Mourinho defends Terry substitution

Chelsea football club manager Jose Mourinho has defended his decision to substitute captain John Terry at half-time during their 0-3 English Premier League (EPL) defeat against Manchester City. With City leading 1-0 at the break during Sunday’s game, Mourinho sent in Kurt Zouma to replace Terry. It was the first time that the Chelsea boss decided to substitute the central defender in an EPL match.

The 34-year-old England defender had played every minute of every EPL match last season under Mourinho, leading Chelsea to their first title since 2009-10. But Mourinho asserted that conditions during Sunday’s clash at the Etihad Stadium warranted the change. 

When Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero raced clear of the Chelsea back-line moments after kick-off to force an excellent save from the Blues’ goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, Mourinho realised that his defensive strategy was already crumbling.

“It was clear to me Zouma has to play,” the Portuguese manager was quoted as saying by BBC. 

“The point was not to take John out it was to bring <g data-gr-id="13">Zouma</g> in - I wanted my fastest player on the pitch, not on the bench.”