Jose Mourinho was no match for Laurent Blanc, opening the door for Chelsea's exit

After all the pre-game blustering and the cliched mind games, Jose Mourinho was caught out. He was out-thought and out-fought by his opposite number, Paris St-Germain coach Laurent Blanc, and under the beaming floodlights of Stamford Bridge, the team's unappealing, cracked skin was laid bare as they exited the UEFA Champions League.

Of course, had the Londoners won, the side's pragmatism and cynicism would've been equal parts criticized and lauded. Mourinho has carved out a remarkably successful career owing to his Machiavellian approach, almost revelling in consistently walking a moral tightrope. On one hand, he's a master of the dark arts. On the other, he's an indisputable winner and beloved by his players and staff as a progressive, intuitive master. With his cheeky smiles, his pouting lips, his puppy-dog eyes, sallow skin and expertise in front of cameras, he's usually categorized as a lovable rogue, a character ripe for imitation. But that's when he wins. Wednesday night, as his Chelsea side were frustrated by the combative and determined approach from their French guests, there was little to admire and plenty to abhor.

On Sky Sports' coverage of the game, former Liverpool captain Jamie Carragher commented on how Chelsea “would never be loved” and a quick glance at social media that night and across the UK press the following morning certainly backs up the point. There appears a genuine dislike for the club and with Mourinho in charge a Chelsea defeat is greeted with even more gleeful celebration. But it wasn't supposed to be like this.

When his Real Madrid team were knocked out of the Champions League in 2013, Mourinho bemoaned the lack of fondness for him in Spain. In the immediate aftermath of his side's semi-final defeat to Borussia Dortmund, Mourinho was canvassing for a new job, pushing his own agenda. Speaking to British channel ITV minutes after being eliminated from the tournament, he looked down the lens of a camera, those puppy-dog eyes working overtime.

“I want to be where people love me to be.”

Later, he went into more detail.

“I know in England I am loved. I know I am loved by some clubs, especially one. I am loved by the fans and the media who treat me in a fair way. I know in Spain it is different because many people hate me.”

His reputation took a battering in Madrid because the club suffered defeats so often to Barcelona and, left irritable by the Catalans' superiority and the romanticism that accompanied Pep Guardiola's revolution there, Mourinho resorted to mindless bullying as he desperately sought to stay relevant. There were the usual mind games but the needle and tension and unsettling subplots quickly spread to the pitch. Forever more, Mourinho's time in Spain will be remembered for his eye-gouge on then-Barcelona assistant coach Tito Villanova in 2011.

Because his Real Madrid team lost high-profile games, it left Mourinho's approach and philosophy vulnerable to attacks. As the world was left intrigued by each passing El Clasico, they were also repeatedly pitched a “Good versus Evil” narrative and Mourinho was an easy villain, eventually portrayed as such by the normally-supportive local press. Naturally, there was nothing graceful about Mourinho's response to the criticism. Instead, he whined. And then he left.

Chelsea brought him “home” in 2013. He was the self-anointed “Happy One” and the international soccer media lapped it up. This was supposedly a calmer Mourinho, an older and wiser version, perhaps scarred by events in Madrid. Yet, where he was a breath of fresh air in the stodgy, stale environment of Premier League soccer in the mid- 2000s, he hasn't caught the zeitgeist in the same way since returning there. His Chelsea side will win the league at a canter in only his second season back but does that matter? It's been a boring and predictable title race. That's certainly not Chelsea's fault but is it a coincidence?

His unique style brought him deserved praise and trophies at Porto before he swaggered into the Premier League and ripped up the rulebook there, too. Next, he worked his magic in Italy and took Inter Milan to two league titles and a Champions League before the wheels came off. And there hasn't been the same electricity, the same effect on Chelsea and English soccer since he's been back. As much as he may have felt the country longed for his return, it didn't. Chelsea won titles without him. They won a Champions League without him. In his absence, other notable soccer figures pitched up at Stamford Bridge like Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez and Andre Villas-Boas – intelligent, informed and interesting soccer people. The team remained competitive. The focus was the team. Now, like wherever he goes, the focus is Mourinho because he makes it about him.

Wednesday night, Chelsea were an extension of Mourinho, as typified by the behaviour of striker Diego Costa. A magnificent soccer player, a ferocious and imposing figure, he was well-shackled by an annoyingly persistent PSG defence. His running battle with David Luiz irritated him, too, the referee seemingly so ignorant to what the striker perceived as rough treatment. As the game went on, Costa began to grow more hysterical. Any time he ended up on the ground, he wanted a free kick or penalty to be awarded. At one stage, when referee Bjorn Kuipers waved away more of his protests, Costa repeatedly thumped his hands into the ground. As tantrums go, it was as impressive as it was infantile.

Chelsea were bettered and didn't like it. So, just as their manager would do, they sulked and moaned and kicked and screamed.

And if Jose Mourinho still harbours hopes of being loved in England, he's got to come up with something a little more original.