Chelsea captain Terry pays emotional tribute to outgoing Mourinho

The Portuguese manager – who only signed a new deal in the summer – has paid the price for Chelsea‘s disastrous start to the season.

“We felt it was time to act…Chelsea football club is in trouble”, Michael Emenalo told the club’s in-house channel after the 52-year-old’s exit was confirmed.

Mourinho made this statement early this week following a 2-1 loss to league leader, Leicester City, on Monday night.

A number of candidates have already been mentioned as possible replacements such as Pep Guardiola, Guus Hiddink, Brendan Rodgers and Juande Ramos have all been touted as possible successors.

Mourinho was pictured leaving Chelsea’s Cobham training ground for the last time on Thursday afternoon, with a hoodie pulled down over his head.

They should be used to it. After all, this is the club that sacked Italian Roberto Di Matteo a few months after he delivered Champions League glory in 2012 and got rid of Carlo Ancelotti a year after he won the 2010 Premier League and FA Cup double.

Chelsea are working “vigorously and actively” to find a new permanent manager after parting ways with Jose Mourinho.

Mourinho may even have led them to the Champions League crown, the only gap on his Chelsea CV, this season but we will never know.

“Jose is a superb coach but the results and position in the league are catastrophic and unbecoming the reputation of a club like Chelsea”.

Mourinho’s enduring hero status at Stamford Bridge means the Chelsea players could be in for a rough reception when they face Sunderland on Saturday, but Emenalo is adamant that there is no reason to doubt the levels of commitment within the squad.

Mourinho lambasted his players afterwards, saying: “I feel like my work was betrayed”.

“I am convinced that with him Chelsea will recover”.

“The same people need to remember that this is essentially the same group of players who won the league and the League Cup last season”, he added. I think it is [just] a bad period of results.

That game was overshadowed by Mourinho’s criticism of his medical staff for running on to treat Eden Hazard, which temporarily left his team down to nine men.

Chelsea then lost 3-0 at Manchester City and have also lost to Crystal Palace, Everton, Southampton, West Ham United, Liverpool, Stoke and promoted side Bournemouth.