Stoke City 1-0 Chelsea: 5 Talking Points

Marko Arnautovic scored the winner in the second half to condemn Chelsea to yet another defeatChelsea continued their disappointing form with a 1-0 defeat to Stoke City at the Britannia stadium on Saturday night. Marco Arnautovic was on target for the home side as Jose Mourinho’s men suffered their seventh defeat of their Premier League campaign.Before the game, you could sense that Chelsea will be targeted by Stoke City as they look to come out of their slump in form. But a midweek win against Dynamo Kiev was also not enough to bring the Blues’ back on track. Whereas, for opposition manager, Mark Hughes, it was a great morale boosting victory as he continued his good record against his former club.We analyse the five major talking points from the game at the Britannia stadium.

#1 Chelsea suffer their 7th defeat in the EPL

The defeat to Stoke City was the seventh in their first 12 Premier League matches for the Blues. It is the first time any defending champions have struggled so badly, as well as a personal unwanted record number of defeats in a league season for Mourinho.

The last time Chelsea lost so many games so early in the campaign was in 1978/79 – they ended up being relegated. And although they may not suffer that same fate this term, they are now 16th in the table, just three points clear of the bottom three.

1 - Only one side in PL history has finished in the top 6 having taken 11 points or fewer from their 1st 12 games – Villa in 03/04. Uphill.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 7, 2015

Chelsea now have just 11 points from the first 12 games of the season. They now have a goal difference of -7. The main area of concern is their defence. They have now conceded 23 goals in the 12 games in the Premier League, which is the joint third worst in the division. Also, the Blues have only managed to score 16 goals this campaign.

0 - Chelsea have kept no clean sheets in their last eight away Premier League games. Creaking.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 7, 2015

Marko Arnautovic's acrobatic goal ultimately proved the difference, as the Austrian forward scored with an excellent finish after 53 minutes to give the Blues more blues.

#2 Jack Butland is England class

Asmir Begovic's presence in Chelsea's goal was proof of just how highly Stoke City manager Mark Hughes rated his deputy Jack Butland. Hughes was comfortable accepting Chelsea's £8 million offer for Begovic in the summer because he knew he had a replacement of real quality in the 22-year-old.

And, as he has all season, Butland showed exactly why Hughes felt it was time to make him Stoke City's first-choice keeper with yet another impressive display. Butland showed great agility to stretch to tip over a dipping drive from Ramires in the first half, as well as blocking an angled drive from Diego Costa with his legs.

He has been given a taste of England action and with friendlies coming up against Spain in Alicante on Friday, 13 November and France at Wembley the following Tuesday, he should get further opportunities to ensure the goalkeeping position behind Joe Hart is in safe hands.

#3 Was Mourinho missed?

Jose Mourinho wasn’t there but he was there. Mourinho was banned for his rant at referee Jon Moss two weeks ago, but his presence was everywhere. The Portuguese boss was present in some form as hundreds of Chelsea fans wore masks bearing the image of their manager to compensate for his absence and chanted his name loudly.

As Mourinho watched events unfold from Chelsea's team hotel, his trusted lieutenants took charge in his absence. Steve Holland was first out into the technical area giving instructions before the combustible Rui Faria took his turn – until the pair were out together directing operations. Little was seen of Silvino Louro, who stayed in his seat while Faria made notes and Holland was seen with his iPad as Chelsea fought to salvage something from the game.

With their manager banned from being in attendance, Chelsea played with real attacking verve in the first half without finding the final product and chased an equaliser with real determination. This was not a team lacking effort or seemingly at odds with their manager – this was a game where they deserved a point but were unable to find the moment that made the difference.

And, as they did during the Champions League win against Dynamo Kiev, Chelsea's fans made it clear they are still right behind their manager. As the game entered its final seconds, the section of the Britannia housing Chelsea's supporters echoed to Mourinho's name once more. They clearly want ‘The Special One’ to guide them out of this current crisis.

#4 Stoke City look impressive

Mark Hughes was left mystified as his side made a slow start to the season, but this result means they have only lost once in nine games. The win moved Stoke up to 12th, sandwiched between West Brom and Watford. They were completely outplayed at times but dug in for a fine win against a Chelsea team that put in one of its better performances of the season, but were still beaten.

The Stoke boss will be eyeing another top-10 Premier League finish after Chelsea left The Potteries beaten for the second time inside a fortnight, following their defeat on penalties in the Capital One Cup. Backed by fervent support inside one of the Premier League's most atmospheric arenas, Stoke showed trademark determination and resilience to keep Chelsea at bay in the first half before mixing real purpose and defensive solidity to carve out the win.

Hughes had a tough act to follow to build on what Tony Pulis left behind at Stoke. But now, in his third season, this is very much his team and – the blip of that defeat at home to Watford apart – they are now back to their best.

After adding the flourishes of £12 million record signing Xherdan Shaqiri to Stoke's concrete-clad willpower and the results have been impressive.

#5 Will Jose Mourinho be the next manager to be sacked?

Jose Mourinho's troubles increased in his absence with the Chelsea manager powerless because of a stadium ban as his Premier League champions slumped to another damaging defeat at Stoke City. And so it goes on. The season from hell for Chelsea twists and turns ever downwards.

Defeats follow defeats and nothing they can do seems to make the slightest difference. An international break looms, the traditional sacking window for Premier League owners and Jose Mourinho will have to wait to see whether Roman Abramovich considers him fit to continue when the action resumes.

7 - Jose Mourinho has lost seven league games in a campaign for the first time as a manager. Humbled.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 7, 2015

Mourinho will have been cursing Chelsea's luck as they probably deserved at least a point. Pedro had hit the post and Loic Remy stumbled as he went around Stoke City's outstanding keeper Jack Butland – with penalty appeals rightly ignored by referee Anthony Taylor.

But the real question throughout the closing stages of the match was whether Mourinho would be back in the technical area for the home game against Norwich City on 21 November. Does he have the fight to somehow guide his side away from the bottom end of the table?

Or will it be a new manager for Chelsea with the Russian losing his patience with the Portuguese boss?