Porto 2-1 Chelsea: Mourinho's miserable return

Chelsea's poor domestic performance has spilled over into the Champions League, with defeat in the second leg in Portugal yesterday, September 29.

Mourinho may have run out of ways to help his players regain their form. Photo: AP.

When he left Porto, Jose Mourinho was portrayed as a charismatic coach, leading a tough team. When he returned this time, Mourinho brought with him the reigning Premier League champions, but the image of a team of warriors was no longer there.

Fans joke that Chelsea are the points hoarders in England this year, getting points from every team they face. If that is true, Mourinho will probably be generous when facing Porto, the team that made his name known to the world. If you don't believe it, look at the starting lineup of The Blues, there is Branislas Ivanovic, the captain but the weakest link.

Ivanovic never crossed the ball accurately when he went up front. But his biggest mistake was probably his defense, when he often let his opponents get past him. Andre's first goal came from Ivanovic's wing.

Willian then equalised with a fine free-kick but it was not enough to save Chelsea from their first defeat in the Champions League. Maicon headed home from a corner to seal the score.

The win moved Porto to the top of Group G with four points, level with Dynamo Kiev. Chelsea are currently third.

Home team Porto played brighter than Chelsea. Photo: Reuters.

"I am very cruel," Mourinho said before the match against Porto. The Portuguese coach declared that he was ready to use young players if the stars were no longer motivated. Said and done, Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matic had to sit on the bench in this match, Radamel Falcao was not even registered to play.

Mourinho's changes did not bring much freshness to Chelsea's style of play. The London team had more possession (57%) but played slowly and without any breakthroughs. Meanwhile, Porto with their mobile players were more dangerous when attacking. The home team created 22 shots in the whole match, while Chelsea only had 12.

In the opening minutes, Fabregas and Pedro made compatriot Iker Casillas work hard. Casillas is the player with the most appearances in the Champions League, 152 times.

After some tense minutes, Porto took the lead in the 35th minute. Brahimi dribbled freely in the box, easily got past Ivanovic and fired in a shot. Begovic was able to block the header but then had to pick the ball out of the net from Andre's rebound.

Chelsea's first goal. Photo: BPI.

Chelsea bounced back quickly with an equaliser in the final minute of first-half stoppage time. Willian's free-kick was unmarked by a Porto player, beating Casillas.

Before Chelsea could change after the break, Porto took the lead again. Ramires failed to mark Maicon in a corner, allowing the opponent to move and head the ball past Begovic.

Mourinho's changes in the second half did not bring any change. Diego Costa played very energetically in this match. In the final minutes, he had a situation where the ball bounced off the hand of a Porto defender in the penalty area but the referee did not award Chelsea a penalty.

Late in the match, Costa shot wide from a scramble in the penalty area.

According to VNE