Dietmar Hamann Slams Jose Mourinho's Handling of Eden Hazard, Chelsea Stars

Former footballer Dietmar Hamann believes Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is "begging for the sack" and criticised his treatment of players such as Eden Hazard and John Terry.

According to talkSPORT's Ian Cruise, the pundit told the Colin Murray Show:

"Some of the stuff he is coming out with at the moment and over recent weeks is not far from a meltdown. It’s John Carver-esque. I don’t know what’s going on with the owner and what the circumstances are, but to me at times it looks like he’s begging for the sack."

Following the Blues' 3-1 home defeat to Southampton, Mourinho was asked his opinion on his side's performance, and he proceeded to embark on an incredible seven-minute rant in which he virtually challenged the club's board to sack him and blamed refereeing decisions for their current predicament.

He did the latter again following their 0-0 draw with Dynamo Kiev on Tuesday, per BT Sport Football:

To be compared with former Newcastle United manager John Carver is a damning indictment—the man who, according to BBC Sport, claimed to be "the best coach in the Premier League" despite winning just three matches with the Magpies in 20 games in charge.

Hamann also believes the Special One has shown poor man-management this season, such as his decision to bring Hazard on from the bench late in their 2-0 win over Aston Villa with victory already assured:

"

The thing that worries me about Chelsea is that he seems to be falling out with all the players. If you want to get a reaction from a player and you put him on the bench like he did with Hazard the other day, it’s not a problem. But you don’t bring him on in the 89th minute to humiliate him and embarrass him even further.

"

Football journalist Rafael Hernandez believes Mourinho might be more of a hindrance than a help to Chelsea in the long run at this point:

The German also cited his criticism of Branislav Ivanovic and treatment of Terry, claiming he "humiliated" his captain for hauling him off at half-time against Manchester City—the first time he had ever substituted him in his two reigns as manager.

On Terry, he added the former England captain should have been given more respect having been "the heart of that Chelsea team for the past 15 years."

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Mourinho's decision to take off Nemanja Matic just 29 minutes after bringing him on against the Saints also stands out among the manager's questionable decisions this season.

The 2-0 win over Villa may have eased some pressure, but equally, their failure to beat Dynamo Kiev shows they're nowhere near out of the woods yet.

A possible cause for Mourinho's—and Chelsea's—continued struggles is that he has never been in such a difficult situation before, and his inexperience in revitalising their form and morale is showing as his comments demonstrate.

Of course, the players—many of whom also haven't faced such troubling times—also need to take responsibility for their lack of form, but Mourinho's decisions and comments can hardly have helped.

As the saying goes, pride comes before a fall. Mourinho comes over as a proud man indeed, and if he lets his pride prevent him from changing his treatment of the players for the better, his days at Stamford Bridge could well be numbered.

The in-form West Ham United and Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool loom on the horizon for the Blues, so they'll need to seriously improve to avoid their season going from bad to worse.