José Mourinho answered every question but one. The Chelsea manager made no attempt to dodge the issue. He did not seek out one of those transparent diversionary tactics that he deploys. He seemed to consider, briefly, blaming the referee, but thought better of it: Chelsea, he said, should have had a penalty. His anger rather evaporated when no one could remember the incident that had so vexed him.
All that was left, then, was to answer the questions. Not just about how Crystal Palace had managed to win at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, but about what, precisely, has ailed Chelsea since before the start of the season.
He did so as openly and as frankly as he could, although he was understandably reluctant to name names or point fingers.
The problem, as Mourinho sees it, is that the Barclays Premier League champions were hamstrung against Palace — just as they were against Swansea City and Manchester City — by “three or four” players who “are not performing to an acceptable level”.
“It is difficult to have a consistent performance” when that is the case, he said.
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He did not want to make an example of anyone, of course, although working out who he means is not exactly a matter of fiendish difficulty.
Nemanja Matic and Cesc Fábregas have been woeful all season; Alan Pardew, the Palace manager, said that he had identified Branislav Ivanovic as Chelsea’s weak point and had set out to exploit him.
Mourinho believes that Eden Hazard, the Premier League player of the year, has a “good responsibility” to be as influential this season as he was last; it will come as no surprise to the Belgium winger that he is some distance from meeting that criterion.
The Portuguese was just as blunt about what the solution to this problem might be. None of his players, no matter how gilded, can consider themselves safe. Mourinho is prepared to be as ruthless with them as he was with John Terry, substituted during the defeat against Manchester City this month because he was failing to live up to the standards expected.
No one, he said, is above censure. Nobody’s place is guaranteed. “If you ask me, will I accept this, cross my arms, sit in a nice chair and wait calmly for the performance level to be back, no, I won’t,” Mourinho said. “I have to work, I have to react, to analyse and if I feel the players are not in a condition to react and give more, I have to make changes. I have never had a problem with that.”
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He had, thus far, identified the symptoms and outlined what he believes needs to be done to alleviate them. That, though, led to one more question. Not just the next question, but the key question.
What, exactly, is the cause of Chelsea’s ills? Why is it that they have “three or four” players who are not doing what they should?
And this was the question that Mourinho could not answer. “I don’t know,” he said. “I do not have an answer for everything. You have players who have fantastic seasons and fantastic moments and the next season do not have the same. I do not speak about players from other teams, but I can tell you perfectly well that there were fantastic players who had a bad season last season.”
That is true, of course, but then the fact that Yaya Touré, say, was below par last time out does not explain why Chelsea were so flat here, so unable to break down their well-organised guests for so long, something they made a habit of doing while barely breaking a sweat last season.
It does not tell why Chelsea were so toothless in attack that, by the time Bakary Sako gave Palace the lead, they might already have been two up. Nor does it help identify how a team who were once so impregnable have become so soft as to concede a goal to Joel Ward barely two minutes after Radamel Falcao had drawn them level.
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It may hint at it, though. Chelsea are playing a system that they are comfortable in. Their problem is not tactical. It does not seem, as far as Mourinho tells it, to be physical. So, perhaps it is psychological. Perhaps, like Manchester City before them, they have seen their edge blunted and their appetite dulled by success.
“If that was the case, it would be very sad,” Mourinho said, when that possibility was put to him. “If that is real, it is very sad. I feel the opposite. When I win, I want to win again, I want to win more. If you win it once and the next season you are not on fire, not ready to at least fight for more, it is very sad.”
He hopes that is not the case. He hopes that his players are not resting on their laurels. He knows, though, that is a question he must direct to them, and hope that they can answer.
Ratings
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): T Courtois 6 — B Ivanovic 5, K Zouma 7, G Cahill 6, C Azpilicueta 6 (sub: Kenedy, 68min 7) — C Fàbregas 5, N Matic 5 (sub: R Loftus-Cheek, 73) — Pedro 6, Willian 7 (sub: R Falcao, 66), E Hazard 6 — D Costa 6. Substitutes not used: A Begovic, B Rahman, J O Mikel, L Rémy. Booked: G Cahill.
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Crystal Palace (4-2-3-1): A McCarthy 7 — J Ward 8, S Dann 8, D Delaney 7, P Soauré 6 – J McArthur 7, Y Cabaye 7 (sub: J Ledley, 82) — B Sako 9 (sub: Lee Chung Yong, 84), J Puncheon 7, W Zaha 6 (sub: Y Bolasie, 55 7) — C Wickham 7. Substitutes not used: W Hennessey, A Mariappa, D Gayle, J Mutch, J Ledley. Booked: Y Cabaye.
Window box
Chelsea José Mourinho needs a central defender and, all of a sudden, a central midfielder, but has missed out on John Stones and Aymen Abdennour, while to secure Paul Pogba looks ambitious at this stage.
Crystal Palace A central defender would not go amiss and there has to be a question mark over whether Connor Wickham can score frequently at this level, but overall things look settled.
P is for prosper
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Want to know the key to beating a José Mourinho Chelsea team at Stamford Bridge? As well as having your team managed by someone whose surname begins with P (Alan Pardew extended this run to seven on Saturday), signing Connor Wickham helps too. The Crystal Palace striker was also in the Sunderland team who were the last to beat the Portuguese at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.