It’s something that has been gently and quietly whispered amongst some fans of Chelsea FC, mooted by those who are interested in a wider debate and pondered amongst the few that question but do not dare to appear publicly treacherous or mutinous. Can Jose Mourinho coach a team to be beautiful?
This six part series will examine Jose Mourinho’s history as one of the most successful coaches of the modern era; intertwine, analyse and chart the Chelsea revolution under owner Roman Abramovich; and explore the answer to the question: Can Jose Mourinho coach a team to be beautiful?
For Part 1: Mourinho and the Roman Revolution Click here.
For Part 2: Post-Jose Blues Click here.
For Part 3: Jose’s Spanish Inquisition Click Here.
Part IV- Chelsea’s Revolving Door, THAT Final in Munich and the end of Jose in Spain
Chelsea under head coach Carlo Ancelotti started the defence of their Premier League and FA Cup titles in good style.
A busy summer transfer window had seen the arrival of Brazilian midfielder Ramires from Portuguese side Benfica, youngster Tomas Kalas from Sigma Olomouc and Yossi Benayoun from Liverpool.
Big departures from the club saw no fewer than sixteen players leave. Big names like Joe Cole, Michael Ballack, Juliano Belletti, Deco, Scott Sinclair and Ricardo Carvalho were among those who had been shown the exit door. This helped to bring down the average age of the squad which had been in need of refreshment.
Two consecutive 6-0 wins at home to West Bromwich Albion and away at Wigan Athletic saw The Blues lead the table. By early October, Chelsea had opened up a five point gap. Results from there until the end of the season were mixed.
A British record transfer of £50m for Fernando Torres from rivals Liverpool FC and £25m arrival David Luiz, both signed on January’s transfer deadline day, proved how much owner Roman Abramovich felt his club needed reinforcements.
By the end of March, Chelsea were nine points off of leaders Manchester United, having also drawn them in the Champions League quarter finals.
An aggregate loss to Manchester United in the UEFA Champions League and the poor defence of their Premier League crown lead to intense speculation that coach Ancelotti could be sacked. The immensely popular Italian was backed by the club’s fans, but ultimately not by the board who sacked him just hours after the last game of the season.
Andre Villas Boas, the ex-Chelsea coach from Jose Mourinho’s previous spell, was brought in from FC Porto to lead the new revolution. His brief was to oversee the further transition from the ‘old guard’ of Didier Drogba, John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole and integrate some of the club’s up and coming young talent in the shape of Ryan Bertrand, Daniel Sturridge and Josh McEachran.
The club’s transfer policy was to buy young talented players and play a more possession based pressing game, the addition of Juan Mata being seen as typifying this approach.
As under previous managers, some senior professionals did not take to the new managers methods. His intense style and attention to detail over the finer details off the pitch were seen as being unnecessary and some players openly flaunted the rules and tried bend them as much as they could. Players used to race into the Car Park at the training ground seconds before their due time, sarcastically waving up to manager as he watched them arrive. His tactics and obvious remit of removing the older players was a battle line drawn in the sand.
As history under Abramovich shows, the only winners are the players. Despite Abramovich’s conviction in his appointment, the tension around the training ground translated into results and AVB was sacked mid-season being replaced by his assistant and Chelsea legend Roberto Di Matteo.
The league form remained distinctly average with Chelsea finishing a miserable sixth place. However their form in the Champions League and FA Cup was nothing short of sensational.
With AVB sacked between the first and second legs of their last 16 match with Napoli, Di Matteo’s first taste of European action was to steer Chelsea to a 4-1 home victory, qualifying 5-4 on aggregate. The tie against Benfica, was won 3-1 over the two legs before Chelsea were drawn against Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona. A tight and edgy affair saw Chelsea win the first leg 1-0 with a goal from the Ivorian Didier Drogba. Barcelona dominated possession and were unfortunate to lose when hitting the bar and going close in injury time with a Carles Puyol header clipping the post.
In the second leg, Chelsea captain John Terry was sent off in the first half as a dominant Barcelona took a 2-0 lead. A delightful Ramirez chip to make it 2-1 (2-2 on aggregate) just before half time gave Chelsea an away goals advantage. A missed Lionel Messi penalty and a last minute breakaway goal for Chelsea by Fernando Torres saw them reach their second final in four years, facing Bayern Munich who had knocked out Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid.
The final in Munich was another defensive display by Di Matteo’s team. In what could be termed a classic Italian, almost Mourinho style performance, the game finished 1-1 after extra time. History was written as with (then) his last kick of a ball for Chelsea FC, Didier Drogba scored the penalty that saw them finally reach the Holy Grail and win Roman Abramovich the European Cup.
Following the victory Di Matteo was given the job on a full time basis. Despite his standing amongst the fans and players, Chelsea’s continues to struggle for form. They suffered the ignominy of being the first ever defending Champions League Winners to not make it out of the group stages. Given the league form and embarrassing exit from the Champions League Di Matteo left the club.
His replacement, the ex Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez, was met with derision by the clubs’ fan base. Feeling alienated, they never quite accepted his appointment, singing Di Matteo’s name at every game on the 16th minute (16 was Di Matteo’s old squad number as a player) and also chanting for the return of Jose Mourinho in a clear message to the owner. Although Benitez won the Europa League, it was clear that the fans only saw him as the ‘Interim One’ and were hankering for the return of the ‘Special One’.
During his final season in charge at Real Madrid, Jose Mourinho’s relationship with key members of the dressing room, chiefly Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos, became fractious.
He was accused by the Madrid press of favouring his Portuguese players ahead of the Spanish ones and creating rifts in the dressing room. Dropping Real Madrid icon Casillas in favour of Diego Lopez did little for his popularity and leaks from the dressing room were thought by Mourinho to have come from Casillas, whose partner works as a prominent sports journalist.
The style of football was much the same; decent football against the lesser sides and a more practical game plan shown to their title rivals. A third consecutive Champions League semi final loss – this time to Borussia Dortmund – was the nail in the Mourinho-Madrid coffin.
Speculation had been growing linking him with a return to Chelsea since the spring of 2013 and by May it seemed Jose had made up his mind.
“At the end of the season, I want to sit down with the president [of Real Madrid] and speak about it [the future]. I know in England I am loved,” he told reporters after the semi-final exit to Dortmund. “I know I am loved by some clubs, especially one. I am loved by the fans and the media who treat me in a fair way. I know in Spain it is different because many people hate me.”
In Part V we look at the homecoming of the Special One and see if the new Mourinho vintage is better than the last?
