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Live Coverage: Jose Mourinho's weekly Chelsea press conference

Follow Sports Mole's live coverage of Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho's pre-match press conference ahead of his side's Premier League match against West Bromwich Albion.
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Jose Mourinho confirmed that Diego Costa and Andre Schurrle will both be available for his side's Premier League match against West Bromwich Albion this weekend.

Cesc Fabregas is also expected to play, but youngster Nathan Ake is out with a hamstring injury.

The manager admitted that he expects to win, but predicts that it will be a tough encounter.

Read what else he said below:


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Good morning! Jose Mourinho will be speaking to reporters shortly as his side look to continue their unbeaten run in the Premier League this season.

The manager should provide an update on his squad's fitness ahead of this match, with many of his players having been away on international duty over the last couple of weeks. However, Diego Costa should be ready to go, having skipped Spain's most recent matches to nurse his ongoing hamstring issues.

Here's a dizzying look at the preparations at Stamford Bridge ahead of tomorrow's match:


Both of their matches against West Brom last season ended in draws. In fact, the Blues needed a last-gasp penalty to avoid a home defeat last year.

Why not check out our detailed preview for this match, and vote for who you think will win in our poll.

Eden Hazard has been on form so far this season, as shown by this stat:


Right then, the manager is ready to go, so let's see what he has to say...

Mourinho starts with an injury update. The manager confirms that Diego Costa and Andre Schurrle are both fine, while Cesc Fabregas is optimistic of playing, although youngster Nathan Ake is out for a few weeks with a hamstring injury.

On the injuries, the manager adds: "Mikel is not back from international duty until this morning. Fabregas trained with team today, just a simple session. Hopeful he can play. Ramires can play but is not in a very good condition."

Mourinho is asked whether he's worried about his side becoming complacent. He responds: "If we lose the title it will not be because of complacency. Against Mairbor in the Champions League we lost two points but their goalkeeper was the man of the match. That's football."

The manager admits that the festive period is stretching: "The number of matches so high, the days in between matches is so low, it doesn't improve our training programme. It might affect some English clubs in Europe, but this marathon up to the Christmas period is something I love."

With the transfer window just a few weeks away, Mourinho is asked about the prospect of Petr Cech leaving the club. He responds: "On my desk I have zero proposals. He has a contract for two more years, he is a great professional. Not once has he knocked on my door to inform me of his desire to [leave]."

Attention turns back to the match, which Mourinho admits that he is expecting to win: "I expect to win, but I expect a very, very difficult match. They have a good team, they can give us a very difficult match. They know that they can get a result against us, because they got it in the past."

Despite Costa's ongoing fitness issues, and his rising yellow card count, Mourinho reveals that he won't be resting the striker: "At the moment we feel he is free of his old injury. Costa has four yellow cards but no way will I rest him, if he gets a fifth, he gets a fifth. The next match is always the most important."

Mourinho is asked whether he considers his side to be "world class". He responds: "I don't compare ourselves with others. We have a situation now, but our distance to our opponents tomorrow can increase or decrease. I compare us with the next opponent. In this moment I don't think about being champion, I just think about winning against West Brom."

Looking ahead to next week's Champions League match, the manager says: "If Chelsea lose to Schalke and Sporting we finish in the Europa League. Our first objective is to finish second and make it to the last 16. Our next objective is to finish first."

That's all from Mourinho for now, so join us again from an hour before kickoff to see if Chelsea can maintain their unbeaten start to the season. Until then, thanks for joining me this lunchtime, goodbye.

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