Mourinho ‘confused’ by Chelsea no-show

Jose Mourinho opted to start with Loic Remy in place of the suspended forward Diego Costa.

Costa was given a three-game ban by the FA for violent conduct, after an incident with Laurent Koscielny in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Arsenal on September 19.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has slammed his players’ lackluster showing against Newcastle on Saturday, rating their performance as “minus one“.

“He’s frustrated, obviously, and rightly so”, Fabregas said. It’s very unfair what happened to him. “They are a great team with great potential and we need to play really well, to our limits, and be technically and tactically flawless”.

Having been roundly criticised in the wake of back-to-back home defeats to Watford and Sheffield Wednesday, Newcastle’s players produced a much-improved performance as they drew 2-2 with the Premier League champions.

Zouma has now featured in all seven of Chelsea’s Premier League matches this season, and believes the tuition from Mourinho has been hugely beneficial. When you are Chelsea and when you play for a big club you have to compete to your maximum in every game. We have given up too many opportunities and if we’d have lost this game today, who knows?

“We showed a togetherness and I am not just talking about the players but the supporters”. The manager admitted none of his squad can consider themselves automatic selections for the team at present given the lack of form throughout, with a response now required out on the pitch.

“Last season wasn’t easy”.

“We are training well, motivated”.

“I know what you’re going to ask”, Mourinho said as a Spanish reporter began to question him.

Steve McClaren is yet to register a win in the Premier League with Newcastle but he would dearly love a repeat of the same result last season where Newcastle were 2-1 winners which subsequently ended Chelsea’s 23 game unbeaten streak. It has to come from us.

“We were so poor, so bad in the first half“, he said. We are not babies.

McClaren, without several key players, handed a start to striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, available again after serving a three-match suspension.

Charnley continued: “After six league games the truth is we have not achieved the points that any of us had hoped and expected we would do”.