Chelsea is a ‘banter-free’ zone following a miserable start to their Premier League campaign, made worse by the weekend’s 3-1 defeat at the hands of Everton, according to The Express.
The Blues were back to training straight away on Sunday following the defeat, as they prepare for Wednesday night’s opening Champions League fixture against Maccabi Tel Aviv.
The mood around the camp is understandably low, and a source close to The Express has said:
There are some unhappy players around the place. No jokes or banter.
Jose Mourinho is under pressure from fans to rotate the squad to face the Israeli side, with many calls to drop the out-of-sorts Branislav Ivanovic, Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa.
Brazilian midfielder Oscar has been sorely missed since picking up an injury on the opening day of the season, but could feature on Wednesday night; with Ghanaian left-back Baba Rahman also reportedly in line to start.
However, Maccabi could cause Chelsea a little more trouble than people expect on Matchday One, with former Blue and current Maccabi boss Slavisa Jokanovic insisting his side were out to inflict more damage on Mourinho’s men.
He said:
My interests are now with a different side and I will try to hurt them more and damage them in this moment. I am trying to push myself, I am concentrating on this game and looking to demonstrate what I can do for Maccabi.
Chelsea will be hoping to put their Premier League woes behind them and kick-start their season with a positive performance and three points against the Israeli side.
