Jose Mourinho: Chelsea FC Won’t Hit The Panic Button
Jose Mourinho spoke to press in the build-up to Chelsea FC’s clash with Crystal Palace
Ahead of Chelsea FC’s match against Crystal Palace on Saturday, manager Jose Mourinho reminisced on our title winning match last campaign while tackling more current matters in his media conference.
RELATED: Chelsea FC Predicted XI Against Crystal Palace
Chelsea FC clinched the Premier League title against Crystal Palace in a 1-0 win last May. As far as Mourinho is concerned, that was ancient history. The fact of the matter is that Chelsea sit further down the table than they were at any point last season. The Blues have 4 points through 3 matches and would like to see that become 7 after Saturday’s fixture.
Speaking ahead of the Stamford Bridge clash with Alan Pardew’s side, Mourinho made as much clear:
"This is a different match but with the same need to get the three points. Last season was to win the title, this season it is to try to recover positions we lost with two bad results at the opening of the Premier League."
The goal remains the same. Get the 3 points and move onto the next match (which this time comes after the international break). After all, it is only August so there is no need to overcomplicate things.
Chelsea have played a man-down in 2 of their first 3 matches. This is a unique statistic for such a small sample, but something that the manager is cognizant of and wants to prepare for.
"We have worked on a few things on defending in training, such as defending with nine men. We also worked on tactical aspects to improve the team. I didn’t just work the defenders, I worked the team because you have to defend as a team."
This goes to show that The Special One will prepare for the worst, but hope for the best. The law of averages would suggest that Chelsea are due to not have a penalty given against them nor a player be dismissed, but at this point who knows.
More from Premier League
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea player ratings: Abysmal, reckless, wasteful
- Bournemouth 0-0 Chelsea: 3 Blues talking points
- Chelsea vs Bournemouth: 3 things to look out for on the south coast
- Is there cause for concern about Chelsea being in 12th place again?
- Chelsea’s risky youth gamble amidst turbulent times
Chelsea will have to focus especially on tactics in this match as Pardew’s side may come into the Bridge playing for a draw. The Blues will need to work the ball with crisp passes while being tactically efficient. This includes moving the ball quickly and not taking too many touches. It may also require the defenders to be heavily involved if the Blues are to get into open spaces and find the net.
The start to the Chelsea FC Premier League title defense certainly has been far from perfect, but the boss insists that there is no need to panic.
"We know we can improve and are going to improve. This is the Premier League and when you are five points behind the leader in another league, that can be complicated. In the Premier League it is not complicated."
This is a fair point. English top flight football is far too competitive to worry about dropping early points. All of the top sides in the Premier League go through difficult stretches and will inevitably slip up against lower table teams. Chelsea will look to pressure their title rivals into such an error tomorrow afternoon in the club’s first London derby of the season.
All quotes taken from chelseafc.com.
Next: Premier League Picks: Matchday 4