Chelsea widen rift with Arsenal

Mourinho calls on Dein to quit

Chelsea have widened their rift with Arsenal by releasing a statement supporting Jose Mourinho's criticism of Gunners vice-chairman David Dein.

The Football Association may punish Mourinho for claiming Dein should not be on its board as well as Arsenal's.

A Blues statement said of late there had been "critical comments from Arsenal about key individuals at Chelsea, and the club as a whole."

It added: "Like any club, we believe we are entitled to defend ourselves."

The statement also said Arsenal's alleged criticisms "were not isolated incidents" and said not only was the club prepared to defend itself but was "fully supportive of Jose Mourinho when he does so."

Mourinho said he felt Dein's position on the FA board created a conflict of interest with his Gunners' role.

He pointed to the fact that Chelsea play away from home more often than Arsenal on the weekends after Champions League ties, and that Arsenal usually get an extra day's rest by playing on Sundays.

Our observation on the fixtures issue is purely a factual one - that we have five away matches in the Premiership following the Champions League group games Chelsea statement

The FA said it was "extremely disappointed" by Mourinho's comments.

In a statement, it added: "Some of those views expressed by Mourinho are unnecessary, unhelpful, bad for the image of the game and inaccurate."

The FA said Dein was one of four members on its board elected by the 20 Premier League clubs - including Chelsea - to represent their views within the FA.

And the Premier League also rounded on Mourinho as they defended the insinuation that Arsenal are given preferential treatment when it comes to their fixture schedule.

"The comments made by Jose Mourinho regarding the selection of Premier League fixtures and the role of David Dein within the Football Association are not only unfounded, but also display a lack of understanding," said a premier League statement.

"Our fixtures are drawn up through a complex process with many criteria being taken into account, such as the pairing of clubs who play in the same town or city and home and away rotation.

"Whether a club are playing in the Champions League has no bearing whatsoever on how their following weekend fixtures are allocated.

"David Dein has, every year since the formation of the Premier League, been elected by our member clubs to represent them at the Football Association.

"Clearly he enjoys their confidence and his service is valued. David Dein has no formal or informal role in any disciplinary matters concerning Premier League clubs."

Mourinho makes himself an easy target for the FA, Uefa and the press From BR Have your say on 606

Mourinho could find himself in disciplinary trouble before a ball has even been kicked in the new season as the FA are scrutinising his remarks to see whether they warrant any action.

The FA statement added: "If any club or official has any comment or complaint to make about the role of any individual within the game, there are channels available to do this through clubs to the football authorities - not by individuals in a press conference.

"The FA is currently studying the comments made by Mr Mourinho."

But now Chelsea have responded.

The Blues statement issued on Wednesday read: "We have seen the statements issued by the Football Association and the Premier League today in response to comments made by Jose Mourinho.

"We are very aware of our responsibilities to uphold the image of the game and do not want to get involved in conflict with either the FA or the Premier League, neither does Jose.

"Any concerns we might have over issues of governance within football, or other topics of debate, will be communicated through the appropiate channels.

"Our observation on the fixtures issue is purely a factual one, that we have five away matches in the Premiership following the Champions League group games."