Sunderland 3-4 Chelsea
Mourinho reacts as the Blues keep up with Arsenal:
It was his best performance playing for me. We know about the talent, but for the first time under me he showed ambition from the first to the last minute,’ Mourinho said.
‘He has great talent but sometimes he can disappear from games. Today, he was fantastic – getting the ball, attacking defenders, shooting. Him, (Juan) Mata and Willian were creative and dynamic. They gave to the team what they needed in terms of creation.’
We played a phenomenal game, our best game away from home. There was top quality, great creativity in the three attacking players behind Fernando and beautiful goals. Even the fourth goal was a great counter-attack.
‘The game is about that, but it’s also about basic things, and we failed in those basic things.
‘The most basic is to defend set-plays. In a game where we should win clearly because of the way we played, we had a risk until the last second.’
‘Sunderland are a good team – good football, good spirit, amazing crowd. They are fast with the wingers coming inside. I knew that it was going to be difficult. But when you play so well you have to win comfortably and not give a headache to the manager.
‘This league is a league where any result can happen. Every point you get you should take with both hands.’
It was Gus Poyet’s first home defeat since taking over at the Stadium of Light in October, and our former midfielder was also effusive when asked about Hazard, following a fiercely-contested game…
‘Chelsea had to work very hard today to take the three points, and that makes me very proud.
‘Hazard was unplayable. I don’t remember a player performing at this level against me as a manager. We tried everything. We needed another football.’
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