In an interview with ESPN FC, former Chelsea defender Felipe Luis took some time from his preperations for the UEFA Champions League Qualifying to talk to the press. In a statement, he calls out manager Jose Mourinho for making harsh comments at recent press conferences, citing that they have affected the team's performance.
Luis, who's currently playing for Atletico Madrid, advocates that some of his players do not respond well to criticism. On those grounds, and aving surveyed his former teammates at Stamford Bridge, it's proven that they do not like the comments made by Mourinho.
Luis told Yahoo:
"He has his way of talking to the press, especially when the team loses, which can sometimes be damaging to certain players. Some players benefit from criticism but for others they don't. Sometimes he's right and sometimes he's not. Sometimes people think what he says is absurd and sometimes they agree with him. It's the way he is and the way he works -- I see it as normal."
Most notably, Mourinho slighted the defensive work rate of star midfielder Eden Hazard, who Mourinho, still, believes is the best player in the Premier League. However, Mourinho also believes that the nimble Hazard needs to do more on the defensive side of the ball--despite overlooking that he is merely an offensive superstar.
Hazard also would need to do more work on defense to improve and that can be expected in the middle of a season, which will now see Chelsea struggle in the middle of the table. As one would imagine, they are hoping to find their form in the UEFA Champions League play to make a run at the biggest prize in Europe.
While Luis isn't with the team right now he looks back on his time with the company fondly. He does want to state, though, that he wishes he had more playing time.
Regardless, he seems to have a good grasp on what Chelsea players are thinking, and Mourinho, as well as owner Roman Abramovich, would be smart to listen to the former Blues comments on his former boss.
