When we last checked in with Chelsea, they were in 15th place in the Barclays Premier League. That's not exactly a solid start to the season after winning the league last season. Also, The Times put out a fun little story that revealed the humble New York Red Bulls are the root cause of their problems after they lost, 4-2, to the MLS giant in a July friendly:

In the immediate aftermath of that match in New Jersey, in July, Mourinho initially ignored his team after watching them concede four second-half goals to a side comprised largely of Red Bulls Academy youngsters, but brought the game up during a team talk several weeks later, in which he turned on his players and accused them of losing to a "Mickey Mouse team". This outburst infuriated several players, as they had moved on from that defeat and did not appreciate being castigated for it long after the event.

Could things possibly get worse for everyone's favorite club and manager? Apparently so.

Chelsea dropped their League Cup match to Stoke City in a shootout after playing to a 1-1 draw. After nine converted penalties, Stoke's Jack Butland saved Eden Hazard's effort and clinched a spot in the next round.

However, this loss was good enough for Jose Mourinho who desperately attempted to spin the result as a positive:

"What the players did tonight is face the people that write and say, 'you are stupid'."

But what if the criticism isn't coming from the people writing and instead coming from inside the locker room? You know, from you. Man, it sure sounds like Mourinho is acting a bit... goofy. Surely he's taking the... mickey. Maybe he needs a change of scenery and then he'll be fresh as a... daisy.

Anyway, the New York Red Bulls' curse -- also known as "The Curse of Sean Davis" -- on Chelsea's season continues. But who is actually cursed? The club itself or the brash Jose Mourinho? I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens when he inevitably leaves (for Monaco? Paris St-Germain or Inter Milan?) and is replaced by another manager (Carlo Ancelotti, Guus Hiddink, Pep Guardiola?).