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| Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho is wary of falling eight points off the pace in the Premier League |
JOSE MOURINHO has good reason to feel a bit edgy about facing West Brom today. Stats and recent history are not in his favour.
It's tough enough that if his stuttering stars lose this one they could find themselves a massive eight points behind their two main Manchester rivals at least.
But with the bookies making him 12/1 third favourite to be the first Premier League manager to be sacked this season - plus a few other ominous facts - and everything points to another uneasy afternoon for the worried one.
Facts like he's never got the better of Baggies boss Tony Pulis, a man he voted for as Manager Of The Year two seasons ago, or any other manager whose surname begins with P for that matter.
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| The Blues boss has struggled to beat managers whose surname begin with the letter P |
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| Mourinho has never beaten West Brom boss Tony Pulis |
Add to that the fact that two of his Stamford Bridge predecessors, Robert di Matteo and Andre Villas Boas were both sacked after losing to West Brom.
Mourinho, who admits he is far from happy at Chelsea's pointless start to the season, put on a brave face last night, despite the growing doom and gloom.
He brushed aside a flood of bets on him being fired which sent the odds tumbling from 66/1 last Monday to the alarming ones William Hill's posted last night and insisted that Chelsea could still be title challengers even if they lose today.
He said: "If we lose we go to eight points difference to a couple of teams, or maybe three or four teams, but eight points in England is 80 points in other leagues.
"Last year we lost seven points in three weeks but reached zero [level], again.
"Five points difference is one thing, eight points is another. But in England you can do it."
The odds on his dismissal just a couple of weeks after signing a new four-year contract were similarly despatched.
Mourinho, now also a central figure in a potential legal battle with club doctor Eva Carneiro, said: "I don't think I'm going to be sacked. I don't think. Just a feeling, but I don't think."
Why all the bets on that happening, then?
"Because the bookies want to make money," he insisted. "The ones that put the money there is good for the bookies. I never heard about a bookmaker being bankrupt I think they make more money than the people that gamble."
Even so, Chelsea's Special One is under no illusions about the size of the task he faces today against a manager he rates almost as highly as himself.
Mourinho revealed that he was a Pulis fan even when he wasn't working in this country.
"He is a top professional who has always always reached his objectives. The similarity I see with Tony is that he is successful," Mourinho added.
"Tony's sides are well organised, know how to defend, are very physical,and never lose concentration. They always have attacking quality players and when everyone thinks they are playing for a draw they always have someone who can come in and score a goal."
That's why Mourinho, who could give new boy Pedro a role this afternoon, will put Gary Cahill and John Terry on extra alert to deal with the aerial threat Pulis's teams usually pose.
West Brom manager Tony Pulis believes any talk of a Chelsea crisis is a joke and fears a Jose Mourinho backlash.
Pulis is wary of facing the reigning Barclays Premier League champions despite their slow start to the season.
Chelsea travel to The Hawthorns on Sunday looking for their first win of the campaign after being humbled 3-0 at title rivals Manchester City last week.
The Baggies beat Chelsea 3-0 at home at the end of last season but, even after their stuttering opening, Pulis dismissed suggestions the champions are in trouble.
"There's a crisis at every Premier League team," he said.
"It is a joke what you just said. A crisis after two games? This isn't a comedy show.
"They could have Pedro, (Diego) Costa and (Eden) Hazard playing, that's not bad is it?
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