Chelsea: Mourinho right to stop attending press conferences after FA charge

Chelsea have backed Jose Mourinho's decision to send assistant manager Steve Holland to the club's recent press conferences.

Holland sat in for Mourinho in the wake of the Blues' 2-0 win over Newcastle, as well as the pre-game press conference on Friday, a policy the club say they support given the FA charge hanging over the Portuguese.
Steve Atkins, the club's head of communications, said: "There’s an FA charge over Jose - he’s taking a backseat while that’s in play.

"The club fully support his position; the fact that he’s wanted to get into a debate about the referee and 'campaign' is something that should be debated. The charge is there and we’ll debate it."

Mourinho was charged with misconduct after he claimed there was a 'campaign' to influence officials' decisions against Chelsea following the Blues' 1-1 draw at Southampton on December 28.

A decision from referee Anthony Taylor not to award Cesc Fabregas a penalty on that day enraged the 51-year-old and led to the charge.

Chelsea put two points between them and Manchester City on Saturday, beating a determined Newcastle side 2-0 thanks to goals from Oscar and Diego Costa.