Well, from what I have seen and what I feel about the subject; no, not really. Jose Mourinho is one of the most important figures in Chelsea history. Across his two spells in charge of the team, he won six trophies, and helped assemble a group of players that would write their own names in the pages of the club’s history. And I think the most important t thing that Mourinho did, as he has done at most of his clubs, was instil a winning mentality. He took a group of players that had not won a single trophy, and made them feel invincible. This was a team that never let their heads drop. They could grind out results and tear teams apart with brilliant passing moves. Built on a solid defensive base, a wonderfully versatile midfield, lightning-fast wide players who could take the team from end to end in a matter of seconds and a central striker who could truly dominate whatever defence he came up against. But that was a very long time ago.
The club is actually in a rather similar position to what it was when Mourinho arrived in the summer of 2004. New owners are wanting to take the club to new heights, are spending a lot of money on new players and have put their faith in a manager not before proven at this level. But outside of the club, the world has changed and this is not 2004 anymore. Jose Mourinho was the up-and-coming manager of European football; one who had pulled off the improbable feat of taking Porto to victory in the Champions League. Chelsea were the new money club of the time, looking to encroach on the duopoly of Manchester United and Arsenal. Both were perfectly poised to disrupt the established order. That is not the case now. Chelsea are well established as a big time club. Their record over the 19 years of Abramovich’s ownership is quite ridiculous. 19 trophies over those 19 years. So, the club is now a very different place than it was nearly 20 years ago. The club and its fans now have an expectation of where it should be. Jose Mourinho also has expectations of where he should be. But he is not the same manager anymore either. His wit and sharp remarks at press conferences in those earlier times have too often seemed like intransigence and bloody-mindedness in recent years. His tactics are not as effective as they used to be. The last league title that Jose Mourinho won was the best part of ten years, funnily enough at Chelsea in the 2014/15 season. The only trophy he has won since the 2017 Europa League with Manchester United is last season’s Europa Conference League with AS Roma. His belief in his abilities may be unwavering but that is most definitely not the view of most football fans these days.
Chelsea fans have an awful lot to be thankful to Jose Mourinho for. He was the man who took the club by the reins and steered them into their most successful period ever. But the Boehly-Clearlake ownership are looking to do something different. They want the success that Mourinho helped bring to the club, but not the upheaval that so often comes when Jose Mourinho walks through the door.
Eat, Sleep, Blog, Repeat 