When Mourinho got the Chelsea job the first time around. He strutted into the press room and announced that he was 'The Special One'. He was here to shake things up and make Chelsea champions.
Shake things up he did. Mourinho created a Chelsea v the world mentality. He drilled his team into a game winning machine which he then unleashed to dominate games. Mourinho even piled the pressure on other managers famously called Arsene Wenger a “voyeur”.
Fast forward to his second stint at Stamford Bridge and Mourinho has proclaimed himself “The Happy One”. This is all very well but his Chelsea team seem to be lacking something. They are giving teams a chance. Mourinho seems to be content to live and let live.
The squad seems bloated including players like Tomas Kalas, Marco Van Ginkel and Kevin De Bruyne who are not featuring this season. On top of this Mourinho doesn't seem sure of what is his best team. Does it include Ashley Cole? Does it include Juan Mata? Who should start up front?
There is just a general uncertainty about Chelsea this season. This was evident in the League Cup tie against Sunderland. Chelsea seemed to stand off Sunderland and allow them to grow into the game. In the last half and hour Chelsea allowed Sunderland to build up confidence and begin passing the ball out from the back.
It seemed as if Chelsea felt by creating a number of chances but only scoring once they had done enough and could coast. This attitude was their undoing. The Mourinho of five years ago would never have allowed this to happen.
Furthermore, if it has he would have come out and picked a fight with someone. Blamed the referee or accused the opposition of cheating. These outbursts served a purpose. They allowed Chelsea to create a fortress mentality that turned them into winners. Mourinho hasn't been doing this. He seems to be content to be the 'Happy One'. He should recognise that his management is at his best when he picks a fight and do this promptly.
Previous Mourinho teams would never have allowed themselves to be knocked out by Sunderland.
Source: DSG
