Has Mourinho Gone Too Far?

There seems to be more trouble for Chelsea first team doctor, Eva Caneiro, as Chelsea manager, Jose Mourinho, has elected to limit Eva Caneiro's influence on the squad after Mourinho publicly criticised her for rushing into the pitch to treat Eden Hazard who went down seemingly injured while Chelsea were hanging on in their premier league game opener against Swansea.

According to reports, Dr Eva's job description will be modified. She will no longer attend training sessions, be in the team's hotel nor be on the bench on match day. She however, will retain her post as first team doctor.

Mourinho was visibly upset with Dr Eva as her treatment of Hazard on the pitch caused Chelsea to be temporarily left with only 8 outfield players as Thibaut Courtois had been sent off earlier for a professional foul on Bafetimbi Gomis. And as the rules state, a player who has to be treated by his team's medical staff has to be taken off the pitch in order to curtail deliberate time wasting by players.

After the game, Mourinho criticised his medical staff for their failure to understand the game and categorically stated that Hazard was not injured but merely exhausted and should have not been treated.

If the reports of the Daily Telegraph, who broke the story about the shake up in the Chelsea medical department, are to be believed then it is a shake up gone too far. Dr Eva's rescue mission firstly, was not the reason Chelsea failed to beat Swansea and her intervention did not lead to Chelsea conceding a third goal.

One can only imagine Mourinho's reaction had Chelsea fallen behind because of the incident. And even if she had not intruded, there is no guarantee  that Hazard in his tired state would have changed the outcome of the match had he remained on the pitch.

Is Mourinho's reform in the Chelsea medical department a coincidence? It has to be said that last season, Mourinho clamoured for improvement from his medical team. But it appears the Swansea fiasco has become the catalyst Mourinho needed to speed up the improvement he wants.

But is Mourinho's handling of the situation okay? Will there be repercussions that could affect the team?  Are Dr Eva Caneiro's days with Chelsea numbered?

The handling of the situation has been far from okay even though Jose Mourinho could be forgiven for losing his cool and showing his frustrations at the manner in which the game was panning out and thus, take his frustrations out on his medical staff. He however, regained his composure quickly and deflected attention from Chelsea's poor showing to Dr Eva's 'mistake'.

It is unclear for now how Mourinho will structure the match day medical staff but it has to be said that his medical staff have been excellent in keeping a large number of his players fit, most especially the key members of the squad. And axing Dr Eva for an action which wasn't totally her fault (Hazard should share some of the blame too for acting like he needed medical attention) is tantamount to looking for a scape goat. 

Dr Eva's primary responsibility is to provide medical attention to the players and that is exactly what she did. The Daily Telegraph also reported that Hazard actually signalled the medical staff to come to his aid. Therefore, Mourinho should have reserved his criticism for Hazard whose attempt at creating an injury break backfired.

Mourinho wants his staff to understand the gamesmanship that go on in a football match but this re-organisation of his medical staff looks more punitive rather than educational.

With Dr Eva's role change taking effect immediately, will she leave the club? Mourinho most likely must have tendered an apology to Dr Eva privately for the public dressing down but will Dr Eva not feel undermined by her boss and as a result leave if not now but in the future? Only time will tell.