Jose Mourinho’s second spell as Chelsea boss appears to be close to an end as owner Roman Abramovich led discussions about his position with the Blues’ board of directors on Wednesday.
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Defeat at Leicester City on Monday night left the defending champions just a point above the relegation zone in 16th place and it is not clear whether Mourinho will be in charge for Saturday’s home game with fellow strugglers Sunderland.
The Blues have been beaten nine times already in the Premier League, with hopes of finishing in the top four looking remote at best, and it’s thought the club have started to draw up a contingency plan in the event of Mourinho’s dismissal.
A campaign which began with defeat in the FA Community Shield against Arsenal and a lacklustre 2-2 home draw with Swansea has lurched from one drama to another, following the controversy over the treatment of club doctor Eva Carneiro to reported fall-outs with the likes of Diego Costa and Eden Hazard.
In the wake of Monday night’s latest capitulation, Mourinho said he felt his “work was betrayed” by the players not following directions on how to nullify the Foxes’ attack, with Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez both on target in the 2-1 victory at the King Power Stadium.
In October, Chelsea took the unprecedented step of issuing a statement of the club’s “full support” behind Mourinho, but accepted “results have not been good enough and the team’s performances must improve”.
The Portuguese coach, though, has now presided over the west London club’s worst start to a season since 1978, at the end of which they were relegated.
Abramovich continues to hold regular conversations with the board and technical director Michael Emenalo over the best course of action to arrest the team’s alarming slump in form and weigh up how long they can afford to wait for improvement.
Mourinho, who returned to take charge at Stamford Bridge in 2013, penned a new four-year deal in the summer and despite the team’s domestic problems, did secure qualification for the last 16 of the Champions League where Chelsea play Paris Saint-Germain again.
Should Chelsea decide to make a change, then it is understood the terms of any severance package would be likely to follow previous models where the former manager would continue to be paid until he found another job or to the end of the contract period, which was an option taken up by Roberto Di Matteo following his departure in November 2012.
The likes of Pep Guardiola, Diego Simeone and Antonio Conte, as well as former Tottenham manager Juande Ramos, have all been touted as potential successors, although an interim appointment would perhaps be more likely as a stop-gap until the end of the season, with options such as former managers Carlo Ancelotti and Guus Hiddink.
Should results go against Chelsea this weekend, then the west London club could end up in the bottom three for Christmas.
Defender Gary Cahill, though, maintains the players have what it takes to improve their standing.
“Last season was fantastic, this season has been tough, but we’re looking to turn that around. We’re working hard to make things right,” Cahill said. “When things aren’t going well, you work even harder. I’m sure we’ll turn it around.”
