Why did Mourinho have to go?

(CNN) -- Ego, power and politics. To understand Jose Mourinho's exit from Chelsea, it is necessary to embrace these three words and realize his dismissal was not a football decision.

One defeat and two draws. That was the series of "negative" results that the Portuguese manager had overseen in the last couple of weeks. If that was the reason for his sacking, then every week dozens, if not hundreds, of coaches would be losing their jobs.

Sure, Chelsea were not exciting, even last season they were far from impressive, but they still won the FA Cup, the Carling Cup, finished second in the league and made the semi-finals of the Champions League. Far from a disappointing season, by any standard, so whatever you hear about improving performance is not true.

So back to the first three words that started this article: Ego, power and politics.

Ego
I have known Jose for a good four years now, and I will be the first to confirm that he has a big ego. A huge ego for that matter. He has to control everything and he cannot be contradicted in any way.

However, his style produced results, and football is a world where people live and die with their results.

So what went wrong? Well, Roman Abramovich and Peter Kenyon also have egos and they were tired of playing second fiddle to Jose. They also wanted control of the club, and felt their will was constantly jeopardized by the manager.

Power
Everybody wants it, but not everyone knows what to do with it. Roman Abramovich wrote the checks, and he gave Mourinho one of the best squads around in the world of football. So, ultimately, he was pulling the strings.

When he signed Andryi Shevchenko and Michael Ballack, he wanted them to become stars at Stamford Bridge. But guess what? Mourinho had other ideas, and both players struggled to adapt to his style. This situation irritated the owner, and he felt some of his power over the team had disappeared. It was the start of the end.

Politics
There are so many bodies in the boardroom that politics comes into the mix. Bruce Buck, Eugene Tenenbaum, Avram Grant, Pini Zahavi, Peter Kenyon, Frank Arnesen -- all these employees had something to do with Jose's demise.

Was it a conspiracy? Not as such, but as confidants of Abramovich, and as ambitious businessmen, all of them wanted a piece of the pie, and they knew Mourinho was not someone who would give up his. In the end, the political influences won over the football facts.

So what now for Chelsea?

It will be difficult for Grant, the caretaker manager, to get the players on his side. Most of them admired and respected Mourinho and will not easily listen to someone they feel could have contributed to his exit from the club.

But life will go on and matches will be played. I just wonder whether the next decision at Stamford Bridge will have to do with politics or football... E-mail to a friend