Jose Mourinho’s mind games are the thing of Premier League legend, with a cheeky remark or a well timed barb enough to get the press debating relentlessly and opposition managers and players second guessing their own powers. But it was on his own players that he turned that approach yesterday.

Mourinho left his team alone at half-time, giving his players the silent treatment at the break when they were drawing 0-0 with Fulham at Craven Cottage.

“Normally I give the players two or three minutes to arrive, to change boots or shirts and after that they know that I start talking,” Mourinho said.

“And they were there, ready for me. But I was not ready for them. I decided not to speak — because if I start speaking about the first half I would need more than 10 minutes,” he added.

“I think they showed they are very intelligent — without words, you understand what is in the mind of a person, especially if you know the person. I think they understood the first half was really poor and they transformed it into a fantastic second half.”

Chelsea won the game 3-1, with Andre Schurrle scoring a hat-trick in the space of 17 second half minutes. The Blues are now 4 points clear at the top of the Premier League table.