The Jose Mourinho Effect: A Look Back

It’s been quite an interesting season at Stamford Bridge, wouldn’t you say?

Scandals, transfer rumors, and in-house bust-ups have plagued Chelsea’s quest for a league championship and continental prestige.

And Jose Mourinho was the one to take the fall. 

Taking charge of a club in the English Premier League is no easy task—especially given the endless pressure from media and fans.

In the English football world, a manager's every move is questioned by the press.

In Mourinho’s case, they never missed a beat.

Mourinho left his native Portugal after winning the UEFA Champions League Trophy with Porto Football Club in 2003. He took over a Chelsea side in desperate need of a championship—and worked his magic in bringing the West London club trophy after trophy.

But it was more than just success that brought Mourinho attention.

After all, who could forget his first press conference as Chelsea’s new manager in 2004?

When asked about taking over at Stamford Bridge, Mourinho responded rather confidently:

“I’m not a defender of old or new football managers. I believe in good ones and bad ones, those that achieve success and those that don’t. Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one.”

And with that, the media circus began.

Known to be brash and perhaps arrogant, Mourinho wasn’t the most endearing manager to interview. He didn’t care about what others thought of him.

He was, simply stated, a man of truth and controversy.

His dominating Chelsea sides matched Mourinho’s confident personality. There were days when Chelsea seemed absolutely unbeatable. The club's undefeated record at home speaks volumes of Mourinho's managerial ability.

That said, Mourinho’s tactics brought him his fair share of criticism—mostly from detractors who called Chelsea's style boring.

Not surprisingly, Mourinho hit back at his critics.

“Look, we’re not entertaining? I don’t care; we win.”

He was right.

“The Special One” didn’t become the world’s highest paid manager by “entertaining” the crowd. He was paid to win football matches. Unfortunately for Mourinho, though, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich seemed to agree with the medial.

The result was an ugly power struggle between the owner and the manager, with the former pressuring the latter to bring a more appealing brand of football to the Bridge.

The fight played havoc with the Chelsea roster. 

William Gallas was swapped for Ashley Cole at the transfer window deadline—against Mourinho’s objection. Andrei Shevchenko and Michael Ballack were also brought in—despite the fact that neither fit Mourinho’s system.

The changes forced the managed to use a 4-1-3-2 formation instead of his traditional 4-3-3. As a result, Chelsea fell short of their domestic and continental ambitions in the '06-'07 season.

When asked to comment on Abramovich, Mourinho made himself clear.

“If Roman Abramovich helped me out in training we would be bottom of the league and if I had to work in his world of big business, we would be bankrupt!”

No longer willing to work under such tension and scrutiny, Jose Mourinho unexpectedly left Stamford Bridge by “mutual consent” on September 20th, 2007. Acting quickly, the Chelsea board of directors appointed Avram Grant as manager of the club.

That move left Chelsea fans to scratch their heads and protest in anger.

A month later, Chelsea aren't exactly at the bottom of the league, but the departure of the “Special One” has left an aura of uncertainty.

The club's morale is at an all-time low. The players had a strong allegiance to Mourinho and his staff. Politics had gotten in the way of producing on the football field.

Didier Drogba, for one, was quoted by France Football magazine as saying that he would leave Chelsea at season’s end.

"I want to leave Chelsea. Something is broken with Chelsea," said Drogba. "The damage is big in the dressing room."

"Nothing can stop me from leaving now," he said.

When asked about the impact Mourinho had on the football club, Drogba didn’t hide his emotions very well.

"There was a real family spirit in the camp. We could say anything to one another. That was our strength.

"Many of us used to play first and foremost for the manager. Now we need to forget those feelings and find another source of motivation."

While Drogba later retracted his statement, his point stood:

The boys in blue are no longer in harmony.

Florent Malouda was even quoted as saying that he felt like an “orphan” after Mourinho left the club:

“[Mourinho]’s departure saddened me. A lot. For a while I even was very, very upset. He is the one who signed me and trusted me. I respect him a lot. But as a player, I need to respect the decision which has been made, try to forget about it and get back to work and be good on the pitch. What has been the most disturbing is the way Mourinho left his position and how I've been informed about it.”

The fact is that Mourinho meant more to the Chelsea players than one would like to think. He was like a father to them. He helped the boys grow into men.

Despite their recent success, one has to wonder where Chelsea is headed. If Abramovich truly believes that the coaching combination of Henk Ten Cate, Steve Clarke, and Avram Grant will match Mourinho’s success, he might just be running Chelsea into the ground.

In any event, one thing's for certain:

Anyone who follows Mourinho has some might big shoes to fill.