Rui Faria and Steve Holland will stand in for the absent Chelsea manager.
Jose Mourinho will not be allowed within the grounds of the Britannia stadium this afternoon as his Chelsea FC side take on Stoke City in a Premier League clash. The Portuguese will be serving a one-game stadium ban handed to him following a verbal exchange with Jon Moss during the West Ham fixture two weeks ago.
With Mourinho prohibited from even being in the dressing room, let alone in the stands or the dugout, Chelsea will be in the hands of their first-team coaching staff as the match unfolds. Speaking with the media ahead of the game, the boss emphasised the complete faith that he has in coaches Rui Faria and Steve Holland to guide the Blues to victory.
"We have worked together for a long time, with Rui Faria 15 years, with Steve Holland three years, so they understand me and they know how I think. Even on the bench I normally sit between both, so I speak with both, they understand what I’m thinking, they understand my vision, they understand my decisions, so they are fine."
Despite his words, Mourinho will be hoping that Faria’s aggressive side does not rear its head. The manager’s fellow countryman was handed a four-game stadium ban (reduced from six upon appeal) after an ugly outburst at referee Mike Dean during Chelsea’s clash with Sunderland last year.
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The official awarded the Black Cats a penalty that was converted in the 82nd minute to hand the visitors a 2-1 victory. This would further hurt Chelsea’s chances of capturing the 2013/14 Premier League title. Faria had to be restrained by Mourinho and other coaching staff as Dean sent him to the stands (video at the bottom).
Having said that, there has been little sign of similar volatile behaviour since and a repeat of such an incident later today would only indicate a person of dire professionalism.
Mourinho has suitably prepared his staff to deal with various scenarios during the 90 minutes, but he states that the combined experience of the coaches and the players will adequately dictate the in-game responses.
"It’s an accumulation of experiences we are having together…Even the players on the pitch know more or less when things are going in a certain direction, what is going to happen next. Many times before the substitutes’ board goes up they know already basically what you are going to do."
Coming off an inspiring Champions League win against Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday evening, the Blues fans will be hoping that their club can capitalise and put together consecutive victories.
Next: Chelsea FC Predicted Line-Up To Face Stoke City
Mourinho made a special effort to thank the fans for their incredible support during these tough times, but continued improvement will need to be shown in order to keep them on his side.
All quotes taken from chelseafc.com.