Former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has offered his support to under-fire Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, it has emerged.
Speaking at a TechCrunch Disrupt London event, Ferguson said, “There is no point in sacking one of the best coaches of all time”. It comes after rumours emerged that Mourinho could be given the sack if Chelsea fail to win their next two games, having lost eight of the first fifteen games that the defending Premier League champions have played in so far this season.
The Blues are 14th in the league, just three points above the relegation zone and seventeen points off Leicester City at the top. Despite losing only one league game at Stamford Bridge during the first 99 that they played under Mourinho’s management, Chelsea have lost four of their last seven games at home so far this season.
Yet Ferguson feels that releasing Jose Mourinho from his current position would be an act of folly by Chelsea’s owner Roman Abramovich. He said, “He has sacked so many coaches in the last 10 years. I am sure he has learned by it. He has to trust and have confidence that Jose can turn it round. In every country he has managed in he has won the big trophies. It would be foolish to sack him. It would be bad management”.
Mourinho and Ferguson clashed heads numerous times as rival managers, with the Portuguese coach believed to be desperate to take over from the Scot when he left Manchester United, only to see David Moyes given the job instead.
During his first spell in West London the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ won two titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup for the club. He added another league title and a third League Cup trophy last season, having won four major trophies with Inter Milan and Real Madrid in between his two different management spells at Chelsea.
Ferguson believes that Mourinho will find a way to turn things around at Stamford Bridge, saying, “Now is the first time he has been confronted with non-success during his whole career. For the first time in his life he has had to deal with bad publicity and adversity and that is a challenge. But there are signs they are getting back to a balance, although they lost on Saturday. All good leaders will eventually find a solution. I know the guy and I know the work he has done in football and I can’t see it lasting long”.
Jose Mourinho is the most successful manager Chelsea have had during the Roman Abramovich era and Ferguson believes that this weekend’s game against Leicester City will offer the perfect opportunity for the Foxes to put themselves in prime position heading in to the winter break. He said, “This is a big opportunity for them. The way they are playing, they could win the league. They have a challenge now of whether they can go the whole way with this current squad. If I was Claudio Ranieri I would want investment in January”.