4 improvements Chelsea have undergone since Jose Mourinho's return

Jose Mourinho

The return of the ‘Special One’ Jose Mourinho was met with much fanfare and enthusiasm from the Blues faithful and it’s not hard to understand why. The London side were extremely successful under the firebrand Portugese manager’s leadership and no manager has managed to have the type of impact he had at the club since he was unceremoniously dismissed in 2007.

While Chelsea are yet to really get going under Mourinho this time around (at least in terms of a playing style), results have certainly looked good for them so far. They currently sit 2nd in the Premier League and have advanced to the knockout stages of the Champions League as well as the quarter-finals of the Capital One Cup.

Despite that, there have been some improvements in Chelsea’s overall play. Let’s take a look at 4 big improvements (both of the team as well as individual players) that Mourinho has brought about:

1) Team pressing has improved – One of Abramovich’s biggest wants is that Chelsea play a brand of football that is easy on the eye. However, playing an attacking style of play means certain habits such as pressing as a unit have to be established in order to keep the focus on possession. This season, Chelsea have looked much better in that aspect. The best example of this was when they out-pressed Southampton, a team known for their collective pressing, for large parts of the Premier League game between them. Even a player like Juan Mata, who previously had little defensive duties, is doing his bit for the team.

2) Look to control the game more often – Chelsea are a team that have been associated with fast, counter-attacking football since Mourinho’s first spell at the club. Even though Mourinho still gives importance to his counter-attacks for he knows they will almost always provide scoring opportunities, he has made Chelsea play a more possession-based style of play. We see Chelsea players play a lot more short passes than before and even Cech will always look to play the ball out of the back rather than hopelessly hoof the ball up front (for the most part anyway).

3) Rejuvinated Fernando Torres – Torres’ time at the Blues has been dogged by poor form and false dawns. However, he looked to have made some progress under Benitez and has gotten even better under Mourinho. The Spaniard, who was formerly known for his blistering pace, is now a more complete player. He looks to drop deep, link up with the attacking midfielders behind him and doesn’t even hesitate to take on his marker. He even manages to contribute defensively. Torres may never be the fiery player he was at Liverpool, but he is definitely a more complete player right now.

4) Given Oscar a central role – This one hasn’t gone down so well with many fans mainly because it has resulted in the exclusion of Juan Mata. However, Oscar’s role as a #10 has been important for Chelsea. The Brazilian has looked more comfortable dictating the play and dragging players out of position from that central role than he did out wide for most of last season. His performances haven’t been his best yet, but he will get better with time and there is no doubting his ability.