John Terry has offered a defence of his manager Jose Mourinho in the wake of Chelsea’s worst start to a top flight campaign since 1978 – 1979 when a win was only worth two points rather than three.
The Blues’ captain, speaking in the aftermath of the club’s second home league defeat of the season, said, “If anyone is going to get us out of this hole it is going to be Jose Mourinho. We have the best manager, who we remain behind, and we remain together”.
Southampton came from behind to score three against Chelsea, meaning they have now lost four of their eight Premier League games and sit in sixteenth place in the league on eight points after eight games.
Terry’s comments appear to put to bed the idea that there is a rift between the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ and some of his playing staff, with Terry himself having been substituted in the defending Premier League champion’s game against Manchester City and named in the starting line up for only the second time in the last six matches in all competitions against the Saints.
The former England captain said, “We are looking low on confidence. But we have a big group of players in that dressing room and we need to stand up, which we will do. We must win at home to Aston Villa after the international break, which is maybe a good opportunity for players to go away and clear their heads and come back after that and really kick on. Once you can get one win you build on that”.
Mourinho has won the title for Chelsea three times over six seasons in charge at the club during two different spells and said after the match, “If the club want to sack me they have to sack me because I am not running away from my responsibilities or my team”.