MOURINHO: PLAYERS FINALLY DEALT WITH ‘NEGATIVE MOMENT’

The Portuguese coach indicated he was relieved
at ending a run of three successive defeats and
praised the performance of match-winner Willian

Jose Mourinho praised his Chelsea players for the
mental strength they showed to deal with a "negative
moment" in the 2-1 Champions League win over
Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday.
The Blues went ahead through an Aleksandar Dragovic
own goal, before he netted the equaliser at the other
end. Mourinho's men then secured the win with a Willian
free-kick in the 83rd minute.
And the Portuguese coach was happy with his side's
resilience, indicating that difficult periods occur in every
game but the players have developed the ability to deal
with such set-backs.
"I keep saying many of the players are coming to their
normal levels, you can feel as a team when the negative
moment comes and the team can take a little bit," he
told BT Sport.
"But today I think we were prepared, as a negative
moment comes every match. And today we had a
reaction.
"The negative moment is always arriving for us - in
many different ways. We had a good reaction against
Stoke City, and to concede that Dynamo goal with 15
minutes to go, I think the team was strong mentally, the
team kept trying and I’m happy with that."

Mourinho, who had been under increasing pressure
following successive defeats to West Ham, Stoke and
Liverpool, was also thankful to the supporters at
Stamford Bridge, who sung choruses of the 52-year-
old's name throughout the match.
"Well I prefer the team, obviously, but what the fans did
for me is not normal, or they don’t read papers, or listen
to the television, pundits and commentators, or they
have a big heart, or they recognise that I’m a good
professional. I give everything to the club, I brought
good moments to the club," he continued.
"It’s not normal, such support, not just the bad run of
results. But mentally, considering what people read and
listen to, I don’t know how to thank them.
"The only thing I can say is that until my last day at the
club, four years, ten years, 15 years, doesn’t matter how
long I stay here, I will give everything to them."
Worries continue at Stamford Bridge, though, with Diego
Costa yet to spark into life this season and Eden Hazard
dropped to the bench for Wednesday's game, but
Mourinho took time out to praise the match-winner
Willian, also suggesting that he was happy with the
options the Belgian and Pedro provided from the bench.
"Willian playing well, not just today, he’s playing very
well for a long time," he said.
"It’s difficult for me to forget some fantastic individual
performances but I think it’s fair to look at Willian with
different eyes because of his work rate, his quality on
the ball, and obviously his participation with the first
goal and a phenomenal second goal.
"I also had a very good bench with options who the team
trust very much. With 15 minutes to go, to bring Hazard
and Pedro into the game, the team feels confident with
that because they are two players capable of turning
things around."