Storyline: It’s determination time for Mourinho. Written by Craig Simpkin, London. Find news and views at BetAdvisor.com.
“And now the end is near, and so I face my final curtain,” Frank Sinatra sang. And whilst Jose Mourinho has certainly done things his way in his second spell at Stamford Bridge, it would appear he is living on severely borrowed time in the Chelsea hot seat.
A 1-3 defeat to Liverpool on Saturday was the club’s sixth loss in eleven Premier League games – more than they suffered the whole of last season when they marched to the title. Naturally the pressure is on the Special One to turn things around immediately.
As if the poor form of his team wasn’t enough, Mourinho is currently enduring a host of disciplinary problems. He has been fined a combined €125,000 for two separate offences relating to abuse of match officials, and he’s now set to face a one-match stadium ban for hi aggressive attitude. Combine that with the legal battle the club is set to be embroiled in with former physio, Eva Carneiro, who is seeking damages for constructive dismissal. It’s no wonder that Mourinho is walking around with a constant headache at the moment.
The players are taking the brunt of the Portuguese manager’s wrath at the moment. He has already fielded five different defensive combinations in a bid to find a winning formula. Eden Hazard, the team’s standout performer, has been dropped to the bench (something he is said to be furious about), whilst Cesc Fabregas has publicly had to deny that he is the ringleader of a dressing room coup against the manager.
Kiev Crunch
Taking all these things into consideration, Wednesday night’s Champions League encounter against Dynamo Kiev is clearly one of huge importance for Chelsea and Jose Mourinho. Defeat – with the likes of Fabio Capello and Carlo Ancelotti watching on – would likely spell the end of his time at the club; hence his price at the bookies of 1.30 to be the next EPL manager to leave their post.
Winning the Champions League might be the only way in which Chelsea can qualify for next year’s competition – they currently sit ten points behind Manchester United, a team that occupies the last Champions League qualification place in the Premier League table–a full 14 points behind leaders Man City. It would be the first time since 2003 that the Blues have missed out on a spot in European football’s flagship tournament.
The bad news for Chelsea – and Mourinho – is that Dynamo Kiev will be no pushovers come Wednesday night. The Ukrainians are joint leaders in their domestic division, and have managed to keep four clean sheets in their last five games. Indeed, they have conceded just five goals in 12 league encounters.
This is not a team made up of superstars, by any means. Andriy Yarmolenko, Nico Kranjcar and Miguel Veloso are probably the most familiar names to many, but they are well organised and drilled by former Tottenham striker Sergi Rebrov. Their performances in the Champions League have been impressive – a 2-2 draw with Group G leaders FC Porto backed by a win in Tel Aviv and a point on home soil against Chelsea last time out.
On paper at least, Mourinho’s men are the better team, and should have more than enough to claim the three points on their own patch. But there are scars of defeat hanging over these players at the moment, and that fear could well show itself in this must win game.
Points Make Prizes
In the reverse fixture, it was Chelsea who dominated the game, hitting the bar and post, and having a strong penalty appeal from Fabregas turned down. If they can play with such intensity at Stamford Bridge then they should have enough to win the game.
There is, perhaps, value in their odds of 1.75 to win, then; and if they do they will be in pole position to qualify from Group G, most likely as runners-up behind Porto. By that logic, their odds of finishing second in the group – 2.10 – looks fantastic value.
If they don’t manage to beat Kiev, then the Ukrainian side will be fancied to see the job through, although the group will probably be decided by how these two teams fare in their respective games against Porto. Chelsea host the Portuguese title holders at home, whilst Kiev would have to travel to Estádio do Dragão. Advantage Mourinho, then.
Defeat though would all but spell the end of Chelsea’s Champions League campaign this year: with Mourinho the likely fall guy for such failure.
