Chelsea will spend Christmas three points clear at the top of the Premier League after they regained the cushion with a 2-0 win at Stoke.
Jose Mourinho declared that Chelsea’s 2-0 victory at Stoke felt as though it was worth “more than three points” as he praised his team for showing the mental and physical strength to triumph at the Britannia Stadium.
Chelsea went clear at the top of the Premier League table after John Terry and Cesc Fabregas scored the goals in what Mourinho deemed “a great performance”.
The Portuguese manager also hailed Eden Hazard, who set up Fabregas’ goal, for his reaction after he was on the receiving end of a poor challenge from Stoke right-back Phil Bardsley.
“It is a victory that means a bit more than three points, not just because it is difficult to win here but also because you need more than just your quality,” said Mourinho in a post-match news conference.
“The players were a team, they were together, they coped well with a difficult style. Our creative players were not afraid and our defensive players were very solid. Only with a great team performance is it possible to be successful against Stoke.
“To win here you must play a very good game and we did because we adapted well to their style of play. When they have the ball, we adapted well. When we have the ball, we tried not to lose our identity.”
Mourinho thought Bardsley should have been sent off for his 20th-minute foul, which brought him a yellow card, but said Hazard showed more generosity than he would have. After the Stoke defender was hurt later, Hazard stopped play so his opponent could receive treatment.
He added: “From my position and in the flesh, it looks a red card. But if it was a red card it was an isolated action. What I know is that if it was a bad tackle, it was the only one. The game was clean, the game was aggressive but the game was good and the referee kept the game under control and the players were fair.
Chelsea captain John Terry heads in his club’s first goal vs. Stoke City.
“After the tackle, it was a difficult match for the kid [Hazard] but also for Bardsley because the kid is playing fantastic. The action [when Bardsley went down] shows what the kid is because Bardsley is injured and Eden puts the ball out. I wouldn’t do it.”
Mourinho said Hazard assumed more of an attacking burden as he introduced another defensive midfielder, in John Obi Mikel, to the starting 11.
ESPN FC’s Paul Mariner and Craig Burley break down Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Stoke City, where John Terry praised the defensive play from Nemanja Matic and his importance to the Blues’ success so far.
He explained: “We decide to play Mikel and [Nemanja] Matic so we lose one creative player. We had that stability in the team and Hazard and Fabregas and Willian had that responsibility to create. They were not afraid to that. They give their bodies to the game and I think the kid was fantastic.”
Mourinho believes Terry, who was also his captain in his first spell at the club, is playing as well as he did a decade ago.
He added: “He is very dangerous in set-pieces. He is a very good player in the air so when he is on the pitch, there is always a threat. More important than the goal is the way he is playing this season.
“When I came here last season, he was a bit in trouble, his career was a bit up and down and not playing regularly. In the last two years, he is playing every game and in the standard he was playing from 2004-07.”