Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will persist with struggling midfield trio Cesc Fabregas , Nemanja Matic and Oscar as he refuses to shuffle his squad so late in the season . Mourinho had to answer questions about his three midfielders after the hard-fought 2-1 home win over Stoke . Asked whether Oscar is struggling , as he was substituted at half-time , Mourinho said : ‘ No , I don ’ t think he had a bad performance , I just think he was not good enough , which is a huge difference . Oscar tries a flick that does n't come off during a disappointing display against Stoke on Saturday . Jose Mourinho insists he will stick by his players despite the three midfielders ' decline in form recently . Cesc Fabregas runs with the ball , but the assists have dried up for the Spanish international in recent weeks . ‘ For me football is not just mathematics . When some people write that Fabregas drops his level because the number of assists are not the same , the number of assists are probably not the same because the player that he assists does not score. ’ ‘ Matic , he was suspended , and after the suspension he was injured celebrating in the final , so he went back and he was not in the best condition . ‘ I always think stability is very important in a team , and it ’ s not in April that you are going to make important changes. ’ Eden Hazard was Chelsea 's best player , scoring a penalty before Charlie Adam stunned the hosts with an equaliser from his own half . Loic Remy sealed the points , after Hazard laid the chance on a plate for him , and kept the Blues in command at the top of the table . Oscar was withdrawn at half time but his manager insisted he was not struggling and will bounce back . Nemanja Matic holds off a tackle in midfield , but even the defensive midfielder has been short of his best .
Cesc ##lough has not been at his best since start of the year . Oscar was eliminated at half - time in win over derby City on Saturday . Nemanja was ' not in the best form ' according to Jose reports . But Chelsea was determined to stick with his stars in title race .