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Jose Mourinho blasts Chelsea flops after Porto defeat
JOSE MOURINHO last night blasted his Chelsea flops after they crashed to defeat in Portugal.
Chelsea couldn't find a way to beat Porto
The Blues boss was furious at the way Porto bagged their winner, with Maicon being allowed space to score following a corner.
“For us it's a ridiculous mistake,” he said. “We watch dozens and dozens of repetitions of Porto taking corners.
“I thought we were completely ready for that. And in a moment when the game was under control and we were preparing a change, to concede that goal was like ice in the players.
“The basic thing in football to work at is a defensive set-play. The ball is stopped, you defend the spaces or the man or both. We had another similar mistake (from a corner) when they hit the post.”
Mourinho left strikers Radamel Falcao and Loic Remy at home along with playmaker Oscar and confirmed it was a tactical decision, which he said he did not regret.
“Apart from those two ridiculous mistakes I think the performance was balanced,” he added. “Defensively we had no problems and the defenders played well.”
“Games like today are difficult to analyse because the result doesn't mean you played badly. The big mistakes we made, twice, doesn't mean that the team defended badly.
“When you play a disaster, it's easy to make drastic decisions. When you play like today but don't get a result, it's more difficult.
“So I have to try and find a balance. We have two home matches in the Premier League and need two good results. Good feelings, happiness, self-esteem - the players need that to play.”
Diego Costa leaves the pitch dejectedly after Chelsea failed to beat Porto
Andre Andre put Porto ahead and although Willian equalised with a free-kick, Maicon claimed the winner for the home side in the 52nd minute.
The defeat, coupled with Dynamo Kiev’s 2-0 victory at Macabi Tel Aviv, saw the Blues drop from top to third in Group G and a defeat in Ukraine on October 20 would see their chances of reaching the knockout stage plummet.
It also turned up the heat on Mourinho prior to the visit of Southampton on Saturday.