Jose Mourinho: ‘Evolving’ Chelsea can challenge for Premier League title

Jose Mourinho believes his “evolving” Chelsea side are capable of challenging for the Premier League title.

The Blues bounced back from Jay Rodriguez’s first-minute strike thanks to goals from Gary Cahill, John Terry and Demba Ba at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Chelsea are four points behind league leaders Arsenal, and while Mourinho admitted securing a top-four spot is the season’s primary goal, he is confident of closing the gap to leaders Arsenal.

“It’s the sign of a team that’s going step by step, understanding my ideas and mentality progressively,” Mourinho is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

“And the ones that are not complete in my mentality or philosophy are adapting progressively, feeling the responsibility that Chelsea cannot be completely out of the title race in December.

“They must feel the responsibility to play for Chelsea and that was a sign of maturity today.

“Losing a goal after 10 seconds, they kept calm. I think my team is a team with a profile that means I can’t establish targets: to say I want to win five consecutive matches, or be top of the league.

“I want to work with them, feed the young players, feed the team. And, by the time we’ve done that, we’re there.

“If you are 10 or 12 points behind, you are building but not fighting for the title. If you are three or four or five, you are evolving, building but also fighting for the title.

“The boys have to cope with the responsibility of being there. We have to be there.

“If there are six title contenders and four Champions League spots, the first objective must be to be in the top four, which is important for the prestige and economical situation at the club.

“But in this league, lose two matches and you’ll go down to seventh or eighth.”