Mourinho asks for better refereeing while conceding that PSG created more at home

Chelsea went to Paris on Tuesday and came away with a 1-1 draw, including a vital away goal from Branislav Ivanovic. Jose Mourinho thought the result was fair enough, citing Chelsea's control early on before PSG took over the contest:

‘I think the first half was our half. Paris gave us the ball and played defensively with a low block. They didn’t put pressure on us and we were comfortable with the ball.'

‘The second half was different; they were losing and they put pressure on us. They were aggressive, they played very direct and it was their half. I think 1-1 reflects one half for Chelsea and one for Paris, but if you go on chances created and goalkeeper’s performances, we have to be honest and say if any team came closer to winning it was Paris.'

That seems like a pretty fair assessment, though I think the Blues were probably a bit more fortunate to get a draw than Mourinho is willing to admit. The manager did touch on two areas that may have contributed to the eventual scoreline though, as illness seems to be running rampant at Chelsea right now, and there was some very lax officiating tonight.

On Chelsea's current health issues:

‘Many times you know the injured players that cannot play, some of the time you don’t know the ones who have problems. Since the Everton game, Hazard, Willian, Oscar, Fabregas and Ivanovic haven’t trained. They did some individual training to keep moving but they didn’t train. They tried and gave their best. Fabregas has had three days in bed, they gave everything and that’s important.’

And on the treatment of Eden Hazard:

‘We have had 25 matches in the Premier League and it’s no different. What happened tonight with Verratti, if he [Hazard] is another player he dives, rolls on the floor and screams. He’d be asking for cards, but this kid is pure. Today there were nine fouls and in the Premier League it’s no different.’

All told, I think I'm just as pleased with the result as the manager appears to be, even if I'm not all that thrilled with the performance. It's all to play for at Stamford Bridge in March, and frankly, I like Chelsea's chances whenever that's the case.