Former Chelsea defender Graham Roberts reacts to the sacking of Jose Mourinho on BBC Radio 5 live: "He came in and said he was the 'Special One' but he's not the 'Special One' no more. He will be thinking 90% of those players have let him down.

"I think as Pep Guardiola is saying he is leaving maybe Roman Abramovich has thought we'd try our hardest to get him in. He wants to come to London, that's the rumour going around."

It is unlikely Jose Mourinho will be out of management for long, given his record of success at Chelsea and other top European clubs.

He guided Porto and Inter Milan to Champions League glory in 2004 and 2010 respectively, then led Real Madrid to the Spanish La Liga title in 2012.

At 52, he is still some way from retirement age, but he has expressed a wish to coach the English and Portuguese national sides at some stage in his career.

Will that make his candidature less appealing to the kind of club he is used to managing, such as German giants Bayern Munich, rising French stars Paris St-Germain or Premier League duo Manchester United or Manchester City?

Image source, Getty Images

Porto was the club where Jose Mourinho made his name - most notably by lifting the Champions League title with the Portuguese side in 2004.

But he came a cropper on his old stomping ground as Porto won 2-1 and the Blues slipped to third in their Champions League group.

Chelsea had suffered three defeats in the first five league games by the time they hosted Arsenal. 

Defender Kurt Zouma - preferred to dropped captain John Terry - headed the opening goal after 53 minutes and Chelsea secured only their second win in six Premier League games when Eden Hazard's shot flew in off Calum Chambers late on.  

Yet in a fiery match, Arsenal defender Gabriel was sent off seconds before half-time for kicking out at Diego Costa. Mourinho later said that striker Diego Costa was "man of the match".

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, BBC Sport

Jose Mourinho's sacking "will tarnish him", says Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer.

"Nothing surprises me with football managers nowadays," Shearer tells BBC Radio 5 live.

"I have never known a capitulation like it from a football club. I have never known players perform like they did in a season and then be so bad now. It is unbelievable. 

"It will without doubt hurt him. He tried leaving players out that didn't work. He tried criticising players in public, that didn't work. He tried protecting players, that didn't work. Whatever he has done it just has not worked. No one could have predicted this."

Image source, bbc

Official confirmation now from Chelsea, external who say they and manager Jose Mourinho have parted company by mutual consent.

"The club wishes to make clear Jose leaves us on good terms and will always remain a much-loved, respected and significant figure at Chelsea," says a club statement. 

"His legacy at Stamford Bridge and in England has long been guaranteed and he will always be warmly welcomed back to the club.

"The club’s focus is now on ensuring our talented squad reaches its potential.

"There will be no further comment until a new appointment is made."

By the time Chelsea travelled to Merseyside to face Everton on 12 September, Jose Mourinho's side had four points from the first four games.

Steven Naismith scored a hat-trick as Everton won 3-1 to leave the champions languishing 16th in the table.

Former Blackburn striker Chris Sutton on Final Score said: "This is the first time in his Chelsea career that Jose Mourinho has been under real, real pressure."

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Crystal Palace on the 29 August was Jose Mourinho's 100th Premier League home game - and only his second defeat in that run.

Jose Mourinho's judgement seemed to have been validated when Radamel Falcao - a summer gamble in the transfer market - headed in a 79th minute equaliser.

But Joel Ward nodded an even later winner and Falcao has not scored since. 

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Chelsea were already playing catch-up in the table when they travelled to Manchester City on the second weekend of the Premier League season.

It was a day to forget for the champions as they were comfortably beaten 3-0 and captain John Terry was substituted at half-time.

Chelsea had one point from their first two games.

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Down to 10 men and being held 2-2 by Swansea at home on the opening weekend of the season, last year's star player Eden Hazard goes down injured for Chelsea.

Chelsea's medical staff - club doctor Eva Carneiro and head physio Jon Fearn - run on immediately to treat the Belgian.

Mourinho says after the match that they were "impulsive and naive" and suggested they did not understand the game.

Carneiro left the club in the wake of the manager's criticism and, although the FA cleared Mourinho of making discriminatory remarks to her, she is making a constructive dismissal claim.

Former England captain and current BBC Match of the Day pundit Alan Shearer has given his view on Chelsea's sacking of Jose Mourinho.

"Prior to this season, whoever you spoke to, whether it was John Terry or Frank Lampard, they spoke in glowing terms of their manager," says Shearer. 

"But for the players to have performed the way they have for him this season shows something drastic has happened at Chelsea this summer. That will come out, it often does.

"You cannot have players play so well last season and then like they have done. The likes of Eden Hazard wouldn't get in a second division side this season."

Hardik Vishna: What's the chance of Jose taking over at Man Utd by January and winning the league?

James Wall: Chelsea should go for Tony Pulis - relegation survival specialist.

Ben Rabinovich: The Unemployed One.

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• Three Premier League titles, two of those in his first spell between 2004 and 2007
• FA Cup, in 2007
• League Cup three times - in 2005, 2007 and 2015

Jose Mourinho leaves Chelsea just a point off the relegation zone and 20 points behind Leicester.

Champions League qualification via one of the top four spots in the Premier League looks almost impossible.

However, the Blues are through to the last 16 of European football's biggest club competition, where they will face French champions Paris St-Germain in February and March.

Mourinho only signed a new four-year contract on 7 August and is Chelsea's most successful manager.

Former Chelsea and England defender Graham Roberts has just been talking on BBC Radio 5 live about the Blues' decision to sack Jose Mourinho.

"I don't think they can play any worse, they have been absolutely diabolical this year," says Roberts.

"Some of the players need to look at their own stature at the club. They have let the club down, the supporters down. Some of them came back overweight for pre-season. That's not how professional footballers do it these days."

Wow. What a story. Please send us your views on the sacking of Jose Mourinho to #bbcsportsday.