Jose Mourinho refused to
appear before the press in the aftermath of Chelsea's 4-1 victory
over West Ham at Upton Park.
An accomplished performance from the champions on their trip across
the capital takes them to within three points of league leaders
Manchester United, but at the final whistle, their manager was
nowhere to be seen.
Mourinho's absence was explained as being a `club decision' which
had `the backing of all his staff', but it will in all likelihood
only fuel speculation further that there are problems behind the
scenes at Stamford Bridge.
A Chelsea spokesman went on to confirm that the Chelsea players and
their staff received a hostile reception upon arriving at the
ground, with a missile having cracked a window on the team
coach.
"It was a rock of some sort and it cracked a window of the coach.
But none of the players were injured and none of them were sat by
the window that was hit."
While Mourinho remained silent, one man more than ready to speak to
the press was two-goal hero Shaun Wright-Phillips, who conceded it
was a fantastic feeling to score a pair of stunning goals.
Wright-Phillips told the website: "The feeling is really
indescribable but I have got to put it out to the lads, they have
believed in me since the start and that makes it easier.
"It is only normal the more games you play the better you get and
it is starting to come through as I wanted.
"We knew what we had to do. We are behind United and we have to win
every game to put them under pressure.
"It was another bridge to cross and the determination is
unbelievable."
While Wright-Phillips enjoyed a night to remember, team-mate Frank
Lampard had to endure a torrent of abuse on his old
stomping-ground, as the West Ham faithful greeted his every touch
with a crescendo of boos.
The England man, though, came through the game unscathed and after,
was gracious enough to accept the abuse that came his way.
"It inspires me. It doesn't bother me, I enjoy it. It was a bit of
banter and there are no hard feelings."