Jose Mourinho, Cesc Fabregas and Branislav Ivanovic Slammed by Paul Parker

Former England international Paul Parker has slammed Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho and players Cesc Fabregas and Branislav Ivanovic as the club's crisis continues.

The 51-year-old, who played for the Blues in a very brief spell in 1997, wrote for Eurosport stating that he believes the Portuguese manager is trying to provoke the club into firing him:

"I think you can tell he is already looking to move on from Chelsea. He has lost a few games and I don’t think he fancies the battle at Stamford Bridge."

Parker added that Mourinho won't resign from his position thanks to the "huge pay-off" he'll receive for being sacked and pulled no punches in his assessment of his capabilities as a coach:

"He isn’t a great tactician and always plays the same way whichever club he is at. He wants clones and robots, and breeds negativity."

Scott Heppell/Associated Press

The former defender was particularly critical of Mourinho's impact on the standing of the club, believing him to have a highly damaging effect on the Blues' global popularity:

"

Mourinho is a terrible front-man for a club. Chelsea are not going to be anyone’s second team—not to the degree that Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham or Liverpool are...

I think a good number of Chelsea fans will be embarrassed by what Mourinho said in his rant.

"

The situation is certainly one the boss is not used to dealing with. The Blues are currently 16th in the Premier League table and have already shipped 17 goals—the same as bottom-of-the-table Newcastle United, who were hit for six on Saturday by Manchester City.

Mourinho has otherwise had overwhelming success in his career everywhere he's gone, so his complete lack of experience in dealing with troubling situations has so far seen him struggle to reignite his ailing side.

Given his incredible trophy record, being sacked or quitting Chelsea is unlikely to prevent him from finding work at another elite club when the opportunity comes along.

If Chelsea dismiss him, he can show that he tried to stay at the club to fix things and was simply yet another victim of owner Roman Abramovich's trigger-happy regime. If he quits he could be seen as a coach who abandons ship at the first sign of trouble.

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Parker is certainly correct in his assertion that Mourinho's controversial antics—such as his treatment of club doctor Eva Carneiro—are something of a PR nightmare, though many Chelsea fans are unlikely to care too much how popular the club is in Asia.

Indeed, some may even revel in the siege mentality Mourinho creates wherever he goes.

Parker also reserved criticism for two of the Blues' biggest under-performers this season—no mean feat given how abject they've been—Fabregas and Ivanovic:

"

Fabregas didn’t track back for the first goal [against Southampton] and he has been playing badly so you would take him off straightaway... We know Fabregas shouldn’t be playing regularly. We know Branislav Ivanovic shouldn’t be playing regularly and certainly shouldn’t have that armband on his arm. His discipline is awful and he isn’t a leader of men.

"

The Spaniard has drawn a huge amount of criticism for his performances this season, in which he is yet to score a league goal and has made just one assist. Bleacher Report UK demonstrate the kind of reaction he's had from fans:

Likewise, Ivanovic has looked a shadow of his former self.

In September, WhoScored.com demonstrated his severe decline in form, and things haven't improved since:

The Guardian's Sachin Nakrani gave his thoughts on the beleaguered defender:

The difficulty in dropping Fabregas is the lack of depth in Chelsea's squad, meaning the only senior alternatives are the uninspiring Ramires and John Obi Mikel.

Ivanovic's continued appearances are somewhat baffling, though, as summer signing Baba Rahman's presence would allow Mourinho to move Cesar Azpilicueta to right-back.

The pair are just two of many who have failed to make the grade, though, so it will take more than just dropping one or both of them for the manager to turn things around.

Mourinho's trophy record is almost unrivalled, but he now needs to show his qualities in saving a team devoid of ideas or confidence.