While the Harry Redknapps and the Roberto Martinezes of this world will tell you “relegation don’t kill nobody as long as you were seen to be fighting till the last day”, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is experiencing what’s entirely alien to him, and might kill him or everything he’s worked for: a relegation dogfight.
In what is a nightmare of a season, the worst run by a reigning champion unprecedented in Premier League history and Chelsea’s worst ever start, the self-styled Special One has managed Chelsea to just 11 points from 10 games, including 5 losses and more goals conceded than scored, meaning that as champions The Blues have dropped a massive 19 points from the 30 available as we languish a precarious 15th on the table, just 5 points from safety.
That is, if you ask any bookmaker, veteran or historian of the English game, proper relegation form. Worse for a manager who is an absolute novice in fighting relegation.
And after crunching the numbers, you won’t believe that the points total we can hope to finish the season with if we keep our dismal form is 43. Yes, 43 out of the 114 possible which, embarrassingly, isn’t far from the mythical “40- something” points with which guys like Roberto Martinez either saved/couldn’t save Wigan Atletic from relegation few years ago or Harry Redknapp salvaged/took clubs down more than once in the last decade!
With the ‘Special One’ in charge, we are indeed inexplicably finding ourselves in some special company on the league log this term. It’s a whole new experience, isn’t it? And it’s interesting too, as this will really test our fans’ plastic credentials to the core.
On the other hand, Mourinho will do well remembering that this is the sort of terrain his successor, one Avram Grant found himself on twice with Portsmouth and West Ham only to take the unsuspecting clubs down with himself twice, got sacked, remained submerged* for some years only to re-emerge years later as Ghana national football team coach.
In fact, comparing Mourinho`s season to David Moyes’ ill-fated spell at Manchester United shows a worryingly bleak state of affairs and, unfortunately, puts everything in perspective. At the same stage, 10 games in, Moyes’ United who were also reigning champions had six more points than Mourinho’s Chelsea; United finished seventh that season and Moyes got the boot. Is there any stat or trick out there to suggest that Mourinho will do any better? Or even as ‘good’?
Be that as it may, what are our chances? Chances of getting a break, as the Liverpool bin-dippers visit Stamford Bridge this weekend? Is that where the Scousers’ new gaffer Jurgen Klopp would win his first game as Kop boss?
Also, if nothing gives, although it looks like 43 points will be enough to see us keep our Premier League status, how long do you think Mourinho can last if the dark cloud hovering over the club become darker?
(* – On 13 January 2012, Avram Grant was named the new manager of Serbian outfit Partizan Belgrade, after being sacked on 15 May 2011 by West Ham. After guiding Partizan to their fifth consecutive Serbian championship, Grant resigned just five months later on 14 May 2012.)
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