a joke. Alan Pardew got a stadium ban 2 seasons ago for headbutting David Meyler and the FA is practically saying Mourinho's criticism of the referees is as bad as Pardew's actions.

But in general, Hazard is the best attacker in the side. The fact that we're saying Willian is our best attacker right now says a lot more about our current predicament than his ability because we all know Willian is very average going forward. Besides, we're only saying Willian is our best attacker because of his free kick goals. Otherwise, he himself hasn't done much either going forward.

But my point is that once Hazard stops attacking he is useless. He's been given more than enough chances to get back into form.

[Jase 43,479]

But my point is that once Hazard stops attacking he is useless. He's been given more than enough chances to get back into form.

The same could be said for some of the other players.

[CurlyHairLikeLuiz 1,625]

The same could be said for some of the other players.

Which is why rotation exists. So out of form players rest and step up in training while another player plays in matches who is in form.

[Jase 43,479]

Which is why rotation exists. So out of form players rest and step up in training while another player plays in matches who is in form.

That's ironic to hear when our manager is Mourinho.

[CurlyHairLikeLuiz 1,625]

That's ironic to hear when our manager is Mourinho.

He's rotated out most of the stars after giving them a fair chance?

[Jase 43,479]

He's rotated out most of the stars after giving them a fair chance?

I wouldn't say so when Ivanovic, Fabregas etc are still playing regularly. Mourinho is only rotating because we have been so awful this season. Otherwise, he doesn't really rotate much. Last season being a case in point and it was one of the reasons why we looked poorer in the second half.

[Jokesy 53]

@Jokesy, don't get me wrong, I know Hazard has been poor this season (the team's inability to attack doesn't help). But why does José publicly criticise him, while coming up with excuses for Ivanovic or not even metioning Cesc? How many games since Mourinho has arrived did we see him as the only one who tried to play football?

What I want is fairness and for him to stop being a hypocrite, to treat everyone the same. To take the blame for this run, not to come up with excuses or deflect everything on to the others.

Oh, and for the team to start playing football for the first time since the end of 2014. I'd really love that.

I now got your point.

Fabregas has been poor too, but you know he's got a lot of unnecessary defensive work to do lately and that's not actually his primary role. He's supposed to be the orchestrator of the team play but hasn't been able to do so probably because Matic has been poor too.

Personally, I don't know why Mourinho usually pairs Fabregas with a single CDM. I have always thought playing two CDMs behind him will afford him more freedom like Sneijder had at Inter. Heck, Mourinho could even play Oscar or Hazard in that role if Fabregas isn't productive enough. That would also give Hazard more freedom like Ozil had at Real but he'll only need to be more creative and decisive on the ball.

Also, I think Hazard, like Matic, IMO may be that type of player that needs to be pushed harder than normal private discussion. He appears to be the complacent fellow, I may be wrong though. Matic responded by playing much better in last match especially off the ball, though he misplaced many passes too.

Having watched our last two matches more than three times, I believe Fabregas showed a lot of improvements in his game. For instance, he was magnificent in the first 45 minutes against Southampton when he paired with Ramires. He also showed more calmness and desire Against Aston Villa, arguably his best match in the league this season.

[CurlyHairLikeLuiz 1,625]

I wouldn't say so when Ivanovic, Fabregas etc are still playing regularly. Mourinho is only rotating because we have been so awful this season. Otherwise, he doesn't really rotate much. Last season being a case in point and it was one of the reasons why we looked poorer in the second half.

Yes but that's surely the time for rotation!

I get your point though, obviously.

[Johnnyeye 7,510]

http://www.espnfc.us/chelsea/story/2671497/fa-releases-written-reasons-behind-jose-mourinhos-fine

What a big joke, bunch of twats, Mourinho has done right to appeal, don´t bow down to them. Fark them all

[johnnythefirst 1,076]

So he didn't want to criticize that poor referee? His English just wasn't good enough to say what he really meant?

Clown.

[Rhino's Skin 972]

wonder if that poll about whether Mourinho should get the sack is a true reflection of how Chelsea supporters ( the whole community ) hink.

A lot of the ones I know cannot be arsed with online forums and having to deal with OTT reactionary postings and keyboard warriors who would debate 'black was white' until the cows come home.

But, I would guess around 90% of those I do know (and thats several hundred ) would want Mourinho to stay.

It would be interesting if the poll was broken down further or someone who has the knowledge and time makes a spreadsheet showing voting patterns in different genres such as age, male/ female, country, type of supporter such as match going on a full time basis, occassionaly, never etc etc etc

I just seem to get the impression ( and its only my humble opinion ) that its the ones who are in the UK and go to matches are more likely to say yes to keeping him .

Could well be wrong ...hence it would be interesting to see patterns.

I dont mean this post as a pop at 'anti' Mourinho fans or fans who are not priviliged to be able to watch the team at Stamford Bridge

[Billy. 2,742]

Lets say as of now he has left the club, who would you want in/or think can lead the club to more glory?

[Rhino's Skin 972]

Lets say as of now he has left the club, who would you want in/or think can lead the club to more glory?

at this moment....no one.

In ten years time , the romantic notion that an ex player such as JT, Lampard, Drogba etc etc is very successful as a manager sounds appealing