Chelsea give Jose Mourinho respite but time is short

• Board backs him but says results must improve fast after defeat by Liverpool
• Mikel John Obi says players are fully behind Mourinho and giving him 100%

Posted Monday, November 02, 2015 by theguardian.com

Chelsea give Jose Mourinho respite but time is short
A frustrated Jose Mourinho watches on as his side are beaten 3-1 by Liverpool at Stamford Bridge.

Jose Mourinho has plunged himself into preparations for the visit of Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday after Chelsea’s manager was assured by members of the board he will be given more time to revive his ailing team. The latest show of support from the hierarchy is understood to have been accompanied by a message that results need to improve quickly.

While Chelsea remain reluctant to sack Mourinho despite Saturday’s defeat by Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, which left them in 15th place, 10 points off the top four and four above the teams in the relegation zone, there are indications that they will re-evaluate the position if the champions continue to struggle amid persistent rumours of discontent within the dressing room. Mourinho received a public vote of confidence from the club after the side were beaten at home by Southampton last month, but the pressure is mounting on him after his team’s sixth defeat in 11 matches.

Roman Abramovich was not at Stamford Bridge to witness the latest setback in Chelsea’s increasingly shambolic title defence, meaning that the owner missed the crowd repeatedly giving Mourinho their backing as Liverpool cruised towards an impressive 3-1 victory.

Mourinho, who took training at Cobham on Sunday as he steels himself for the crucial Champions League tie against Dynamo, is hanging on for now but he can ill afford too many more slips. It will not have escaped his attention two former Chelsea managers, Guus Hiddink and Carlo Ancelotti, have been linked with his job. Hiddink, who managed Chelsea on an interim basis in 2009, has indicated that he would be open to another temporary role.

Chelsea are third in their Champions League group, a point behind Dynamo, and their final match before the international break is Saturday’s trip to Stoke City, who knocked them out of the Capital One Cup last Tuesday. Chelsea’s hand could be forced if they begin to sense Champions League football is slipping away. Finishing outside the top four would have awkward financial implications and each defeat is a test of their faith in Mourinho’s ability to lead a charge up the table.

Mourinho’s task will be harder if Diego Costa is charged after his clash with Martin Skrtel, although there is a chance the striker will escape retrospective punishment. The FA’s position will depend on the referee, Mark Clattenburg, stating in his report he would have shown Costa a red card if he had seen the incident properly. Having already served a three-match ban for violent conduct this season, Costa could be suspended for four matches. Clattenburg was standing near the incident and took no action at the time.

Indiscipline has stalked Chelsea this season. They were aggrieved Liverpool’s Lucas Leiva was not sent off when he committed a second bookable offence which went unpunished apart from a free-kick with the score still at 1-1 in the second half and feel that they are not getting the rub of the green with refereeing decisions. Mourinho, who is appealing against a £50,000 fine and a suspended one-match stadium ban for criticising officials after the Southampton game, was sent to the stands along with one of his assistants, Silvino Louro, in last weekend’s defeat at West Ham United and he could have to serve a touchline ban.

Rumblings that Mourinho is losing the support of a squad who have grown tired with his intense methods will not help his cause either and the spotlight is on his relationship with Eden Hazard again after the Belgian was replaced by Kenedy, the Brazilian teenager, in the 59th minute against Liverpool. Hazard, last season’s player of the year, has lost his spark.

Mikel John Obi insists the players still believe in Mourinho. "We are right behind the manager,” the midfielder said. "There’s no doubt about it. In training we work very hard. If anyone can turn this around, we definitely think he’s the one. Last year we were champions. We won two trophies. José knows this club more than any other manager. He’s the most successful manager in the club’s history.

"I definitely think that, if anything is wrong, if anything can be fixed, he is the one. There’s no one out there that is going to come in and fix what’s going on. If you tell the team that we are not giving 100% then there is the doubt, but we are giving 100%, we are playing for the manager, we are right behind him.

"He has come out a few times and said the players are not giving 100% and then you look at the next few games, the players come out and play better. He is doing everything that needs to be done. It’s just that right now things aren’t going well, so everyone [outside] wants him to go. I don’t think it’s the right way to go. I think that inside that dressing room we definitely believe he is the man to change things. He knows this club in and out. He knows what’s wrong and it’s just a matter of time before results start coming. We are playing well, we are working very hard in training. It’s just the results aren’t coming."