Jose Mourinho Will Reportedly Manage Chelsea from Hotel Room During Stoke Match

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho will reportedly look to get around his stadium ban for the Blues' game with Stoke City on Saturday by communicating with his coaches via mobile phone from a nearby hotel room.

According to the Daily Mail's Sami Mokbel and Adam Shergold for MailOnline, Mourinho will watch the game at the team hotel and could use his mobile phone to contact his colleagues on the touchline at the Britannia Stadium as it will be "virtually impossible" for the Football Association to prevent such communication.

Mourinho said in his pre-match press conference that he will be in charge of substitutions on the day, per the Chelsea Twitter feed:

The Portuguese manager was handed a one-match stadium ban after his half-time confrontation with match officials—which saw him sent to the stands—during Chelsea's 2-1 defeat by West Ham United last month, per Sky Sports. 

The FA detailed the confrontation in a report released on Friday. 

The ban prohibits Mourinho from entering the stadium on matchday or communicating with his staff during the game.

But the FA will struggle to monitor attempts by Mourinho to keep in touch with the Chelsea dugout by phone.

His ability to influence the match as it plays out could be crucial as Mourinho looks to ease the pressure he is under. A midweek 2-1 Champions League win over Dynamo Kiev bought him some time, but another defeat in the Premier League and his job will be under even more threat.

Bleacher Report's Dean Jones has named some potential replacements for Mourinho should he lose his job at Stamford Bridge:

Mourinho's stadium ban has come at a less-than-ideal time for the defending Premier League champions, who lie 15th in the English top flight.

Three of their six league defeats this season have come in their last four matches, most recently a 3-1 home defeat to Liverpool on Oct. 31.

The visit to Stoke is a must-win fixture for the Blues, and it will be a major help for them if Mourinho is able to influence proceedings despite his stadium ban.