Mourinho sacked as Chelsea manager – club

Despite their struggles in the Premier League, Chelsea qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League as winners of their group and will face Paris Saint-Germain in the first knockout round of Europe’s elite club competition.

It was unrealistic to expect Chelsea to enjoy a similar ride this season.

His sacking signals a remarkable fall from grace for a man regarded as one of the world’s best – Mourinho has also won league titles in Italy, Spain and Portugal, plus two Champions League triumphs with Porto and Inter Milan.

With a mid-season ouster, Chelsea ended Mourinho’s second stint in charge at the club after two-and-a-half years, much in the same way it ended his first in 2007. In modern day football when a manager and his players have such a disagreement, it’s the former who pays for it.

Downing Street responded to news of Mourinho’s departure, with Prime Minister David Cameron’s spokesman saying: “The Prime Minister is always sad to see anyone lose their job, but it’s worth reflecting on this week’s labour market statistics, which demonstrated that there are over 740,000 vacancies in the United Kingdom economy, thanks to the excellent stewardship of the economy”.

“I think you have to hold the players accountable for what’s been happening recently”.

When asked after the game if he thought he would be given more time to turn things around he told reporters: “The only thing I can say is that I want to”. “Everyone seems to be shocked – I’m not”.

“This has been going on too long”.

“He wanted out, in my opinion”.

“The timing is quite fantastic, irrespective of whether he should or shouldn’t (be sacked)”.

Mourinho was reportedly informed of the decision at a meeting with the club hierarchy this afternoon and it is understood he will be paid until the end of the season.

“In my eyes a great manager sticks by his players”, he said.

When we looked at Chelsea’s situation back then, there are some freakish similarities to their situation right now…

Willian’s free-kick puts Chelsea ahead in the 10th minute, but goals from Steven Davis, Sadio Mane and Graziano Pelle earn Southampton a deserved win that sees Chelsea slump to 16th place in the table. “Managers depend on results and his results haven’t been good enough”.

The defending English Premier League champions have parted company with their manager, Jose Mourinho, after a string of bad results.

Few could have foreseen Chelsea’s decline this season, especially as Mourinho was rewarded with a new four-year contract in August.

Mourinho, meanwhile, has never managed a single club for longer than four years.

Mourinho called the pair “impulsive and naive” and downgraded their duties, which included their removal from the bench on match days.