Mourinho targets home wins to re-establish Chelsea’s ‘self-esteem’

Jose Mourinho says Chelsea’s next two games could be crucial to restoring their confidence after a poor start to the campaign.

The Blues are 14th in the Premier League and Tuesday’s Champions League defeat against Porto means they have lost four of their opening 10 matches this season.

They now face two home games, first against Southampton on Saturday and then when Aston Villa visit Stamford Bridge after the international break.

“We now have two home games in the Premier League and we need to try to get good results,” Mourinho said.

“Good feelings, happiness, self-esteem – the players need those to play and when luck goes against you it’s difficult to have those feelings.”

Mourinho recently warned that results mean none of his established players are ‘untouchable’ as he considers making changes.

Chelsea’s defending was again a cause for concern against Porto, but Mourinho insists the team’s overall performance was encouraging.

“When the team is not winning on a regular basis it’s normal you have to make changes,” he said.

“Games like that are the difficult ones to analyse and make decisions afterwards, because the result doesn’t mean you played badly.”