Jose Mourinho has no plans to spend big in the final few days of the transfer window in a bid to end champions Chelsea’s early season Premier League malaise.
Chelsea’s shock 2-1 loss at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday left Mourinho’s men a significant eight points behind leaders Manchester City just four games into the current campaign.
Those four league matches have now yielded two defeats, including a 3-0 reverse at City, compared to just three losses in the whole of last season’s league programme.
Asked whether he would be splashing the cash on Everton’s John Stones and Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba, two big-money targets both linked to Chelsea, Mourinho said: “I hope not. I don’t like that.
“I gave my club the report of the season projection on April 24,” the Chelsea manager explained. “I don’t think it’s now, on the 29th or 30th August to say ‘I want this and that or I want to try this and that’. We have to gel.
“The reality is that we have had a bad start,” Portuguese boss Mourinho added. “Four points is a very bad start.
“To perform collectively you need individual performances. The amount of chances means you are playing, means you are producing something. It’s not enough.”
Chelsea were left reeling as fellow London club Palace secured their first win at Stamford Bridge since 1982 and inflicted just Mourinho’s second defeat in 100 home league matches as the Blues’ manager.
Bacary Sako opened the scoring in the second half before substitute Radamel Falcao looked to have earned Chelsea at least a point when he headed home.
Mourinho ordered his players to stop celebrating and to try and win the game. But within two minutes, Joel Ward struck to win the match for the visitors.
Nevertheless, Mourinho said there was plenty of time for his side to re-ignite their title challenge.
“We have eight points less than the leader and seven, six ,and five from the others. In another league I would say ‘game over’.
“In the Premier League I don’t say ‘game over’ because last season we have seven points to the second team and in one month we lost the seven points.
“On January 1 we were on the same points as the second (team). This is the Premier League and I think it’s getting more difficult.”
Meanwhile, delighted Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew said: “We kept creating chances and that’s very difficult to do here.
“It was a stadium expecting Chelsea to win. My team is better than last year, as we have better technical players,” Pardew added.
“Sako has been a real boost for us and we wouldn’t have won the last two games without him. He threatens the goal from a wide moment.
“If (England manager) Roy Hodgson gets a tape of this game he will be impressed what Jason Puncheon did against a world-class midfield.
“It’s difficult to overcome a Chelsea team and their manager here. You could nick a win or park the bus here to try to do that. But we didn’t do that.”
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