Jose Mourinho was in good spirits as he addressed the press after Chelsea’s big win over Maccabi
Chelsea FC romped to a 4-0 victory over Maccabi Tel-Aviv as they opened their 2015/16 Champions League campaign under the lights of Stamford Bridge. The Blues put in what was undoubtedly their best performance of the season as new faces impressed and established stars found some form. Blues boss Jose Mourinho talked about that winning feeling in the aftermath.
"We hadn’t won a game for so long so it’s a good feeling"
It is a great feeling, especially given the club’s current struggles. Having said that, Chelsea started the game terribly with Eden Hazard encapsulating his form and blasting a penalty over the bar. The good news, though, is that the club bounced back to score four goals. Mourinho commented on the mental fortitude that the team required in the moment.
"The penalty we missed was a big test for us because when everything has gone against you – red cards, penalties against you, decisions, bad luck, injuries – and you start a game you have to win and after five minutes miss a penalty, it’s a great test of the character of the players and the team. It was good we had an extra negative episode and the reaction was very good."
Hazard’s glaring miss was rather forgotten when Chelsea started to hit the back of the net and the Belgian himself seemed to do likewise as he showed glimpses of the player that he can be. The final product was not always there, but Hazard’s performance was certainly encouraging.
Sticking with the topic of wingers, the scorer of the night’s first goal, Willian, will not make Saturday’s clash with Arsenal. There are also doubts over Pedro’s availability. Mourinho, however, was just happy to not have lost the game.
"I can imagine how difficult it would be for for all of us to wake up tomorrow after a defeat, to go to Cobham to train again after a defeat, two days before a derby against Arsenal – so the victory is very important."
If he can imagine, I definitely can’t. The thought of losing to Maccabi and then having to face Arsenal (and in particular Arsene Wenger) sounds more like a nightmare. Chelsea cannot let the Gunners take the victory at Stamford Bridge in a couple of days and the thumping of the Israeli outfit will help prevent such a tragedy.
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The Blues will be weary of reading too much into this victory, though. Maccabi were shocking on the night and anything less than 4-0 could even be regarded as a bit of a disappointment. Chelsea are still in 17th position and 11 points off league-leaders Manchester City. The fact is that dropped points against Arsenal could effectively put the nail in the coffin of their Premier League title challenge. That may sound a bit apocalyptic but it would take something miraculous to turn the tables on City. You can still dream, so yeah do that.
However, a convincing win over Arsene Wenger could propel Chelsea into the run of form that may give way to a miracle. This is the knife-edge situation that the Blues currently find themselves in and there are no two ways about it.
In the meantime, it is good to get that winning feeling back. Onwards!
All quotes taken from chelseafc.com.
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