Chelsea dressing room was fine under Jose Mourinho, reveals John Obi Mikel

Mourinho was sacked because of a 'palpable discord' between manager and players

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Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has said that the atmosphere in the first-team dressing room was "fine" under Jose Mourinho.

The Portuguese coach was sacked earlier this month with his side sitting just a point above the relegation zone. Following his dismissal, the club's technical director Michael Emenalo claimed that a "palpable discord" between the manager and his players had emerged, which forced the club hierarchy's hand.

However, Mikel, who played his 350th game for Chelsea in the 2-2 draw with Watford and was solid in a holding midfield role in the 0-0 draw at Manchester United, said the mood in the dressing room was good under the former boss.

“I think the atmosphere was fine, always fine but we just weren’t getting the results, I don’t know what it was," said Mikel.

"Jose is a fantastic manager and he will always be a fantastic guy. Sometimes football is a cruel game, you have to move on.

"He’s come back second time, won the club another trophy. Now the change has been made, we have to move on.”

Mikel also refused to give up on Chelsea finishing in the top four and securing Champions League football for next season, despite the Blues 15 points behind Tottenham.

"Top four? I don't think it's gone," he added.

"We've got lots of games to catch up and if we keep going in this direction and keeping clean sheets, we will definitely score goals. We've had three games now without losing so are making the right steps."