It’s a matter of when, not if.
That might be the general consensus surrounding Jose Mourinho and the current turmoil surrounding Chelsea, but one local journalist is claiming that the Blues will indeed dispense with the manager’s services this weekend.
Eurosport’s Dan Levene has suggested that were it not for the upcoming international break, a two-week lay-off that Liverpool used last month to install Jurgen Klopp, Mourinho would have been let go in the wake of Saturday’s defeat by the Merseysiders.
Subsequent claims of growing unrest within the Chelsea dressing-room won’t have helped his cause, but with two games in the next five days the club look set to wait until after Saturday’s Premier League trip to Stoke to bring about a remarkably sudden end to Mourinho’s second spell at the club.
“I hear he could have gone on Sunday,” writes Levene. “But, like previous sackings, Chelsea are choosing their moment. They want an opportunity that minimises the damage caused to the club.
“That means balancing the risk that a Mourinho side increasingly riven with divisions continues to lose games, with a moment to give his replacement the longest possible run-up at a debut match.
“Sense says, discounting a complete disaster against Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday, that the axe will fall after Stoke on Saturday evening.
No ’emergency press conferences’ (as some social media trolls have alluded to), just a simple statement put out via the official club website thanking him for his efforts, but talking about the ‘regrettable’ nature of recent results.
“Lunchtime on Sunday, given previous conduct.”
