José Mourinho is convinced he will retain his position as Chelsea’s manager even if the club are eliminated from the Champions League against Porto on Wednesday, with the Portuguese insistent the malaise which has affected his team this term is “not a one-man responsibility”.
Chelsea need to beat Porto to win Group G, while a draw would ensure they progress to the knockout phase but most likely as runners-up, on the assumption Dynamo Kyiv beat the section's whipping boys, Maccabi Tel Aviv. Involvement in the Champions League has traditionally been the key factor in the manager retaining his job at Stamford Bridge, particularly if domestic form has proved sloppy, with the desire to remain among Europe's elite into the new year very clear.
The defeat by Bournemouth on Saturday was an eighth Premier League defeat and left Chelsea 14th, 12 points off the top four, in a dismal title defence. Asked why he thought Roman Abramovich would retain faith in his management regardless of the outcome of the game against Porto, with whom he won this trophy in 2004, Mourinho said: “Because I think that I did lots of good things in this club for the owner to know the quality I have, and the owner has shown me that belief twice: once when he brought me back to the club; the second time when he gave me a new contract for four years [in the summer].
“I don’t think the owner is a person to change with the wind. I know the wind of the results is an important wind. I know this wind is strong because the results in the Premier League are really bad. But I think the owner knows who I am and what I give to the club, and the owner believes that I am the right person to do the job.
“And now I don’t speak about the owner, but just about the reality of the situation: you can read these bad results and focus everything on the manager; you can look at the results and look to players with performances below acceptable [levels]; you can look to this and look to the unlucky decisions we’re having in every competition, not just the Premier League; you can look in many directions and decide this is not a one-man responsibility.”
Mourinho – who has John Terry and Ramires available after injury – remains committed to reviving his team despite the regular setbacks. “As a manager, I think all this makes me better,” he said, reflecting on a campaign of turmoil. “This is a first for me. It’s a new experience, something I was not used to, and I never thought I would be so strong and so highly motivated to another defeat and, the next morning, I wake up again with the same or even more desire to go and work …
“It has made me know myself a bit better than before under new circumstances, and I found myself stronger than I thought. When you win all the time and have happiness with the results, it’s a wonderful life. When you have bad results it’s more difficult, but I found myself really strong. A good experience.”
(Guardian Service)
