Jose Mourinho’s released Chelsea XI: Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and the other ones that got away
What happened to eleven Stamford Bridge stars who the Special One didn't think were all that special?
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JOSE MOURINHO'S track record of getting the best out of his players is undeniable, and he has the trophies to prove it.
But every now and then there was a world class player who just wouldn't get a look in under the Special One.
Here are 11 hugely talented Chelsea stars who Mourinho probably shouldn't have allowed to flee the nest.
Petr Cech
Signed when Mourinho arrived at the club in 2004, Cech was undisputed King between the sticks for eleven years.
In 2015 the club decided they couldn't risk alienating his long-term successor Thibaut Courtois, so regrettably let the Czech Republic international move to Arsenal for £10m.
Many at Stamford Bridge still believe Cech is the better of the two goalkeepers and should've been kept around a little longer.
Ryan Bertrand
Jose Mourinho's record with young players has always left a bit to be desired and Bertrand could count himself as one of the victims of the Special One's 'If you ain't good enough, you ain't old enough!' policy.
The left-back has followed in Ashley Cole's footsteps, making ten appearances for England in the same position, but we will never know if he could have repeated the feat at Stamford Bridge.
After nine loan spells in nine years, Mourinho sold him to Southampton for £10m in 2015.
Robert Huth
The German made 42 appearances for Chelsea but never looked like becoming a first team regular under Mourinho.
He left for Middlesbrough for £6m in 2006 and ten years later he shocked the world by taking his former manager's Premier League title off him with Leicester.
David Luiz
Nobody at Chelsea regrets Mourinho's 2014 decision to sell Luiz to PSG for £50m - the highest ever fee received for a centre-back.
But eyebrows were raised when Antonio Conte handed £30m back to the Parisians for his return to Stamford Bridge this season.
Once a striker trapped in a centre-back's shirt, Luiz has surprised everyone by excelling in Conte's back three.
Filipe Luis
It's difficult to understand why things didn't work out for the Brazilian in the Premier League.
Never shy of a biting tackle with Diego Simeone's feisty Atletico Madrid team, he looked like he would at least be able to provide competition within Mourinho's squad when he signed for £15.8m.
But a season later he was sold back to Atletico having made just 15 appearances.
Kevin De Bruyne
If there's one name Mourinho's critics will never let him forget, it's Kevin De Bruyne.
The Belgian was sold to Wolfsburg in 2014 for just £18m, and then picked up by Man City 18 months later for a club record £55m.
He would rival Sergio Aguero as City's most important man with Pep Guardiola labelling him the second best player in the world, after Lionel Messi.
Frank Lampard
Lampard was 36 when he left Chelsea and most fans were willing to accept his time had come.
But they watched in horror as he joined Manchester City through the back door (on loan from their American affiliate New York City FC) and scored a late equaliser against Chelsea at the Etihad.
Lampard has announced he will leave New York this winter but hasn't confirmed whether or not he will retire.
Michael Essien
The Ghanaian looked pricey when he arrived from Lyon for £24.4m in 2005.
But he repaid Chelsea with a host of special goals in key matches before leaving for AC Milan on a free transfer in 2014.
Last year he joined Panathinaikos where he sat out the first three months of the season with injury and infuriated the Greek fans with a string of poor performances. He was released in summer and has yet to find a new club.
Andre Schurrle
An excellent record of 20 goals in 55 games for Germany tells you all you need to know about Schurrle's capabilities, but he just couldn't make it work at Stamford Bridge.
In 2015 he joined De Bruyne at Wolfsburg for £22m and was a similarly popular figure at the German club.
An exciting move to Borussia Dortmund followed for the 26-year-old this summer.
Romelu Lukaku
Mourinho did want to keep Lukaku at Chelsea but simply wasn't willing to give the Belgian regular first team football ahead of Diego Costa.
The Special One said when he sold him to Everton for £28m in 2014: "He was not highly motivated to come to a competitive situation at Chelsea."
But under Antonio Conte, Chelsea made repeated attempts in the summer to bring him back to Stamford Bridge.
Juan Mata
The Spaniard spectacularly failed to earn Mourinho's trust at Chelsea as the Portuguese boss became fed up with how little he offered defensively.
In 2014 he joined Man United for £37.1m, where he would end up playing under... Jose Mourinho.
Astonishingly, Mata has been one of the first names on Mourinho's teamsheet at Old Trafford, delighting Red Devils with his goals and work rate.
