Jose Mourinho parted company with Chelsea FC last week after a disastrous start to their campaign that saw the defending champions lose nine out of their opening 16 matches and the club’s technical director referred to a ‘palpable discord between the manager and players’ as one of the reasons for Mourinho’s sacking. However, Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic has played down speculation regarding his fallout with the Portuguese manager.
Matic was one of the players who were rumoured to have had a rift with the manager which led to dressing room unrest. The rumours started spreading when key players like Matic, Eden Hazard, Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa failed to replicate the form that they displayed last season which helped Chelsea win their fourth Premier League title.
Matic claims reports of rift were false
Talking to a Serbian publication Mondo at a ceremony where he was named the Best Serbian player in 2015, the 27-year-old Chelsea star said, “I've worked with Mourinho for two beautiful years, so that means for me he is always linked with good memories.
“I have read several times that I had a bad relationship with him, but it is likely to have been written by some idiots. I commented with Mourinho about these allegations, we just laughed.
“I tried hard at every training session, at every match and he respected it. That's why I think the journalist who wrote about me not wanting to play for him is a real idiot.”
Chelsea still have time to salvage season: Matic
Guus Hiddink was appointed as the interim manager at Chelsea following Mourinho’s exit, and he is no stranger to the club. He had led Chelsea to FA Cup glory in 2009 and Matic believes they still have time to turn the tide saying, “There's still a lot to play, I hope we will be able to save the season.
“He (Hiddink) is an experienced professional who has already worked at the club, knows the people, knows the mentality, so I expect we will be able to get good results with him.”
After their victory over Sunderland, Chelsea find themselves 15th in the table, 11 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur and 20 points behind league leaders Leicester City. They have qualified for the knockout stage of the Champions league as group winners and will face Paris Saint-Germain in the Round of 16.
“You know that we are in a precarious position in the Premier League,” he added. “In the Champions League, we are really good – we finished first in the group. We drew the strongest opponents, but you never know. We'll see what we can do.”
