Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has insisted that his team are not fighting relegation, despite currently being just one point above the drop zone in the Premier League.
Last season's English champions lost their ninth league game on Monday in the form of a 2-1 defeat to Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
Mourinho has conceded that his team are no longer contenders for a top four spot as they are 14 points adrift of a Champions League place after 16 games.
However, the Portuguese coach is refusing to accept that his Blues are involved in a battle to stay in the top flight.
"I accept we are [near] the relegation zone but I don't accept we are in a relegation battle," Mourinho told reporters. "You look at the table and we are there, but you think you are in a relegation battle if you are there for three or four months. I don't think that."
Mourinho also claimed that he felt "betrayed" by some of his players.