Jose Mourinho has been sacked by Chelsea after a meeting with the club's hierarchy on Thursday, according to reports.
The 52-year-old, who guided Chelsea to the Premier League title last season, ends his second stint at Stamford Bridge with the team languishing in 16th place in the Premier League, registering just 15 points from 16 games.
Mourinho had been rewarded for last season's title success with a new four-year contract worth £30 million, which was signed in August.
He leaves with Chelsea just a point off the relegation zone and 20 points behind Leicester.
Champions League qualification via one of the top four spots in the Premier League looks highly unlikely.
However, the Blues are through to the last 16 of European football's biggest club competition, where they will face French champions Paris St-Germain in February and March.
Mourinho only signed a new four-year contract on 7 August and is Chelsea's most successful manager.
He won three Premier League titles, two of those in his first spell between 2004 and 2007.
The Portuguese has also won the FA Cup, in 2007, and the League Cup three times - in 2005, 2007 and 2015.
Troubles on and off the pitch
The incident that led to the dispute between Carneiro and Mourinho
t only gone wrong in the Premier League for Mourinho, he has also had his issues off the pitch.
A 2-2 draw with Swansea on 8 August was overshadowed by a fallout with his medical team, in particular club doctor Eva Carneiro.
Carneiro had her role downgraded after Mourinho said his medical staff were "naive" for running onto the pitch to treat attacking midfielder Eden Hazard.
She eventually left on 22 September and is now taking legal action against Mourinho and the Blues.
Mourinho also received a suspended stadium ban and £50,000 fine for claiming referees were "afraid" to award his team penalties in a 3-1 home loss to Southampton in October.
He subsequently had to serve a one-match stadium ban and pay a £40,000 fine for his behaviour during a 2-1 defeat by West Ham, when he spoke to referee Jon Moss at half-time.
What now for Mourinho?
It is unlikely he will be out of management for long, given his record of success at Chelsea and other top European clubs.
He guided Porto and Inter Milan to Champions League glory in 2004 and 2010 respectively, then led Real Madrid to the Spanish La Liga title in 2012.
At 52, he is still some way from retirement age, but he has expressed a wish to coach the English and Portuguese national sides at some stage in his career.
In fact, he claimed he turned down the chance to become England boss when Steve McClaren was sacked in 2007.
Mourinho has a proven track record of bringing success over the short-term but doubts will remain over his ability to build a dynasty.
(BBC)
Post a Comment
Post a Comment