Mourinho lets the truth slip out

Most of the time you have to take whatever Jose Mourinho says in public with a great deal of skepticism, such is the Portuguese manager’s reputation for playing games in the media. This was not one of those times. Instead, it was a rare instance of Mourinho letting his guard down and speaking without a filter. In doing so, he let the truth slip out. “It was the best Chelsea performance of the season, against a dangerous team,” Mourinho said of Chelsea’s goal-less draw away to Tottenham on Sunday.

It’s says a lot about how poor Chelsea have been that Mourinho called this stalemate at White Hart Lane the best performance of the season. It was a shocking admission from a man noted for putting a spin on things, and for crying foul and conspiracy when results don’t go his way. It was a third clean sheet in a row for the Blues, who leaked goals to begin the campaign. That’s a positive. But they created very little with Eden Hazard deployed as a false nine, and hardly imposed their will on the game.

“I think Chelsea will be happy with the point. It is more important to them than us,” Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino said. An expression of pity from an opponent—this is what it’s come to with Chelsea. Teams used to fear Chelsea. Now they feel sorry for them. Pochettino was bang on with his assessment, a further indication of how far the reigning league champions have fallen and how much work is ahead of them—Chelsea sits 14th in the table, and 12 points out of a top four spot.