Jose Mourinho will be aware that history is against him when he takes Manchester United to Stamford Bridge on Saturday. His recent record against his former employers is pretty ordinary to say the least.
But it didn't always used to be like that. The Portugese manager's record against his former clubs was - for a while at least - absolutely stunning. Mourinho went 13 games unbeaten against former clubs when he was in charge of Leiria and Porto. These stats include two cup finals and six matches against Benfica.
More recently, Mourinho has lost five and won five of his last 10 against former clubs. This included four defeats from six against Chelsea since joining Manchester United. The worst of those reverses was in 2016 as Chelsea, then led by Antonio Conte, won 4-0 at the Bridge. It was the season when Chelsea went on to lift the Premier League trophy again.
Saturday marks the ninth time that Mourinho has faced his old side. He also managed Inter for a Champions League tie with Chelsea eight years ago.
Manchester United go to London as underdogs with Chelsea looking to continue their fine start to the season under new boss Maurizio Sarri. The Blues have registered 20 points from a possible 24 and have not lost at home to United since October 2012.
United came from 2-0 down to beat Newcastle 3-2 in their last Premier League outing at Old Trafford on a day when Mourinho was infuriated by reports in the morning's Mirror that he was about to be sacked.