Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich held a meeting today with the club’s Chairman Bruce Buck, directors Marina Granovskaia and Eugene Tenenbaum and technical director Michael Emenalo to decide the fate of manager Jose Mourinho. They sacked him some minutes ago.
The 52-year-old Portuguese had been in his second spell at the club, taking charge in June 2013.
Chelsea finished eight points clear last season and won the League Cup, but have lost nine of their 16 league games so far and are 16th in the table, one point above the relegation places.
Mourinho’s final match was Monday’s 2-1 defeat at leaders Leicester City.
He leaves with Chelsea just a point off the relegation zone and 20 points behind Leicester.
Champions League qualification via one of the top four spots in the Premier League looks highly unlikely.
However, the Blues are through to the last 16 of European football’s biggest club competition, where they will face French champions Paris St-Germain in February and March.
Mourinho only signed a new four-year contract on 7 August and is Chelsea’s most successful manager.
He won three Premier League titles, two of those in his first spell between 2004 and 2007.
The Portuguese has also won the FA Cup, in 2007, and the League Cup three times – in 2005, 2007 and 2015.
Pep Guardiola, Guus Hiddink, Brendan Rodgers and Juande Ramos have all been touted as possible successors.
