Chelsea players fully behind Mourinho –Mikel

Mikel Obi says Chelsea players remain convinced Jose Mourinho is the ideal manager for the club.

Mourinho has endured a dismal start to the season, with the Premier League champions currently 15th, with 11 points from 11 games, after Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to Liverpool.

Sources have told ESPN FC that Mourinho has two games to save his job, and that former Blues coach Carlo Ancelotti would be interested in taking over even on a temporary basis if the Portuguese is dismissed.


There have been questions about some players’ commitment, and the presenter of BBC Radio 5 Live’s “Sportsweek” programme reported at the weekend that he had been told that one first-team Chelsea player had recently said, “I’d rather lose than win for him.”

However, Mikel, who started both the Capital One Cup loss to Stoke and the Liverpool defeat, said the players retain full support for the former Inter Milan and Real Madrid boss.

“We are right behind the manager,” he told reporters. “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. Jose 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.”