By Andy
October 27 2004

I have to say that I was disappointed when Claudio Ranieri left Chelsea. I really wanted him to be given another year to try and finish off the work that he had started three years previous I mean although Chelsea didn't win a trophy, they did finish 2nd in the Premiership and DID knock Arsenal out of the CL. But I suppose the final nail in the coffin came with the disasterous CL 1st Leg against Monaco. It is quite possible though that had Ranieri won the Premiership or the CL he would have still been sacked. But that is now in the past and it is an area of Chelsea's history that has been firmly written and is also an area that we will never never get to know about

Jose Mourinho swept into the Chelsea hot-seat with all the arrogance of SAF and AW mixed in a bowl together. Why shouldn't he say that he is the best after all not a few months ago he had won the CL with Porto. Before that the UEFA Cup, Portuguese League and whatever else. The man is class. His self-belief and self-motivation is second to none. He doesn't care what he says be it to officialdom, media to his players. He is there to do a job, and it is a job that he will do his way. I doubt RA or PK would have any bottle to tell him what to do, unlike the way that they perhaps did with CR.

I like JM and I am certainly warming to him. Perhaps it is about time Chelsea had somebody at the helm like they did in the 60s/70s with Tommy Docherty. Now TD didn't take no nonsense and he said what he meant, no hiding behind the cliches. But I have a feeling that JM will surpass TD and will certainly become a firm favourite of the fans and everybody else - but I suspect he will rub AW and SAF up the wrong way more times this season than he already has.