Jose
Mourinho has told the medics he criticised they can have a future on the
Chelsea bench despite the fact they won’t be present there this weekend.
The Portuguese manager would not take any questions about the situation at
his press conference to preview Sunday’s Premier League game with Manchester
City.
Instead, he gave a statement in response to the attention his row with club
doctor Eva Carneiro and physio Jon Fearn has attracted.
He did not offer any public apologies during the conference and it is yet to
be confirmed who will replace the pair at the Etihad Stadium.
Mourinho, quoted on Chelsea's Twitter feed, said: “First of all I want to
say I have a fantastic medical department led by Dr Paco Biosa. I have a
good relationship with them.
“They tell me they have never been praised as much as they have done by me
in the last couple of years.
“Jon Fearn and Dr Carneiro will not be on the bench on Sunday but that
doesn’t mean they cannot be in the future.”
Mourinho's high-profile fall-out with his medical staff came after they
entered the field of play to treat Eden Hazard in the closing moments of
Chelsea's 2-2 draw with Swansea last Saturday.
He was critical of them afterwards, labelling them 'naive' for going on as
it meant Hazard would have to come off with them momentarily at a time when
they were already down to 10 men and at risk of losing.
The Stamford Bridge boss insists the decision to remove Carneiro and Fearn
from the dug-out in Manchester was entirely his and added: "That is my
responsibility.
"Normally when things go well managers keep it to themselves. I have praised
them lots of times in the last couple of years and they don't forget that.
"They also told me that we have had disagreements during that period. We
need disagreements to improve.
"We work together and we improve together. That is the way we do things. It
is a relationship that is open to disagreement."
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