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Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has admitted that he was furious with his medical staff who ran out to attend to Eden Hazard’s injury during Chelsea’s 2-2 draw against Swansea in their Premier League opener against Swansea.
The defending English champions didn’t have the best of starts following an under par pre-season which also included a 1-0 Community Shield defeat against Arsenal. And a rusty opening fixture was a further setback as they failed to grab all three points.
Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was sent off during the second half which reduced Chelsea to 10-men for the rest of the game. However, already short of a man, the medical staff rushed onto the field to treat Hazard after the Belgian went down following a tackle from by Gylfi Sigurdsson, but the injury didn’t seem to be that concerning.
And Mourinho was unhappy about how his team of doctors, especially physio Eva Carneiro, handled the situation when his side found it difficult to cope with Swansea’s extra man. Talking to Sky Sports, the Portuguese said, "I was unhappy with my medical staff. They were impulsive and naive."
"Whether you are a kit man, doctor or secretary on the bench you have to understand the game.
"You have to know you have one player less and to assist a player you must be sure he has a serious problem. I was sure Eden did not have a serious problem. He had a knock. He was tired."
‘Swansea didn’t have chances against 11 men’
Chelsea started the game with Diego Costa up front while Courtois, despite of an injury scare during warm up, was included for the fixture. The Premier League champions commenced in style as Oscar’s freekick gave them the lead before Swansea debutant, Andre Ayew, equalised to level the scoreline. The score, however, changed in favour of the Blues just 95 seconds later as defender Federico Fernandez’s error resulted in an own goal which put Chelsea back in the lead.
But in the 52nd minute, goalkeeper Courtois was given his marching orders after he brought Swansea forward Bafetimbi Gomis down on the edge of the 18-yard-box. New recruit Asmir Begovic was brought in from the bench as Chelsea continued the rest of the half with 10-men.
Regarding Courtois’ sending off, Mourinho refrained from making any comments on the incident.
"I don't want to talk about it," the former Real Madrid manager said about the officials. "Swansea didn't have chances against 11 men. The team was playing very, very well in the first half.
"In one minute, it was a penalty, red card and the goal.
"If you have 10 men and are winning you can defend well and try to find a strategy but to play with 10 men and try to win the game is more difficult. I would say we were the best team with 11 players and with 10 we fought hard, some fighting at the limit of their condition," he added.
Chelsea travel to the Etihad stadium next week as they take on title contenders Manchester City in their second game on August 16.
