Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho insists he will leave Stamford Bridge if he has lost the trust of his players after surviving the axe

  • Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will not be sacked despite poor results
  • Mourinho's men lost their fourth game of the season against Southampton 
  • Owner Roman Abramovich is very disappointed with what he has seen
  • Mourinho has offered to walk away if the players no longer trust him
  • READ: Jose Mourinho is right - Chelsea would be mad to sack him now

Jose Mourinho has escaped the sack but the Chelsea manager has revealed he will step aside if his players do not trust him to salvage their season.

It was close to midnight by the time Roman Abramovich and his board left Stamford Bridge on Saturday having seen the champions beaten by Southampton. 

They collapsed to a fourth league defeat of the season despite taking the lead and Abramovich is very unhappy and deeply concerned by such a dreadful start to this campaign.

Jose Mourinho escaped the sack at the weekend, and the club have since issued him their full support

Jose Mourinho has escaped the sack but has revealed he will step aside if his players do not trust him

Despite being upset by recent form, owner Roman Abramovich has no current plan to sack Mourinho

Despite being upset by recent form, owner Roman Abramovich has no intention of sacking Mourinho

During an astonishing post-match interview on Sky Sports, Mourinho seemed to dare the club to fire ‘the best manager Chelsea ever had’, and the Russian owner was soon meeting with his closest aides.


Chelsea are languishing in 16th, engulfed by controversies such as the exit of club doctor Eva Carneiro and the on-field conduct of Diego Costa. Mourinho invited another FA misconduct charge on Saturday by questioning the integrity of the officials.

‘Referees are afraid to give us decisions,’ claimed the Chelsea manager, as he disputed two penalty calls. He went on to say Saints striker Sadio Mane was ‘always on the floor’.

It is, the 52-year-old Portuguese accepts, the worst spell of his career but he has just signed a four-year deal and is certain the players are still with him.

‘Go straight to the players,’ said Mourinho. ‘If they tell you they don’t trust me, it is the only thing that can make me resign.

Southampton midfielder Steven Davis slides to his knees as he celebrates drawing his side level

Southampton midfielder Steven Davis slides to his knees as he celebrates drawing his side level

Southampton attacking midfielder Saido Mane gets a shot away to score his side's second goal

Southampton attacking midfielder Saido Mane gets a shot away to score his side's second goal

 Graziano Pelle celebrates after scoring his side's third goal against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge

 Graziano Pelle celebrates after scoring his side's third goal against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea midfielder Willian points to the sky having given the hosts the lead against Southampton

Chelsea midfielder Willian points to the sky having given the hosts the lead against Southampton

CHELSEA'S FIXTURES 

October 17 Aston Villa (H)

October 20 Dynamo Kiev (A)

October 24 West Ham (A)

October 27 Stoke City (A)

October 31 Liverpool (H)

November 4 Dynamo Kiev (H)

‘Ask the players. Don’t go with fake sources, the player’s told a friend and the friend’s told the agent and the agent is not happy because I don’t play his player.’

No players were available to speak to the media after the match although an interview with John Terry was published on Sunday on the club website.

Mourinho’s first spell at Stamford Bridge ended amid rumours of a row with Terry. Claude Makelele wrote about it in his autobiography but Terry has always rejected the theory and, having been restored to the team against Southampton, offered the boss his public support.

Terry said: ‘We are looking low on confidence but we have a big group of players and we have the best manager, who we remain behind, and we remain together.

Mourinho watches his side lose 3-1 at home to Ronald Koeman's Southampton on Saturday evening

Mourinho watches his side lose 3-1 at home to Ronald Koeman's Southampton on Saturday evening

Saturday's defeat leaves Chelsea fifth from bottom in the Barclays Premier League with just eight points

The defeat leaves Chelsea fifth from bottom in the Barclays Premier League with just eight points

MATCH FACTS

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Begovic 5; Ivanovic 4, Cahill 4.5, Terry 5, Azpilicueta 6; Fabregas 5, Ramires 5 (Matic 46min, 4; Remy 73, 4); Willian 5.5 (Pedro 64, 4), Oscar 5, Hazard 5; Falcao 4.5. 

Subs not used: Blackman, Zouma, Loftus-Cheek, Rahman. Scorer: Willian 10. Booked: Ramires, Falcao.

SOUTHAMPTON (4-2-3-1): Stekelenburg 6; Soares 6, Van Dijk 6, Fonte 7, Bertrand 7; Romeu 5 (Ward-Prowse 46, 6), Wanyama 6.5; Tadic 6.5 (Rodriguez 78), Davis 7, Mane 8 (Yoshida 90); Pelle 7.5. 

Subs not used: K Davis, Martina, Long, Juanmi. Scorers: S Davis 44, Mane 60, Pelle 72. 

Booked: Romeu, Bertrand, Mane, Ward-Prowse, Pelle.

Man of the match: Sadio Mane.

Referee: Robert Madley 5.

‘I have been here a long time and I have seen managers come and go, and if anyone’s going to get us out of this hole it is going to be Jose Mourinho.’

For Chelsea it is the worst start to a top-flight season since 1978-79 when they were relegated, and the most staggering aspect has been the speed with which they have unravelled.

Chelsea are seven points off the top four and it is the fear of missing out on the Champions League which prompts Abramovich to browse for alternatives.

Fuelling temptation, there are highly regarded managers out of work, including Jurgen Klopp, Fabio Capello and former Stamford Bridge favourites Carlo Ancelotti and Guus Hiddink. Pep Guardiola is out of contract at Bayern Munich at the end of the season.

‘I am not afraid,’ said Mourinho. ‘It makes me realise how big I am because when you win titles and you are a champion and life is easy, it is easy to be proud. In this moment it’s not so easy. 

'I am so unhappy with the feeling of defeat but I am so happy with the way I am facing this.’

He trained his self-analysis on a decision to start with Ramires and then replace him with Nemanja Matic at half-time when the game was level at 1-1, fearing a second yellow card for the Brazil midfielder, who had been tasked with shackling Mane. 

‘Maybe I was wrong because Matic in this moment is in trouble,’ said Mourinho. ‘I question myself all the time.’

Matic lasted less than half an hour before he was replaced by Loic Remy when Chelsea went 3-1 down. 

Right back Branislav Ivanovic has played more minutes than any other player despite his recent poor form

Right back Branislav Ivanovic has played more minutes than any other player despite his recent poor form

‘Some players compared with last season are not there,’ said Mourinho. ‘They are struggling, no doubts about it. Almost all of them.’

Right back Branislav Ivanovic is in awful form. Yet he has played more minutes this season than any other player. There seems a reluctance to switch Cesar Azpilicueta from left back and introduce Baba Rahman, signed from Augsburg in August for £21.7million.

‘Baba Rahman doesn’t know what it is to play in this kind of championship,’ said Mourinho. ‘He needs time to adapt. At the same time, every team is a team of giants. 

'If you don’t have a minimum of five tall players good in the air, you are dead on set-pieces. When I play Azpilicueta and Baba, I have only three.’ 

 

 

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