• Premier League

Mourinho apologises to Chelsea fans

Jose Mourinho has apologised to Chelsea fans for his recent criticism of the Stamford Bridge atmosphere.

Following his side's 2-1 victory against Queens Park Rangers earlier in November, Mourinho suggested playing in west London was like playing "in an empty stadium."

The comments caused a stir amongst the Chelsea faithful but, after his side's impressive 2-0 home victory against West Brom on Saturday, Mourinho acknowledged he was in the wrong.

"It improved a lot - there is no comparison," Mourinho told Chelsea TV. "I don't want to speak about it, for good and for bad. They pay me to coach and win matches, not to be critical of the crowd, so I feel sorry for my comments a couple of weeks ago. The reality is that today the difference was amazing."

The Chelsea fans appeared much more vocal for the visit West Brom and were encouraged by a "spectacular" display of football from Mourinho's team, particularly in the first half.

Diego Costa and Eden Hazard fired Chelsea seven points clear at the top of the Premier League - which has earned them an "unbeatable" tag from Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri - but Mourinho warned his players they can only be considered successful when they start winning trophies.

"I cannot compare teams that won everything [in Mourinho's first spell] with teams that have won nothing. This team have won nothing. The other team finished a couple of years ago, we have John [Terry] and Didier [Drogba] and nothing else.

"These guys have to win if they want to be seen as a great team, it's not about playing beautiful football or being autumn champions. They have to win titles. But when I use 'beautiful' in relation to the football we played in the first half I think we all agree."

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