There was to be no instant response following the midweek debacle against Porto, as Jose Mourinho’s charges were outplayed in the second half to continue their poor league start

Chelsea took an early lead at Stamford Bridge but defensive fragility cost them dearly as Southampton fought back to win 3-1 and keep the champions rooted in the bottom half of the table.

Manager Jose Mourinho tasted Premier League defeat for the third time in just seven games, the same amount of reverses the Blues suffered in the entire campaign last season.

It appeared that Chelsea were set to bounce back from Champions League disappointment against Porto when Willian fired home a sumptuous free-kick to open the scoring.

But Southampton were determined to take three points from London, and after Steven Davis equalised shortly before the break further goals from Sadio Mane and Graziano Pelle sealed Chelsea’s fate.

•Sourced from Goal.com. Photo shows Mourinho shouting instructions in vain . . . this evening against Southampton at Stamford Bridge.