Chelsea’s season has gone from bad to worse

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has ruled out quitting his job as Blues boss

It feels like a familiar story now, another weekend, another poor result for Premier League reigning champions Chelsea.

The Blues suffered a 3-1 defeat against Southampton on Saturday at Stamford Bridge as their poor campaign continued.

Defiant

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho was defiant in a post-match interview, stating he would not quit his role.

The Portuguese told Sky Sports: “If the club want to sack me, they have to sack me because I’m not running away from my responsibility and my team.

“This is a crucial moment in the history of this club because if the club sacks me, they sack the best manager this club had and the message is: bad results and the manager is guilty.”

Mixed

Chelsea did not make a bad start against the Saints taking the lead on ten minutes, as Willian scored a superb free-kick to give the Blues the lead. The early signs were good for Chelsea that they were going to pick-up a much-needed win.

However, goals from Saints midfielder Steven Davis just before half-time, and second half goals from Sadio Mane and Graziano Pelle was enough to give the visitors maximum points. The defeat just added to Chelsea’s woes this season.

Defence

Last season Chelsea had the best defence in the Premier League. Branislav Ivanovic, John Terry, Gary Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta formed the foundations of the Blues title winning side last season.

With a one goal advantage Chelsea probably would have went on to add another goal and then shut up shop. They may have even shut up shop at one goal up. The Blues would have had the confidence to hold a one goal lead against most teams.

That defensive confidence is no longer there in that backline and a big factor in that has been the poor form of defensive shield Nemanja Matic. The Serbian international’s form has been inexplicable this season, a bit like his team.

Matic has been dropped from the Blues team in recent games, but came on at half-time against Southampton, only to be subbed himself. That just summed-up up the midfielder’s season so far this season.

Matic has become one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League, but this season he seems to be a liability. Chelsea does not have any other viable options in his position, not of the same standard anyway.

The midfielder should not be blamed for Chelsea’s poor defensive displays though, as the defence has been simply woeful. Mourinho has tried all different combinations at the back, with captain John Terry being dropped.

The veteran centre-back returned for the game against Southampton, but there was no return to defensive solidarity. Jose Mourinho faces major problems attempting to rediscover that defensive solidarity.

Solution

No doubt Jose Mourinho has been one of the greatest managers the Premier League has ever seen. However, he looks to be struggling to find a solution to his team’s remarkably poor start to the campaign.

He has shown himself to be an astute tactician in the past, even if it has not always seen his Chelsea team play the most attractive football. His teams have won games, the good the bad and the ugly.

Mourinho is a man accustomed to winning football games and silverware for that matter. When he is not winning he is like a cat with an itch that cannot be scratched. The Portuguese boss has blamed everybody, but the tea lady at Chelsea for his team’s poor form.

The Portuguese boss now sounds like he is feeling the pressure. His post-match interview following yesterday’s game displayed his current mood.

Title

Incredibly after eight Premier League games Chelsea have just eight points and are just four points clear of the relegation zone. It looks highly doubtful that the Blues will get dragged into that fight for survival, but Mourinho’s side are now ten points behind league leaders Manchester City.

It is very early in the season, but at the moment it looks very difficult for the Blues to retain the title this season. Chelsea’s poor run of form could spell the end of Mourinho’s second stint at Stamford Bridge, with Blues owner Roman Abramovich not known for his patience.

Jose Mourinho is a man under major pressure and the Portuguese boss cannot afford to lose any more games in the Premier League, or Mr Abramovich may just pull that trigger on the controversial boss.

Can Jose Mourinho turn things around at Chelsea?