. . . . . . The Daily Soccer . . . . . .

Why is Jose Mourinho such a sore loser? His behavior after the Barcelona match at Nou Camp bordered on the ridiculous. Was he so competitive that he couldn’t admit that Barca simply were the superior side? He kept pointing to the fact that when it was 11 on 11 vs. Barca over the last two years in CL competition, the teams were even. Perhaps he could say that last year, but Chelsea’s goal at the end of the last match was a gift penalty. By that time, Barca had totally outclassed them. In fact, after the own goal by Barca had put Chelsea up 1-0 at Stamford Bridge, the Catalans kicked it up to a different gear that the Blues had no answer for. Jack Nicklaus used to say that if you don’t give your opponent credit for their victory, you make it seem like beating you is not an accomplishment. Mourinho’s behavior in defeat made Sir Alex Ferguson seem downright cuddly.

What happens to the Chelsea team after this year? While they’ll win their second EPL title going away, you can’t help but feel like they’ve underachieved this year, especially since they didn’t even make it to the CL quarterfinals. To be fair to them, they were given a very difficult match-up for the 2nd year in a row by having to play Barca so early in the competition, but isn’t that what Champions League is all about? They seem to have run into the same problem each year in Europe’s highest club competition, a lack of creativity and ability to produce goals against a high-quality side. While they have shuffled the deck up front by bringing in Crespo back in this year, it has not solved the problem.

While last year Chelsea had the look of a juggernaut, this year they seem to be more going through the motions. Their defense is not nearly impenetrable as it was last year as they seem to suffer more breakdowns and lapses in concentration. Some recent examples of this is the drubbing that Boro gave them last month at the Riverside as well as that they let Fulham come back from a two goal deficit on Boxing Day at the Bridge before being rescued by a brilliant Crespo goal. Even rock-solid players like Lampard and Terry have struggled with uneven performances this year. Aside from Joe Cole, no one has seemed to thrive at Chelsea lately. Not to mention the ridiculous play-acting that Drogba and Robben have been engaging in lately.

When you see things occurring like this and you notice players starting to gripe about lack of playing time, you have to wonder if Mourinho hasn’t worn out his welcome. In some ways, they don’t even appear to have the team unity that was so evident last year. Notwithstanding the team mobbing William Gallas over his cracking goal vs. Tottenham this past weekend, I still think they look like a joyless team when they are out on the pitch (perhaps they need a visit from Eric Catona to remind them what this game is all about!).

While I’m sure that most of the players are extremely happy each time they look at their paycheck, many of them are pining for a more enjoyable destination in the near future. While players have flocked to Chelsea over the last couple years, very few of them who are considered in their prime have left. It will be interesting to see how Mourinho reacts to players wanting to leave him. The Special One may find himself on the hot seat very soon. (George)